82 FR 43934 - Proposed Information Collection; Comment Request; Pilot of USPS Postal Carriers as Census Enumerators During the 2018 End-to-End Census Test

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Census Bureau

Federal Register Volume 82, Issue 181 (September 20, 2017)

The Department of Commerce, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 181 (Wednesday, September 20, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43934-43935]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2017-20036]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Census Bureau


Proposed Information Collection; Comment Request; Pilot of USPS 
Postal Carriers as Census Enumerators During the 2018 End-to-End Census 
Test

AGENCY: U.S. Census Bureau, Commerce.

ACTION: Notice.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce, as part of its continuing effort 
to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public 
and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on 
proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

DATES: To ensure consideration, written comments must be submitted on 
or before November 20, 2017.

ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments to Jennifer Jessup, Departmental 
Paperwork Clearance Officer, Department of Commerce, Room 6616, 14th 
and Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20230 (or via the Internet 
at [email protected]).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or 
copies of the information collection instrument(s) and instructions 
should be directed to Robin A. Pennington, U.S. Census Bureau, 4600 
Silver Hill Road, Washington, DC 20233 (or via the internet at 
[email protected]).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Abstract

    The U.S. Census Bureau proposes a proof of concept study on the use 
of United States Postal Service (USPS) Postal Carriers as Census Bureau 
enumerators as part of the 2018 End-to-End Census Test. The possibility 
of formally using Postal Carriers to conduct enumeration as part of 
Decennial Census operations has been proposed or suggested several 
times in recent years by Members of Congress, as well as other advisory 
and oversight bodies, in response to (1) the rising operational costs 
of both agencies, and (2) the need for familiarity with local 
addresses. The suggestions often note that the USPS maintains a 
permanent, well trained, and experienced labor force that possesses 
significant public trust and detailed knowledge of the addressing and 
residential patterns in communities they serve.
    The rationale for this study is to test and observe the feasibility 
of the use of Postal Carriers as enumerators in the context of an 
existing Census Test, and, thereby, enable the Census Bureau and USPS 
to better respond to stakeholder inquiries about the feasibility of 
such activities. The potential long-term advantages to the Census 
Bureau include: (1) Leveraging local USPS knowledge about households to 
pinpoint the best time for an interview, (2) increasing the pool of 
enumerators without hiring new temporary staff, and (3) providing a 
more flexible landscape for how and when Nonresponse Followup (NRFU) 
interviews occur during the enumeration phase of a census.
    The Census Bureau plans to conduct a pilot in two ZIP Codes outside 
of--but adjacent to--the 2018 End-to-End Census Test site location in 
Providence County, R.I. The pilot will involve approximately 40 Postal 
Carriers operating out of two ZIP Codes, 02760 located in North 
Attleboro, MA, and 02888 located in Warwick, RI.
    The proposed evaluation and deliverables are:
    (1) The numbers of resolved enumeration cases will be documented to 
determine whether Postal Carriers were able to successfully conduct 
assigned NRFU activities. Documentation will identify and describe 
challenges and opportunities for future collaborative participation in 
this operation.
    (2) A report that details the development of baseline metrics to 
describe costs and benefits of a future collaborative operation. This 
study will determine the information needed to assess cost differences/
savings to recruiting and staff-onboarding operations by using existing 
USPS employees, and the value added in terms of efficiency and quality 
of NRFU activities, measured by numbers of visits, of using Postal 
Carriers with local knowledge.
    (3) Results of focus group debriefings held with the Postal 
Carriers, their managers, and the public after the 2018 End-to-End 
Census Test enumeration phase is complete to describe and

[[Page 43935]]

characterize the impacts of this collaboration on agency operations and 
the public trust.
    Documented operational Lessons Learned from the entirety of the 
project and recommendations for next steps will accompany the report. 
The outcome of this pilot study will provide the Census Bureau and the 
USPS with baseline descriptive and qualitative information that can be 
used to inform future field-based collaborations.

II. Method of Collection

    Census Bureau staff will train Postal Carriers to successfully 
conduct enumeration to complete the activity. Postal Carriers will be 
sworn to uphold the same confidentiality as Census Bureau employees. 
They will perform enumeration functions using the same procedures and 
automation as other enumerators during the hours of 5 p.m.-8 p.m. on 
weekdays, variable weekend hours, and both inside and outside the 
geographic constraints of their assigned routes.

III. Data

    OMB Control Number: 0607-XXXX.
    Form Number(s): DH-16(LN), DH-16(LN)(E/S).
    Type of Review: Regular submission.
    Affected Public: 31,479.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 24,889.
    Estimated Time per Response: 10 minutes.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 4,148.
    Estimated Total Annual Cost to Public: $199,080.
    Respondent's Obligation: Mandatory.
    Legal Authority: Title 13 U.S.C. 23, 141, 193.

IV. Request for Comments

    Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of 
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of 
the agency, including whether the information shall have practical 
utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden 
(including hours and cost) of the proposed collection of information; 
(c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the 
collection of information on respondents, including through the use of 
automated collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology.
    Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized 
and/or included in the request for OMB approval of this information 
collection; they also will become a matter of public record.

Sheleen Dumas,
Departmental PRA Lead, Office of the Chief Information Officer.
[FR Doc. 2017-20036 Filed 9-19-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-07-P