July 19 -- The Census Bureau invites public comments to OMB by August 18, 2023 on the proposed Household Pulse Survey Phase 3.10.
The Household Pulse Survey was designed to meet a need for timely information associated with household experiences during the Covid-19 pandemic. The Department is committed to ensuring that the data collected by the Household Pulse Survey continue to meet information needs as they may evolve over the course of the pandemic. This notice serves to inform of the Department's intent to request clearance from OMB to make some revisions to the Household Pulse Survey questionnaire. To ensure that the data collected by the Household Pulse Survey continue to meet information needs as they evolve over the course of the pandemic, the Census Bureau submits this Request for Revision to an Existing Collection for a revised Phase 3.10 questionnaire.
Data produced by the Household Pulse Survey are designed to inform on a range of topics related to households' experiences during the COVID–19 pandemic. Topics to date have included employment, facility to telework, travel patterns, income loss, spending patterns, food and housing security, amount of monthly rent and changes in monthly rent, access to benefits, mental health and access to care, difficulty with self-care and communicating, intent to receive the COVID–19 vaccine/booster, timing of coronavirus testing, use of coronavirus treatments, the experience of long COVID, post-secondary educational disruption, access to infant formula, the effects of increasing prices, natural disasters, school meals for children, and children's mental health treatment. The requested revision, if approved by OMB, will remove selected items from the questions for which utility has declined and add questions based on information needs expressed via public comment and in consult with other Federal agencies.
Phase 3.10 includes split-panel tests of two versions of the gender identity question and the placement of the health items in the instrument. The Phase 3.10 instrument also includes the return of the original Hispanic origin, race/ethnicity, childcare arrangements, and children's mental health behaviors items, and new questions on military participation of a spouse, shortages of critical products, difficulty accessing medical care/treatment during natural disasters, and a question asking the respondent if they will opt-in to receive optional surveys and email updates from the Bureau. There are also modifications to existing children's vaccine booster, infant formula, reasons not working, unemployment insurance, natural disaster, and contact information items. Several questions will be removed for Phase 3.10, including questions about obtaining at home COVID tests, not working due to the pandemic or natural disaster, households affected by the infant formula shortage, type of formula used, and best contact method.
It is the Department's intention to commence data collection using the revised instrument on or about August 23, 2023. The Department invites the general public and other Federal agencies to comment on proposed, and continuing information collections, which helps us assess the impact of our information collection requirements and minimize the public's reporting burden.
Household Pulse Survey website:
https://www.census.gov/data/experimental-data-products/household-pulse-survey.html
Phase 3.10 submission to OMB:
https://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAViewICR?ref_nbr=202307-0607-002 Click on IC List for questionnaire, View Supporting Statement for technical documentation. Submit comments through this site.
FR notice inviting public comment:
https://www.federalregister.gov/d/2023-15332
For AEA members wishing to submit comments, "A Primer on How to Respond to Calls for Comment on Federal Data Collections" is available at
https://www.aeaweb.org/content/file?id=5806