Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

AGENCY:

Department of Education.

SUMMARY:

The Leader, Information Management Group, Office of the Chief Information Officer invites comments on the submission for OMB review as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

DATES:

Interested persons are invited to submit comments on or before March 16, 2000.

ADDRESSES:

Written comments should be addressed to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Attention: Danny Werfel, Desk Officer, Department of Education, Office of Management and Budget, 725 17th Street, NW, Room 10235, New Executive Office Building, Washington, DC 20503 or should be electronically mailed to the internet address DWERFEL@OMB.EOP.GOV.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Section 3506 of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35) requires that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) provide interested Federal agencies and the public an early opportunity to comment on information collection requests. OMB may amend or waive the requirement for public consultation to the extent that public participation in the approval process would defeat the purpose of the information collection, violate State or Federal law, or substantially interfere with any agency's ability to perform its statutory obligations. The Leader, Information Management Group, Office of the Chief Information Officer, publishes that notice containing proposed information collection requests prior to submission of these requests to OMB. Each proposed information collection, grouped by office, contains the following: (1) Type of review requested, e.g. new, revision, extension, existing or reinstatement; (2) Title; (3) Summary of the collection; (4) Description of the need for, and proposed use of, the information; (5) Respondents and frequency of collection; and (6) Reporting and/or Recordkeeping burden. OMB invites public comment.

Office of Educational Research and Improvement

Type of Review: Revision.

Title: Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), Introduction to the Web-Based Collection on Institutional Price and Student Financial Aid and Modifications to the 2000-2002 Data Collection Items.

Frequency: Annually, Biennially.

Affected Public: Businesses or other for-profit; Not-for-profit institutions.

Reporting and Recordkeeping Hour Burden:

Responses: 9,850.

Burden Hours: 202,636.

Abstract: IPEDS is a system of surveys designed to collect basic data from approximately 10,000 postsecondary institutions in the United States. The IPEDS provides information on numbers of students enrolled, degrees completed, other awards earned, dollars expended, staff employed at postsecondary institutions, and cost and pricing information. The amendments to the Higher Education Act of 1998, Part C, Sec. 131, specify the need for the “redesign of relevant data systems to improve the usefulness and timeliness of the data collected by such systems.” As a consequence, in 2000 the IPEDS is proposing a web-based data collection for all items previously collected via paper forms from Title IV eligible institutions.

Requests for copies of the proposed information collection request may be accessed from http://edicsweb.ed.gov , or should be addressed to Vivian Reese, Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW, Room 5624, Regional Office Building 3, Washington, DC 20202-4651. Requests may also be electronically mailed to the internet address OCIO—IMG—Issues@ed.gov or faxed to 202-708-9346.

Questions regarding burden and/or the collection activity requirements should be directed to Kathy Axt at (703) 426-9692 or via her internet address Kathy_Axt@ed.gov. Individuals who use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339.