81 FR 43575 - Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Federal Register Volume 81, Issue 128 (July 5, 2016)

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 128 (Tuesday, July 5, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43575-43577]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2016-15742]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE


Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

    The Department of Commerce will submit to the Office of Management 
and Budget (OMB) for clearance the following proposal for collection of 
information under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 
U.S.C. Chapter 35).
    Agency: U.S. Census Bureau.
    Title: Address Canvassing Testing.
    OMB Control Number: 0607-XXXX.
    Form Number(s):

DF-31DA(E/S) Confidentiality Notice.
LiMA Screenshots.

    Type of Request: Regular Submission.
    Number of Respondents: 86,250.
    Average Hours per Response: 5 minutes per Household.
    Burden Hours: 7,188.
    Needs and Uses: During the years preceding the 2020 Census, the 
Census Bureau will pursue its commitment to reduce the costs of 
conducting a decennial census, while maintaining our commitment to 
quality. The goal of Reengineering Address Canvassing is to ensure an 
accurate address frame is developed utilizing innovative methodologies 
and data for updating the Master Address File (MAF)/Topologically 
Integrated Geographic Encoding and Referencing (TIGER) System 
throughout the decade. The Census Bureau plans to test Address 
Canvassing during the Fall of 2016 in the Address Canvassing Test, and 
in the Spring of 2017 as part of the 2017 Puerto Rico Census Test. Both 
tests will include two major components of the reengineered Address 
Canvassing operation: In-Office Address Canvassing and In-Field Address 
Canvassing. The purpose of the tests is to determine the accuracy and 
feasibility of some of the planned innovations for Address Canvassing. 
The Census Bureau believes that there are other means for accomplishing 
the address list updates and determining which areas have housing 
changes without canvassing every single block in the field just before 
the census as was done in previous censuses. These tests will examine 
these new methods, which will allow decisions to be made about their 
feasibility for use within the decennial census.
    The following objectives are crucial to a successful Address 
Canvassing Test and 2017 Puerto Rico Census Test:
     Implementing all planned 2020 Census In-Office Address 
Canvassing processes, including Interactive Review (IR), Active Block 
Resolution (ABR), MAF Updating and Identification of the In-Field 
Address Canvassing workload.
     Evaluating the effectiveness of online training for Field 
Supervisors and Field Representatives.
     Measuring the effectiveness of In-Office Address 
Canvassing through In-Field Address Canvassing.
     Integrating multiple information technology applications 
to create one seamless operational data collection, control and 
management system.
    The Address Canvassing Test occurs in two sites within the 
continental United States. Each site is comprised of 4,000 blocks with 
up to 125,000 addresses in each site. All living quarters in the test 
sites are included in the In-Office Address Canvassing workload, as 
well as the In-Field Address Canvassing workload. For the In-Field 
Address Canvassing data collection, listers will knock on every door to 
ask residents about their living quarters. In addition to the Address 
Canvassing Test, the Census Bureau will also test the Address 
Canvassing operation as part of the 2017 Puerto Rico Census Test. This 
information is new compared to the information that was included in the 
Federal Register Notice for the Address Canvassing Test. The addition 
of the 2017 Puerto Rico Census Test Address Canvassing necessitated a 
name change for this package to ``Address Canvassing Testing'' from the 
``Address Canvassing Test'' that appeared in the earlier Federal 
Register Notice. The Address Canvassing operations in the 2017 Puerto 
Rico Census Test will occur in the winter of 2017 and in the sites 
selected for the 2017 Puerto Rico Census Test. This universe consists 
of an estimated 95,000 housing units in the selected areas. The 
methodology and test objectives for the Address Canvassing operation in 
the 2017 Puerto Rico Census Test are the same as the Address Canvassing 
Test.

Supporting Documents About the 2020 Census Design and the Address 
Canvassing Test Objectives

    We are submitting with the package the following documents with the 
purpose stated:
    1. The 2020 Census Operational Plan documents at a high-level the 
objectives for the census tests already completed, as well as those 
planned for the future. This document shows the current planned design 
of the 2020 Census and identifies design decisions made, as well as 
remaining decisions to be made using census test results. https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/2020-census/planning-management/memo-series/2020-memo-2015_02.html.
    2. The 2020 Census Detailed Operational Plan for the Address 
Canvassing Operation complements the U.S. Census Bureau's 2020 Census 
Operational Plan. This document describes the objectives and procedures 
for all aspects of the Address Canvassing program, including a 
description of the major tasks involved in the implementation, the 
overall program workflow, and the overall resources needed to support 
the effort. https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/2020-census/planning-management/memo-series/2020-memo-2015_04.html.
    3. The 2020 Census Research and Testing Management Plan defines the 
high-level research for the life-cycle of the program, thereby 
providing direction for research and testing activities and for 
decision-making based on the outcomes. https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/2020-census/planning-management/memo-series/2020-memo-2015_03.html.
    In addition, we are submitting planning documents that list our 
Goals, Objectives, and Success Criteria for the Address Canvassing Test 
and the 2017 Puerto Rico Census Test, which outlines the research 
questions related to the design decisions to be made using the results 
of this test.

