82 FR 61534 - Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Federal Register Volume 82, Issue 248 (December 28, 2017)

[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 248 (Thursday, December 28, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 61534-61535]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2017-28012]


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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.
    Agency: U.S. Census Bureau.
    Title: Annual Business Survey.
    OMB Control Number: 0607-XXXX.

[[Page 61535]]

    Form Number(s): ABS-1 Worksheet, ABS-2 Worksheet.
    Type of Request: New collection.
    Number of Respondents: 850,000.
    Average Hours per Response: 52 minutes.
    Burden Hours: 735,934.
    Needs and Uses: In an effort to improve the measurement of business 
dynamics in the United States, the Census Bureau plans to conduct the 
Annual Business Survey (ABS). The ABS is a new survey designed to 
combine Census Bureau firm-level collections to reduce respondent 
burden, increase data quality, reduce operational costs, and operate 
more efficiently. The ABS replaces the five-year Survey of Business 
Owners (SBO) for employer businesses, the Annual Survey of 
Entrepreneurs (ASE), and the Business R&D and Innovation for 
Microbusinesses (BRDI-M) surveys. ABS estimates will include the number 
of firms, sales/receipts, annual payroll, and employment by gender, 
ethnicity, race, and veteran status as well as R&D and Innovation and 
various other relevant topics. The ABS will be conducted jointly by the 
National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics (NCSES) within 
the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Census Bureau for five 
reference years (2017-2021).
    The ABS universe includes all nonfarm employer businesses filing 
Internal Revenue Service (IRS) tax forms as individual proprietorships, 
partnerships, or any type of corporation, and with receipts of $1,000 
or more. The ABS will sample approximately 850,000 employer businesses 
in 2017 and approximately 300,000 employer businesses in years 2018-
2021. The sample is stratified by state, frame, and industry. The 
Census Bureau selects certain companies with certainty based on volume 
of sales, payroll, number of paid employees or NAICS. All certainty 
cases are sure to be selected and represent only themselves.
    The ABS is designed to incorporate new content each survey year 
based on topics of relevance. Each year a new module of questions is 
submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for approval. 
Topics for the 2017 ABS include: Owner & Business Characteristics; R&D 
from microbusiness; Innovation; and Technology.
    The ABS collection is electronic only. Those selected for the 
survey receive an initial letter informing the respondents of their 
requirement to complete the survey as well as instructions on accessing 
the survey. The 2017 ABS initial mailout is scheduled for June 2018. 
Responses will be due approximately 40 days from initial mailout. 
Select respondents will receive a due date reminder approximately one 
week before responses are due. Additionally, there will be two follow-
up letter mailings to nonrespondents after the due date. Select 
nonrespondents may receive a certified mailing for the second follow-up 
if needed. Closeout of mail operations is scheduled for December 2018. 
Upon the close of the collection period, the response data will be 
processed, edited, reviewed, tabulated, and released publicly.
    Statistics from the ABS will be used by government program 
officials, industry organization leaders, economic and social analysts, 
business entrepreneurs, and domestic and foreign researchers in 
academia, business, and government. Estimates produced on owner 
demographic data may be used to assess business assistance needs, 
allocate available program resources, and create a framework for 
planning, directing, and assessing programs that promote the activities 
of disadvantaged groups; to assess minority-owned businesses by 
industry and area and to educate industry associations, corporations, 
and government entities; to analyze business operations in comparison 
to similar firms, compute market share, and assess business growth and 
future prospects. Estimates produced on research and development and 
innovation may be used to compare R&D costs across industries, 
determine where R&D activity is conducted geographically, and identify 
the types of businesses with R&D; to contribute to the Bureau of 
Economic Analysis (BEA) system of national accounts; to increase 
investments in research and development, strengthen education, and 
encourage entrepreneurship; and to compare business innovation in the 
United States to that of other countries, including those in the 
European Union.
    Additionally, the data will help provide insight into the 
technology sector based on how businesses respond to questions about 
technology usage and approximate costs of technology usage.
    Historical ASE and SBO data have been widely used by private firms 
and individuals to evaluate their own businesses and markets. The ABS 
will be able to provide most of the same continuity as previous 
statistics, with enhanced content, to provide a more comprehensive view 
of domestic employer businesses, their owners and corresponding 
characteristics and activities. Additional examples of data use 
include:
     The Small Business Administration (SBA) and the Minority 
Business Development Agency (MBDA) to assess business assistance needs 
and allocate available program resources.
     Local government commissions on small and disadvantaged 
businesses to establish and evaluate contract procurement practices.
     Federal, state and local government agencies as a 
framework for planning, directing and assessing programs that promote 
the activities of disadvantaged groups.
     The National Women's Business Council to assess the state 
of women's business ownership for policymakers, researchers, and the 
public at large.
     Consultants and researchers to analyze long-term economic 
and demographic shifts, and differences in ownership and performance 
among geographic areas.
     Individual business owners to analyze their operations in 
comparison to similar firms, compute their market share, and assess 
their growth and future prospects.
    Affected Public: Business or other for-profit.
    Frequency: Annually.
    Respondent's Obligation: Mandatory.
    Legal Authority: Title 13 United States Code, Sections 8(b), 131, 
and 182, Title 42 United States Code, Section 1861-76 (National Science 
Foundation Act of 1950, as amended), and Section 505 within the America 
COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 2010 authorize this collection. 
Sections 224 and 225 of Title 13 United States Code requires response 
from sampled firms.
    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.

Sheleen Dumas,
Departmental PRA Lead, Office of the Chief Information Officer.
[FR Doc. 2017-28012 Filed 12-27-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-07-P