[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 214 (Monday, November 6, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 65000-65001]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-18605]
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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Office of the Secretary
Submission for OMB Review: Comment Request
October 31, 2006.
The Department of Labor (DOL) has submitted the following public
information collection request (ICR) to the Office of Management and
Budget (OMB) for review and approval in accordance with the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-13, 44 U.S.C. Chapter 35). A copy of
this ICR, with applicable supporting documentation, may be obtained by
calling the Department of Labor. A copy of this ICR, with applicable
supporting documentation, may be obtained at http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain, or contact Ira Mills on 202-693-4122 (this is not a
toll-free number) or e-mail: [email protected].
In July 2004, ETA solicited comments from the general public on the
establishment of a single, streamlined reporting and recordkeeping
system, formally called the ETA Management Information and Longitudinal
Evaluation (EMILE) reporting system. The notice of 60-day public
comment on the proposed EMILE reporting system was published in the
Federal Register on July 16, 2004 (Vol. 69, No. 136, pages 42777-
42779). The proposed EMILE reporting system was designed to streamline
12 ETA program reporting systems into one comprehensive reporting
structure that would allow for consistent, comparable analysis across
ETA funded employment and training programs, using the definitions for
a set of common performance measures initially specified in Training
and Employment Guidance Letter (TEGL) 15-03, Common Measures Policy,
and subsequently revised by TEGL 17-05, Common Measures Policy for the
Employment and Training Administration's (ETA) Performance
Accountability System and Related Performance Issues.
ETA received comments from 161 unique entities, including state
workforce agencies and boards, local workforce investment areas, non-
profit organizations and national associations, Native American and
other tribal organizations, public interest and advocacy groups, and
other private citizens and stakeholders. Due to the large volume of
comments submitted by each entity, ETA worked during calendar year 2005
to organize and analyze the public comments, make appropriate revisions
to agency policy guidance on the common measures, and assess the
feasibility of implementing the proposed EMILE reporting requirements
in several States.
ETA has reconciled the public comments and made appropriate
revisions to the original EMILE proposal, which has been re-named to
the Workforce Investment Streamlined Performance Reporting (WISPR)
system. This revised proposal will replace the current quarterly
reporting requirements of the following seven ETA activities: Wagner-
Peyser Act, Veterans Employment and Training Service, the Workforce
Investment Act (WIA) Adult, WIA Dislocated Worker, WIA Youth, and Trade
Adjustment Assistance Act programs, and National Emergency Grants.
The Department is seeking or has already received separate OMB
clearances on revisions to the following program reporting systems to
incorporate standardized data collection necessary to implement a set
of common performance measures: National Farm Worker Jobs Program,
Indian and Native American Program, Senior Community Service and
Employment Program, and entities receiving H-1B Technical Skills
Training or Responsible Reintegration of Youthful Offenders grants.
These programs will continue to report separately, and the data
elements collected for these programs have been aligned, to the extent
practicable, with those in the proposed WISPR System. The decision to
not include these programs in the WISPR System was based on concerns
about burden (time and resources) expressed by many commenters.
While the proposed WISPR System represents a comprehensive data
collection and reporting approach, it is important to note that every
effort has been made to establish common data definitions and formats
with minimum burden to grantees. At its foundation, the proposed WISPR
System organizes customer information that is maintained by states in
order to run their day-to-day operations, and includes a minimum level
of information collection that is necessary to comply with Equal
Opportunity requirements, hold states and grantees appropriately
accountable for the Federal funds they receive, and allow the
Department to fulfill its
[[Page 65001]]
oversight and management responsibilities. The WISPR System proposal
does build on revisions in state data collection approved by OMB in
early 2006 to implement the common performance measures. In some cases,
additional data collection requirements are included for Federal
oversight or to comply with existing statutory requirements, and these
are also included in the proposed WISPR System.
The WISPR System features a set of aggregate quarterly reports for
capturing services to employer and job seeker customers, including a
special aggregate report on services to the nation's eligible veterans
and transitioning service members. A standardized set of participant
data that includes information on demographics, types of services
received, and performance outcomes based on a set of common measures
defined consistently across programs is a key component of this
proposed reporting system. The WISPR System will be used to respond
more quickly and effectively to the management information needs of
Congress, the Administration and the general public.
