18626 Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 82 / Friday, April 26, 1996 / Notices

General Wage Determination

Publication

General wage determinations issued

under the Davis-Bacon and related Acts,

including those noted above, may be

found in the Government Printing Office

(GPO) document entitled ‘‘General Wage

Determinations Issued Under The DavisBacon and Related Acts’’. This

publication is available at each of the 50

Regional Government Depository

Libraries and many of the 1,400

Government Depository Libraries across

the country.

The general wage determinations

issued under the Davis-Bacon and

related Acts are available electronically

by subscription to the FedWorld

Bulletin Board System of the National

Technical Information Service (NTIS) of

the U.S. Department of Commerce at

(703) 487–4630.

Hard-copy subscriptions may be

purchased from: Superintendent of

Documents, U.S. Government Printing

Office, Washington, D.C. 20402, (202)

512–1800.

When ordering hard-copy

subscription(s), be sure to specify the

State(s) of interest, since subscriptions

may be ordered for any or all of the six

separate volumes, arranged by State.

Subscriptions include an annual edition

(issued in January or February) which

includes all current general wage

determinations for the States covered by

each volume. Throughout the remainder

of the year, regular weekly updates are

distributed to subscribers.

Signed at Washington, D.C. this 19th day

of April 1996.

Philip J. Gloss,

Chief, Branch of Construction Wage

Determinations.

[FR Doc. 96–10066 Filed 4–25–96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4510–22–M

Bureau of Labor Statistics

Proposed Collection; Comment

Request

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: The Department of Labor, as

part of its continuing effort to reduce

paperwork and respondent burden,

conducts a preclearance consultation

program to provide the general public

and Federal agencies with an

opportunity to comment on proposed

and/or continuing collections of

information in accordance with the

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

(PRA95) [44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)]. This

program helps to ensure that requested

data can be provided in the desired

format, reporting burden (time and

financial resources) is minimized,

collection instruments are clearly

understood, and the impact of collection

requirements on respondents can be

properly assessed. Currently, the Bureau

of Labor Statistics (BLS) is soliciting

comments concerning the proposed

extension of the ‘‘Mass Layoff Statistics

(MLS) Program Survey.’’

A copy of the proposed information

collection request (ICR) can be obtained

by contacting the individual listed

below in the addresses section of this

notice.

DATES: Written comments must be

submitted to the office listed in the

addresses section below on or before

June 25, 1996.

BLS is particularly interested in

comments which help the agency to:

• Evaluate whether the proposed

collection of information is necessary

for the proper performance of the

functions of the agency, including

whether the information will have

practical utility;

• Evaluate the accuracy of the

agency’s estimate of the burden of the

proposed collection of information,

including the validity of the

methodology and assumption used;

• Enhance the quality, utility, and

clarity of the information to be

collected; and

• Minimize the burden of the

collection of information on those who

are to respond, including through the

use of appropriate automated,

electronic, mechanical, or other

technological collection techniques or

other forms of information technology,

e.g., permitting electronic submissions

of responses.

ADDRESSES: Send comments to Karin G.

Kurz, BLS Clearance Officer, Division of

Management Systems, Bureau of Labor

Statistics, Room 3255, 2 Massachusetts

Avenue N.E., Washington, D.C. 20212.

Ms. Kurz can be reached on 202–606–

7628 (this is not a toll free number).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

Section 462(e) of PL 97–300, the Job

Training Partnership Act (JTPA),

provides that the Secretary of Labor

develop and maintain statistical data

relating to permanent mass layoffs and

plant closings and issue an annual

report. The report is to include, at a

minimum, the number of plant closings

and mass layoffs, and the number of

workers affected. The data are

summarized by geographical area and

industry.

The MLS program uses a standardized

automated approach to identify,

describe, and track the impact of major

job cutbacks. The program utilizes, to

the greatest degree possible, existing

Unemployment Insurance (UI) records

and computerized data files,

supplemented by direct employer

contact. Its major features include:

• The identification of major layoffs

and closings through initial UI claims

filed against the identified employer;

• The use of existing files on

claimants to obtain basic demographic

and economic characteristics on the

individual;

• The telephone contact of those

employers meeting mass layoff criteria

to obtain specific information on the

nature of the layoff and characteristics

of the establishment;

• The identification of the continuing

impact of the mass layoff on individuals

by matching affected initial claimants

with persons in claims status; and,

• The measurement of the incidence

of the exhaustion of regular State UI

benefits by affected workers.

In the program, State Employment

Security Agencies (SESAs) submit a

comprehensive report each quarter, and

a preliminary, summary report each

month. These computerized reports

contain information from State

administrative files and information

obtained from those employers meeting

the program criteria of a mass layoff.

Congress provided for the

implementation of the MLS program by

BLS through fiscal years 1984–1992

appropriations for the Departments of

Labor, Health and Human Services,

Education, and related agencies. The

program was not operational in fiscal

years 1993 and 1994. Program operation

resumed in fiscal years 1995 and 1996

with funds provided by the

Employment and Training

Administration (ETA).

At the present time, all States

(including the District of Columbia and

Puerto Rico) are participating in the

program.

II. Current Actions

The information collected and

compiled in the MLS program is used to

satisfy the reporting requirement

legislatively mandated by Section 462(e)

of PL 97–300 (JTPA). The BLS annual

reports from this program meet that

statutory mandate, as well as provide

economic analyses of these data.

