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###### Department of Commerce

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:*                     2008 Panel of the Survey of Income and Program Participation, Wave 13 Topical Module.                

*OMB Control Number:*                     0607-0944.                

*Form Number(s):*                     SIPP 281305(L), Director's Letter: SIPP 281305(L)SP, Director's Letter (Spanish); SIPP/CAPI Automated Instrument.                

*Type of Request:*                     Revision of a currently approved collection.                

*Burden Hours:*                     143,303.                

*Number of Respondents:*                     94,500.                

*Average Hours per Response:*                     30 minutes.                

*Needs and Uses:*                     The U.S. Census Bureau requests authorization from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to conduct a topical module during the Wave 13 interview for the 2008 Panel of the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP). The core SIPP and reinterview instruments were cleared under Authorization No. 0607-0944.                          ( print page 12796)    

The SIPP represents a source of information for a wide variety of topics and allows information for separate topics to be integrated to form a single and unified database so that the interaction between tax, transfer, and other government and private policies can be examined. Government domestic policy formulators depend heavily upon the SIPP information concerning the distribution of income received directly as money or indirectly as in-kind benefits and the effect of tax and transfer programs on this distribution. They also need improved and expanded data on the income and general economic and financial situation of the U.S. population. The SIPP has provided these kinds of data on a continuing basis since 1983, permitting levels of economic well-being and changes in these levels to be measured over time.

The survey is molded around a central “core” of labor force and income questions that remain fixed throughout the life of a panel. The core is supplemented with questions designed to answer specific needs, such as estimating eligibility for government programs, examining pension and health care coverage, and analyzing individual net worth. These supplemental questions are included with the core and are referred to as “topical modules.”

The topical module planned for the 2008 Panel Wave 13 is Professional Certificates and Certifications. This topical module has not been previously conducted in the SIPP. Wave 13 interviews will be conducted from September 1, 2012 through December 31, 2012.

No topical modules were used in Wave 12 and none are planned in Waves 14 through 16 of the 2008 Panel. We plan to continue fielding the core and reinterview instruments through December 2013, which is the last rotation of Wave 16. Consequently, we did not submit an OMB package for Wave 12 and do not anticipate future OMB submissions for the 2008 Panel after Wave 13.

The SIPP is designed as a continuing series of national panels of interviewed households that are introduced every few years with each panel having durations of approximately 3 to 6 years. The 2008 Panel is scheduled for approximately 6 years and four months and includes sixteen waves which began September 1, 2008. All household members 15 years old or over are interviewed using regular proxy-respondent rules. They are interviewed a total of thirteen times (thirteen waves), at 4-month intervals, making the SIPP a longitudinal survey. Sample people (all household members present at the time of the first interview) who move within the country and reasonably close to a SIPP primary sampling unit (PSU) will be followed and interviewed at their new address. Individuals 15 years old or over who enter the household after Wave 1 will be interviewed; however, if these people move, they are not followed unless they happen to move along with a Wave 1 sample individual.

*Affected Public:*                     Individuals or households.                

*Frequency:*                     Every 4 months.                

*Respondent's Obligation:*                     Voluntary.                

*Legal Authority:*                     Title 13 U.S.C., Section 182.                

*OMB Desk Officer:*                     Brian Harris-Kojetin, (202) 395-7314.                

                    Copies of the above information collection proposal can be obtained by calling or writing Jennifer Jessup, Departmental Paperwork Clearance Officer, (202) 482-0336, Department of Commerce, Room 6616, 14th and Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20230 (or via the Internet at                     *jjessup@doc.gov*).                

                    Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of this notice to Brian Harris-Kojetin, OMB Desk Officer either by fax (202-395-7245) or email (                    *bharrisk@omb.eop.gov*).                

Dated: February 28, 2012.

Glenna Mickelson,

Management Analyst, Office of the Chief Information Officer.

[FR Doc. 2012-5109 Filed 3-1-12; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510-07-P