Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 60 / Thursday, March 29, 2007 / Notices 14777 

must deal with foreign governments or 

government-owned corporations to win 

or maintain business transactions in 

foreign markets. The U.S. government 

Trade Information Request is at the core 

of the President’s National Export 

Strategy and its goal to show U.S. 

support at key events for American 

companies in the international 

marketplace. 

The purpose of the Advocacy Trade 

Information Request Form is to evaluate 

senior-level U.S. Government (USG) 

witnessing requests of a commercial 

milestone, designed to highlight a 

company’s commercial success in an 

overseas project or procurement 

competition. The Advocacy Center, 

appropriate ITA officials, U.S. 

Embassies/Consulates worldwide, and 

other federal government agencies that 

provide advocacy support to U.S. firms, 

will request firm(s) seeking USG 

advocacy support to complete the Trade 

Information Request Form. This 

information is needed to ensure that the 

subject milestone to be witnessed is 

either a legally binding contract or a 

commercially significant 

announcement, which includes 

highlighted U.S. export content. The 

information derived from a completed 

form is critical in helping the Advocacy 

Center determine whether it is in the 

U.S. national interest to advocate a 

specific milestone. 

Affected Public: Businesses or other 

for-profit organizations. 

Frequency: On occasion. 

Respondent’s Obligation: Required to 

obtain or retain a benefit. 

OMB Desk Officer: David Rostker, 

(202) 395–7340. 

Copies of the above information 

collection proposal can be obtained by 

writing Diana Hynek, Departmental 

Paperwork Clearance Officer, 

Department of Commerce, Room 6625, 

14th Street, and Constitution Avenue, 

NW., Washington, DC 20230. E-mail: 

dHynek@doc.gov. 

Written comments and 

recommendations for the proposed 

information collection should be sent 

within 30 days of the publication of this 

notice to David Rostker, OMB Desk 

Officer, at David_Rostker@omb.eop.gov 

or fax number (202) 395–7285. 

Dated: March 23, 2007. 

Gwellnar Banks, 

Management Analyst, Office of the Chief 

Information Officer. 

[FR Doc. E7–5724 Filed 3–28–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–FP–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

Submission for OMB Review; 

Comment Request 

The Department of Commerce (DOC) 

will submit to the Office of Management 

and Budget (OMB) for clearance the 

following proposal for collection of 

information under provisions of the 

Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 

Chapter 35). 

Agency: Bureau of Industry and 

Security (BIS). 

Title: Short Supply Regulations, 

Petroleum (Crude Oil). 

Agency Form Number: None. 

OMB Approval Number: 0694–0027. 

Type of Request: Extension of a 

currently approved collection of 

information. 

Burden: 138 hours. 

Average Time per Response: 40 

minutes to 8 hours per response. 

Number of Respondents: 21 

respondents. 

Needs and Uses: The information is 

collected in the form of supporting 

documentation for license applications 

to export petroleum (crude oil) and is 

used by licensing officers to determine 

the exporters compliance with the five 

statutes governing this collection. 

Affected Public: Businesses or other 

for-profit organizations. 

Respondent’s Obligation: Required to 

obtain or retain benefits. 

OMB Desk Officer: David Rostker, 

(202) 395–3897. 

Copies of the above information 

collection proposal can be obtained by 

calling or writing Diana Hynek, 

Departmental Paperwork Clearance 

Officer, (202) 482–0266, Department of 

Commerce, Room 6625, 14th and 

Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, 

DC 20230. 

Written comments and 

recommendations for the proposed 

information collection should be sent 

within 30 days of publication of this 

notice to David Rostker, OMB Desk 

Officer, e-mail address, 

David_Rostker@omb.eop.gov, or fax 

number, (202) 395–7285. 

Dated: March 23, 2007. 

Gwellnar Banks, 

Management Analyst, Office of the Chief 

Information Officer. 

[FR Doc. E7–5727 Filed 3–28–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–DT–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

Census Bureau 

2007 Business Expenses Supplement 

ACTION: Proposed collection; comment 

request. 

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, 

Public Law 104–13 (44 U.S.C. 

3506(c)(2)(A)). 

DATES: Written comments must be 

submitted on or before May 29, 2007. 

ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments 

to Diana Hynek, Departmental 

Paperwork Clearance Officer, 

Department of Commerce, Room 6625, 

14th and Constitution Avenue, NW., 

Washington, DC 20230 (or via the 

Internet at DHynek@doc.gov). 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Requests for additional information or 

copies of the information collection 

instrument(s) should be directed to 

Sheldon G. Ziman, BES Project 

Manager, Service Sector Statistics 

Division, U.S. Census Bureau, Room 

8K168, Washington DC 20233; phone 

301–763–6559 or toll free 888–211–

5946; or e-mail 

sheldon.g.ziman@census.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Abstract 

The U.S. Census Bureau is proposing 

a one-time supplement to its annual 

surveys of retail trade and wholesale 

distributors, to be conducted in 2008 

covering the year 2007. 

The Commerce Department’s Bureau 

of Economic Analysis (BEA) has 

requested that business expense data be 

collected once every five years. The 

BEA considers this information as a 

vital ingredient in the preparation of key 

measures of the U.S. economy. This data 

collection will be known as the 2007 

Business Expenses Supplement (BES) 

and will be implemented under the 

authority of the 2007 Economic Census, 

which is required by law to be taken 

every five years under Title 13 of the 

United States Code. 