In addition to the BLS uses of MLS

data, such data are required by

Congress, the Executive branch,

business, labor, and academic

communities, SESAs, and the

Department of Labor for both macroand micro-economic analysis, including

specific labor market studies geared

towards manpower assistance and
Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 82 / Friday, April 26, 1996 / Notices 18627

development. Moreover, Congress used

these data in conjunction with the

findings from a supplemental study of

layoff actions in the development of the

Worker Adjustment and Retraining

Notification (WARN) Act that was

enacted in August 1988. Furthermore,

ETA uses MLS micro data in the

evaluation of dislocated worker

programs to assess the effectiveness of

those activities and services.

A congressionally mandated use of

mass layoff data is the Economic

Dislocation and Worker Adjustment

Assistance Act of 1988 (EDWAA),

which amended Title III of JTPA.

Section 302 of EDWAA provides for

allocation of Title III funds to States on

the basis of MLS data and encourages

the use of MLS data in substate

allocations.

State agencies use the MLS data in

various ways, including the

identification of: geographic areas in

need of special manpower services;

ailing or troubled industries; specific

employers needing assistance; outreach

activities for the unemployed; and

workers in need of temporary health

care services.

There is no other comprehensive

source of statistics on either

establishments or workers affected by

mass layoffs and plant closings;

therefore, none of the aforementioned

data requirements could be fulfilled if

this data collection did not occur.

Type of Review: Extension.

Agency: Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Title: Mass Layoff Statistics Program.

OMB Number: 1220–0090.

Affected Public: Business or other for

profit; Not-for-profit institutions; Farms;

Federal Government; State, Local or

Tribal Government.

Total Respondents: 15,652.

Frequency: State Employment

Security Agencies (SESAs) will report

quarterly and monthly. Affected

employers will report on occasion.

Total Responses: 16,432.

Average Time Per Response: 60

Minutes for SESAs. 30 Minutes for

employers.

Estimated Total Burden Hours: 73,320

Hours.

Total Burden Cost (capital/startup):

$0.

Total Burden Cost (operating/

maintenance): $0.

Comments submitted in response to

this notice will be summarized and/or

included in the request for Office of

Management and Budget approval of the

information collection request; they also

will become a matter of public record.

Signed at Washington, D.C., this 22nd day

of April, 1996.

Peter T. Spolarich,

Chief, Division of Management Systems,

Bureau of Labor Statistics.

[FR Doc. 96–10377 Filed 4–25–96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4510–24–M

Proposed Collection; Comment

Request

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: The Department of Labor, as

part of its continuing effort to reduce

paperwork and respondent burden,

conducts a preclearance consultation

program to provide the general public

and Federal agencies with an

opportunity to comment on proposed

and/or continuing collections of

information in accordance with the

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

(PRA95) [44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)]. This

program helps to ensure that requested

data can be provided in the desired

format, reporting burden (time and

financial resources) is minimized,

collection instruments are clearly

understood, and the impact of the

collection requirements on respondents

can be properly assessed. Currently, the

Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is

soliciting comments concerning the

proposed extension of the ‘‘Current

Population Survey (CPS).’’

A copy of the proposed information

collection request (ICR) can be obtained

by contacting the individual listed

below in the addressee section of this

notice.

DATES: Written comments must be

submitted to the office listed in the

addressee section below on or before

June 25, 1996.

BLS is particularly interested in

comments which help to:

• Evaluate whether the proposed

collection of information is necessary

for the proper performance of the

functions of the agency, including

whether the information will have

practical utility;

• Evaluate the accuracy of the

agency’s estimate of the burden of the

proposed collection of information,

including the validity of the

methodology and assumptions used;

• Enhance the quality, utility, and

clarity of the information to be

collected; and

• Minimize the burden of the

collection of information on those who

are to respond, including through the

use of appropriate automated,

electronic, mechanical, or other

technological collection techniques or

other forms of information technology,

e.g., permitting electronic submissions

of responses.

ADDRESSES: Send comments to Karin G.

Kurz, BLS Clearance Officer, Division of

Management Systems, Bureau of Labor

Statistics, Room 3255, 2 Massachusetts

Avenue N.E., Washington, D.C. 20212.

Ms. Kurz can be reached on 202–606–

7628 (this is not a toll free number).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

The CPS has been the principal

source of the official Government

statistics on employment and

unemployment for 50 years. BLS and

the Census Bureau share the

responsibility for this survey and are

submitting two separate clearance

requests that reflect the joint funding

provided by the two agencies for this

survey and the way in which the Census

Bureau and BLS divide the

responsibilities for the analysis and

dissemination of the data from the

survey. The Census Bureau is

submitting a request for clearance of the

collection of the basic demographic

information on the population being

sampled, and BLS is requesting

clearance for the collection of the labor

force information which it analyzes and

publishes monthly. The labor force

information gathered through the survey

is of paramount importance in keeping

track of the economic health of the

Nation. The survey is the only source of

data on total employment and

unemployment, with the monthly

unemployment rate obtained through

this survey being regarded as one of the

most important economic indicators.

Moreover, the survey also yields data on

the basic status and characteristics of

the persons not in the labor force. The

CPS data are used monthly, in

conjunction with data from other

sources, to analyze the extent to which

the various components of the American

population are participating in the

economic life of the Nation and with

what success.

The labor force data gathered through

the CPS are provided to users in the

greatest detail possible, consistent with

the demographic information obtained

in the survey. In brief, the labor force

data can be broken down by sex, age,

race and ethnic origin, marital status,

family composition, educational level,

and various other characteristics.

Through such breakdowns, one can

focus on the employment situation of

specific population groups as well as on

the general trends in employment and

unemployment. Information of this type

can be obtained only through