Address Canvassing Test--Buncombe County, North Carolina and St. Louis 
(Part), Missouri

    For the Address Canvassing Test, the areas within Buncombe County, 
North Carolina and St. Louis (part), Missouri were chosen based on a 
variety of characteristics:
     One site is experiencing population and housing unit 
growth and contains a mix of urban, suburban and rural territory.
     One site is a city experiencing sustained population 
decline.
     Both sites contain a mix of address styles, such as city-
style addresses (i.e., 101 Main St.), non city-style addresses (i.e., 
Rural Route 2, Box 12) and location descriptions (i.e., Tan Mobile 
Home).

[[Page 43576]]

     The urban site contains a mix of housing types and 
conditions, including small and large multi-unit structures, 
commercial-to-residential conversions, and mixed commercial and 
residential uses, and residential redevelopment, as well as an area in 
which housing units are vacant, uninhabitable, and have been 
demolished.
    These characteristics can help the Census Bureau refine its 
operational plans for the 2020 Census by testing processes and systems 
in a growth setting as well as processes and systems in an area 
containing small and large multi-unit structures, commercial-to-
residential conversions, mixed commercial and residential uses, and 
various housing unit status, such as vacant, uninhabitable and 
demolished.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
   Buncombe County, North Carolina
 places and Census designated places   St. Louis, Missouri (part) places
                (CDP)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Asheville city.......................  St. Louis city.
 
Biltmore Forest town.................
Black Mountain town
Montreat town
Weaverville town
Woodfin town
 
Avery Creek CDP
Bent Creek CDP
Fairview CDP
Royal Pines CDP
Swannanoa CDP
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    All living quarters in the test sites are included in the In-Office 
Address Canvassing workload, as well as the In-Field Address Canvassing 
workload. This allows for the comparison of results from both In-Office 
Address Canvassing and In-Field Address Canvassing to measure the 
effectiveness of In-Office Address Canvassing procedures and processes.

2017 Puerto Rico Census Test--Carolina, Lo[iacute]za, and Trujillo Alto 
Municipios

    For the 2017 Puerto Rico Census Test, the areas of Carolina, 
Lo[iacute]za, and Trujillo Alto municipios were chosen based on a 
variety of characteristics:
     Site is within the San Juan metropolitan area.
     Site includes anticipated areas of Self Response and 
Update Enumerate
     Site has a municipio with a mix of address types.
    These characteristics can help the Census Bureau refine its 
operational plans for the 2020 Census by testing processes and systems 
in an area containing a large variety of address types, and it affords 
the opportunity to test both Self Response and Update Enumerate. The 
Self Response areas are where In-Field Address Canvassing will be 
conducted.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                  Lo[iacute]za          Trujillo Alto
  Carolina Municipio Census     Municipio census      Municipio Census
   designated places (CDP)      designated places     designated places
                                      (CDP)                 (CDP)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Carolina zona urbana........  Lo[iacute]za zona     Trujillo Alto zona
                               urbana.               urbana.
                              Su[aacute]rez
                               comunidad.
                              Vieques comunidad...
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    All living quarters in the test sites are included in the In-Office 
Address Canvassing workload, as well as in the In-Field Address 
Canvassing workload. This allows for the comparison of results from 
both In-Office Address Canvassing and In-Field Address Canvassing to 
measure the effectiveness of In-Office Address Canvassing procedures 
and processes.

Address Canvassing

Background

    For the 2010 Census, the Address Canvassing field staff, referred 
to as listers, traversed almost every block in the nation to compare 
what they observed on the ground to the contents of the Census Bureau's 
address list. Listers verified or corrected addresses that were on the 
list, added new addresses to the list, and deleted addresses that no 
longer existed. Listers also collected map spot locations (i.e., Global 
Positioning System coordinates) for each structure and added new 
streets.
    In addition to Address Canvassing, the Census Bureau conducted the 
Group Quarters Validation (GQV) operation after the Address Canvassing 
operation and prior to enumeration for the 2010 Census. The purpose of 
the GQV operation was to improve the Group Quarters (GQ) frame. A GQ is 
a place where people live or stay, in a group living arrangement, that 
is owned or managed by an entity or organization providing housing and/
or services for the residents. This is not a typical household-type 
living arrangement, and residency is commonly restricted to those 
receiving specific services. People living in GQs are usually not 
related to each other. Types of GQs include such places as college 
residence halls, residential treatment centers, skilled-nursing 
facilities, group homes, military barracks, correctional facilities, 
and workers' dormitories. Services offered may include custodial or 
medical care, as well as other types of assistance.
    For the 2010 Census GQV operation, field staff visited a specific 
address to determine if it was a GQ, a housing unit, a transitory 
location, a non-residential unit, or if it was nonexistent. If the 
address was a GQ, the lister conducted an in-person interview with the 
GQ contact person to determine a type of GQ and collect additional 
information to plan for enumeration. In support of a more efficient 
census design strategy, the Census Bureau will not conduct a separate 
operation to validate GQ information in the 2020 Census. Instead, 
during the Address Canvassing Test and the 2020 Census, GQ information 
will be validated during the Address Canvassing operation.