The 2007 BES is an extension of the 

annual surveys of retail trade and 

wholesale distributors, which are 

conducted on a sample basis with a new 

sample drawn every fifth year. The 2007 

BES is a continuation of similar 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with NOTICES
14778 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 60 / Thursday, March 29, 2007 / Notices 

collections of business expenses data 

conducted every fifth year since 1977, 

and since 1958 on a more limited basis. 

Data collected by the BES on business 

operating expenses will complement 

data on sales, merchandise purchases, 

and inventories compiled in the two 

mentioned annual surveys. (Data on 

operating expenses of other industries 

are compiled in other Census Bureau 

programs.) Together these sample-based 

data are benchmarked to the main 

economic census and are used to 

compile economic measures such as 

value added. The collection of business 

expenses data is required for reliable 

measurement of the United States 

economy. As such, the BEA, producer of 

gross domestic product (GDP) estimates, 

is the primary user. The BEA uses the 

expenses data for developing the 

national income and product accounts, 

input-output tables, and economic 

indexes, and to fill previously identified 

critical gaps in underlying data in these 

accounts. 

Industrial sectors covered by the BES 

include wholesale distributors, retail 

trade, and accommodation and food 

services, as based on the 2002 North 

American Industry Classification 

System (NAICS). The samples used in 

this data collection consist of employer 

firms in the covered industries within 

the U.S. whose probability of selection 

is determined by sales size. 

The information collected will 

produce statistics by kind of business on 

operating expenses such as labor costs, 

depreciation, rent, materials and 

supplies, utilities, and purchased 

services such as advertising, repairs, 

computer services, and professional and 

technical services. The primary strategy 

for minimizing respondent burden is the 

use of sampling; supplementing the 

Bureau’s business annual surveys as the 

data collection vehicle; optional 

electronic reporting; and providing for 

respondents’ use of carefully prepared 

estimates if their book figures are not 

readily available. 

II. Method of Collection 

The 2007 BES supplements the 

Census Bureau’s annual surveys of retail 

trade and wholesale distributors, which 

are conducted using both the Internet 

with CensusTaker software and mailout/ 

mailback procedures. Most multilocation companies included in the 

samples will receive a separate annual/ 

BES report form to consolidate their 

data for each unique kind of business 

operated. Only employer businesses 

will be mailed. 

Data for non-employers for retail and 

accommodation and food service 

industries will be estimated based on 

administrative records. The 

questionnaires along with instructions 

for Internet reporting will be mailed 

from the Census Bureau’s National 

Processing Center in Jeffersonville, 

Indiana. Three periodic mail follow-ups 

and a telephone follow-up will be 

conducted in conjunction with the 

annual surveys. These follow-ups will 

minimize statistical error due to 

nonresponse. In addition, responses will 

be accepted via Fax. 

The BES response data will be edited 

and reviewed, and individual 

respondents contacted when necessary 

for clarification of questionable 

responses. 

III. Data 

OMB Number: None. 

Form Number: None. All of the forms 

to be used to collect information for the 

BES are associated with the concurrent 

business annual surveys of wholesale 

distributors and retail trade. 

Type of Review: Regular submission. 

Affected Public: Incorporated and 

non-incorporated employer businesses 

in the U.S. classified as retail trade, 

wholesale distributors, or 

accommodation and food services. 

Estimated Number of Respondents: 

28,541. 

Estimated Time per Response: 2.7 

hours. 

Estimated Total Annual Burden 

Hours: 77,060. 

Estimated Total Annual Cost to 

Respondents: The total cost to 

respondents is estimated to be $2.4 

million based on an hourly salary rate 

of $30.93 for entry level accountants 

and auditors multiplied by the annual 

response burden of 77,060 hours to 

complete the form. 

Respondent’s Obligation: Mandatory. 

Legal Authority: Title 13, United 

States Code, Sections 131, 193, 195, and 

224. 

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. 

Dated: March 23, 2007. 

Gwellnar Banks, 

Management Analyst, Office of the Chief 

Information Officer. 

[FR Doc. E7–5726 Filed 3–28–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–07–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

International Trade Administration 

Advocacy Quality Assurance Survey 

ACTION: Proposed collection renewal; 

comment request. 

SUMMARY: The Department of 

Commerce, as part of its continuing 

effort to reduce paperwork and 

respondent burdens, invites the general 

public and other Federal agencies to 

take this opportunity to comment on the 

continuing information collections, as 

required by the Paperwork Reduction 

Act of 1995, Public Law 104–13 (44 

U.S.C. 3506(2)(A)). 

DATES: Written comments must be 

submitted on or before May 29, 2007. 

ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments 

to Diana Hynek, Departmental 

Paperwork Clearance Officer, 

Department of Commerce, Room 6625, 

14th & Constitution Avenue, NW., 

Washington, DC 20230. E-mail: 

dHynek@doc.gov 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Request for additional information or 

copies of the information collection 

instrument and instructions should be 

directed to: Joseph Carter, 14th & 

Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, 

DC 20230; Phone number: (202) 482–

3342; E-mail: 

joseph.carter@mail.doc.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Abstract 

The International Trade 

Administration’s U.S. Commercial 

Service (USCS) is mandated by Congress 

to help U.S. businesses, particularly 

small and medium-sized companies, 

export their products and services to 

global markets. 

As part of its mission, the U.S. 

Commercial Service conducts user 

satisfaction surveys to collect feedback 

from the U.S. business clients it serves. 

These surveys ask the client to evaluate 

the U.S. Commercial Service on its 

customer service provision. The results 

from the surveys are used to make 

improvements to the agency’s business 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with NOTICES