The WISPR System will ensure there is consistency across all ETA
formula-funded state programs so all programs are evaluated using the
same criteria. When job seeker and employer data are collected,
maintained and reported consistently and accurately at a basic level
(e.g., grantee field office or One-Stop Career Center), data can be
aggregated from each program and reported to higher levels with greater
confidence that the data are comparable from customer to customer, from
program to program, and from year to year. The WISPR System also
incorporates provisions to ensure the integrity of reported data, and
resolve data collection and reliability issues raised by OIG and GAO
regarding the Department's ability to accurately evaluate program
performance.
Proposed Changes
To address concerns expressed in the public comments about
reporting burden (time and financial resources), the following changes
are proposed in the WISPR System:
The EMILE requirement to submit quarterly individual
records on employer customers has been eliminated and replaced with an
aggregate quarterly report (ETA Form 9131). Information contained on
the employer report will provide a more complete picture of the total
impact of the One-Stop system by including the characteristics of
employers served and the type and frequency of services being
delivered;
The EMILE requirement to submit quarterly participant and
exiter records has been eliminated and replaced with the requirement
for states to submit quarterly records on exiters only;
In the absence of quarterly participant records, the EMILE
quarterly workforce investment performance report has been modified to
include data collection on participant counts by key demographics and
the types of adult and youth services received (ETA Form 9132). This
uniform report format will facilitate consistent performance
calculations and focus on the core functions of the workforce system:
employment for adults and skills for youth; and
Data collection requirements for job seeker customers has
been substantially reduced compared to the original EMILE individual
record to address public concerns regarding the amount of data to be
collected and reported and align with recent changes approved by OMB.
Additionally, a special report is proposed to capture service
information for participants who are eligible veterans and
transitioning service members, to comply with reporting requirements
for the Jobs for Veterans grants (ETA Form 9133).
To address public concerns regarding the submission of integrated
reports, states will be given a range of options for submitting
separate quarterly reports and records depending on how the state
administers the workforce programs covered by the reporting system.
This additional flexibility for submitting performance information to
the Department will be available during the first two years of WISPR
System implementation. Also, the collection of quarterly customer
satisfaction reports for the WIA and Wagner-Peyser Act programs are not
included in the WISPR System to reflect recent OMB notices of action to
discontinue this information collection.
Comments should be sent to Office of Information and Regulatory
Affairs, Attn: OMB Desk Officer for U.S. Department of Labor/Employment
and Training Administration (ETA), Office of Management and Budget,
Room 10235, Washington, DC 20503, 202-395-7316 (this is not a toll free
number), within 45 days from the date of this publication in the
Federal Register.
The OMB is particularly interested in comments which:
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 submission of responses.
Agency: Employment and Training Administration.
Type of Review: New.
Title: Workforce Investment Streamlined Performance Reporting
(WISPR) System.
OMB Number: 1205--0NEW.
Frequency: Quarterly.
Affected Public: State and Local Governments.
Type of Response: Recordkeeping; Reporting.
Number of Respondents: 54.
Annual Responses: 2,376.
Average Response time: 376 hours per State.
Total Annual Burden Hours: 813,241.
Total Annualized Capital/Startup Costs: 0.
Total Annual Costs (operating/maintaining systems or purchasing
services): 0.
Description: Respondents are State governments. This reporting and
recordkeeping system features a set of aggregate reports for capturing
services to employers and job seeker customers, including a special
aggregate report on services to the nation's eligible veterans and
transitioning service members. Selected standardized participant data
that includes information on demographics, types of services received,
and performance outcomes based on a set of common measures will also be
collected and reported for the purposes of general program oversight,
evaluation, and performance assessment of the WIA, Wagner-Peyser,
Veterans Employment and Training Service, and Trade Adjustment
Assistance programs, and National Emergency Grants.
Ira L. Mills,
Departmental Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. E6-18605 Filed 11-3-06; 8:45 am]
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