2020 Census Address Canvassing: In-Office Address Canvassing

    In-Office Address Canvassing is the process of using empirical 
geographic evidence (e.g., imagery, comparison of the Census Bureau's 
address list to partner-provided lists) to assess the current address 
list and make changes where necessary. This component removes 
geographic areas from the In-Field Address Canvassing workload based on 
the determination of address stability. In addition, this component 
detects and captures change from high quality administrative and third-
party data, reducing the In-Field Address Canvassing workload as well.
    In-Office Address Canvassing starts with Interactive Review (IR), 
which is an imagery-based review to assess the extent to which the 
number of addresses--both housing units and GQs--in the census address 
list are consistent with the number of addresses visible in current 
imagery. It also assesses the changes between the current imagery and 
an older vintage of

[[Page 43577]]

imagery (around the time of the 2010 Census Address Canvassing).
    Results from IR inform the Active Block Resolution (ABR) process, 
which seeks to research and update areas identified with growth, 
decline, undercoverage of addresses, or overcoverage of addresses from 
the comparison of the two different vintages of imagery and counts of 
addresses in the MAF. In addition to using the results from IR, the ABR 
process uses other data sources to attempt to resolve the identified 
issues in the office rather than sending these areas to In-Field 
Address Canvassing. The other data sources include local Geographic 
Information Systems (GIS) viewers available online, parcel data from 
local governments, local files acquired through the U.S. Census 
Bureau's Geographic Support System (GSS) program, and commercial data. 
Areas not resolved in the office become the universe of geographic 
areas for the In-Field Address Canvassing.

2020 Census Address Canvasing: In-Field Address Canvassing

    In-Field Address Canvassing is the process of having field staff 
visit specific geographic areas to identify every place where people 
could live or stay and compare what they see on the ground to the 
existing census address list to either verify or correct the address 
and location information. In general, the field staff will:
     Receive assignments and prepare for work.
     Locate and travel to an assignment.
     Compare what is on the ground to the Census Bureau address 
list and update it as necessary (add addresses, delete addresses, and 
correct addresses).
     Update the map as required (update street names, add 
streets, and collect GPS coordinates).
     Collect GQ information including the GQ type for GQ 
addresses.
     Mark the assignment as complete and submit the results.
     Receive next assignment until no more assignments exist.
    Listers will knock on doors at every structure in an attempt to 
locate Living Quarters (LQs). If someone answers, the lister will 
provide a Confidentiality Notice and ask about the address in order to 
verify or update the information, as appropriate. The listers will then 
ask if there are any additional LQs in the structure or on the 
property. If there are additional LQs, the listers will collect/update 
that information, as appropriate. If listers do not find anyone at 
home, they will update the address list by observation, as was done in 
the 2010 Census Address Canvassing. The Census Bureau expects that they 
would make contact with residents (i.e., someone is at home) 
approximately 25 percent of the time. Please note, the Address 
Canvassing Testing FRN incorrectly stated that the Census Bureau 
expects the listers would make contact with residents 50 percent of the 
time.
    The purpose of the Address Canvassing Operation in the 2020 Census 
is (1) to deliver a complete and accurate address list and spatial 
database for enumeration and tabulation, and (2) to determine the type 
and address characteristics for each living quarter. A complete and 
accurate address list and map is the cornerstone of a successful 
census.
    The Census Bureau needs to solidify evidence showing whether the 
strategies being tested can reduce the cost per housing unit during a 
decennial census, while still providing high quality and accurate 
census data. The results of this Address Canvassing Test and the 2017 
Puerto Rico Census Test will inform decisions that the Census Bureau 
will make to refine the 2020 Census Operational Plan as well as the 
2020 Census Detailed Operational Plan for the Address Canvassing 
Operation. The results will also help guide the evaluation of 
additional 2020 Census test results later this decade.
    Affected Public: Households/Individuals.
    Frequency: One time.
    Respondent's Obligation: Mandatory.
    Legal Authority: Title 13 United States Code, Sections 141 and 193.
    This information collection request may be viewed at 
www.reginfo.gov. Follow the instructions to view Department of Commerce 
collections currently under review by OMB.
    Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information 
collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of this notice 
to [email protected] or fax to (202)395-5806.

    Dated: June 28, 2016.
Glenna Mickelson,
Management Analyst, Office of the Chief Information Officer.
[FR Doc. 2016-15742 Filed 7-1-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-07-P