supporting statement 1205-0137 January 2013

OMB Control No. 1205-0137

_{Supporting Statement for Extension without Revisions}

A. Justification

1. The collection of information by means of the Occupational Code Assignment (OCA) form is necessary to help occupational information users relate an occupational specialty or job title to an occupational code and title within the framework of the O*NET-SOC (Occupational Information Network-Standard Occupational Classification) based system. It helps provide occupational codes for jobs where duties have changed to the extent that the published information is no longer appropriate or the user is unable to classify the job on their own.

The Occupational Information Network (O*NET) classifies nearly all occupations in the United States economy. However, new specialties are constantly evolving and emerging. The use of the OCA form is voluntary and is provided (1) as a uniform format for the public and private sectors to submit information requesting an occupational code, (2) to provide input to a

database of alternative (lay) titles to facilitate searches of O*NET information in O*NET OnLine, O*NET Code Connector, and America’s Career Information Network, and (3) to assist the O*NET system in identifying potential occupations that may need to be included in future O*NET data collection efforts.

The O*NET-SOC system consists of a database that organizes the work done by individuals into approximately 950 occupational categories. O*NET occupations have associated data on the importance and level of a range of occupational characteristics and requirements, including Knowledge, Skills, Abilities, Tasks, and Work Activities. Since the O*NET-SOC system is based on the 2000 Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) system, receiving an O*NET-SOC code and title facilitates linkage to national, state, and local occupational employment and wage estimates.

The legislative authority for the Occupational Code Assignment is Public Law

105-220, August 7, 1998, Workforce Investment Act, Section 309. Employment Statistics, which amends Sec. 15 of the Wagner-Peyser Act. This legislation authorizes the Secretary of Labor to maintain a system of

employment statistics that includes in (D) “procedures to ensure compatibility and additivity of the data and the information described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) from national State and local levels;” and in (E) “procedures to support standardization and aggregation of data from administrative reporting systems described in subparagraph (A) of employment-related programs.”

The Occupational Code Assignment helps users obtain an O*NET-SOC code which allows for compatibility and standardization in the area of occupational coding. A copy of the legislative authority for information collection is attached.

2. Occupational analysts use the information obtained on the OCA form to aid them in identifying the most appropriate occupational code and title to the job or specialty described in the information submitted. The information is also used to provide input to the O*NET alternative (lay) titles database which supports the search functions in O*NET OnLine (http://online.onetcenter.org), O*NET Code Connector (http://www.onetcodeconnector.org) and America’s Career Information Network (http://www.acinet.org). Finally, it is used to assist the O*NET system in analyzing occupations that have potential for inclusion in future O*NET data collection efforts.

In the past, local and national office staff from One-Stop Career Centers, Office of Apprenticeship, Foreign Labor Certification, as well as the general public, have used the OCR form to submit requests for occupational titles, and codes for occupations that could not be found in the Dictionary of Occupational Titles. Since 2003 they have used the OCA form to assist with identifying codes for occupations in the O*NET system. It is expected that these constituents will continue to use the OCA form to help them locate occupational codes in the O*NET system.

3. In 2003, to comply with the Government Paperwork Elimination Act, the Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, tasked its grantee, the National Center for O*NET Development, to design an automated intake process in which respondents can complete an online version of the OCA form, or download a copy of an OCA form from the Internet. A "guidance page" outlining the OCA process is available on the O*NET Resource Center website at http://www.onetcenter.org, with links from both O*NET OnLine and the O*NET Code Connector websites. Users are able to save an electronic copy of OCA Form - Part A from the website, complete the questions without printing the form, then e-mail the saved form to the

National Center for O*NET Development. When users access the online OCA, the information they enter is automatically transferred to an OCA database. With both methods, users are able to complete an OCA request electronically, without the need for any paper.

The use of improved technology for the OCA process will reduce the burden on users. Users no longer have to request a paper copy of the form and wait for this paper copy to arrive via mail or fax to initiate the OCA request process. Instead, users are able to access the downloadable OCA Form - Part A or the online OCA process on the web and simultaneously complete an electronic version of the form. Returning the forms is also less burdensome for users with the implementation of improved technology. After

downloading OCA Form - Part A, users are able to save the completed version of the form, then e-mail the saved copy to the National O*NET Center as an attachment. If users complete the online OCA process, the information is automatically transferred to a database maintained by the National O*NET Center. Users no longer have to mail or fax a paper copy of the completed forms. The use of technology enables users to submit information in the most efficient manner for them.

4. The OCA program was developed by ETA as a unique public service in order to assist government program offices and others who are unable to identify needed occupational codes using the O*NET Code Connector. The Code Connector provides users the ability to self-select an O*NET-SOC code related to a title not currently in the O*NET database. The OCA program gives users additional assistance, when necessary, only for those cases where the user is unable to identify an appropriate O*NET-SOC code. No duplication of effort exists between the two systems.

5. Small business firms are involved only if they submit an OCA form requesting a code assignment.

6. Information is received and processed as a public service. The frequency of data processing is determined by user need. Given the evolutionary nature of jobs and occupations in the United States, this effort is needed on an ongoing basis. Without this service, users have no alternatives when faced with the task of assigning an occupational code to a unique title.

7. Data collected is consistent with 5 CFR 1320.5.

8. In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the public was given a sixty-day opportunity to review and comment on this data collection by a notice published in the Federal Register on Nov. 21, 2012 (Vol. 77, 69897). No comments were received.

9. No payments or gifts are, or will be, offered to respondents.

10. It is the policy of the ETA, Office of Workforce Investment, to keep records secure and private. No information is released which contains identifying information about individuals or firms.

11. No information of a sensitive nature is requested on the OCA form.

_{12. Occupational analysts processed the following OCAs from 2010- 2012:}

Year	Respondents
2010	19
2011	14
2012	9
Total 2010-12	42

_{Total OCAs per year 42 divided by 3 = 14 OCAs per year on average}

Form	Requests per year	Hours/request1	Total Annualized Hours	Salary Expenditure Used2 (Hours x hourly income)
OCA - Part A	14	.5	7.0	$333.62

¹ _{Estimates on OCA form - Part A = 30 minutes}

² Salary based on America’s Career InfoNet data for Human Resource Manager, median income =

$47.66/hour

Estimated total burden hours = 6.42 hours

Estimated total annual cost for respondents = $333.62

13. There is no cost burden for respondents.

14. Direct Federal Costs associated with this effort are $0.

15. There is no change in the form. The adjustment in the calculation of burden is based on a lower average annualized number of requests over the past three years.

16. This information will not be published separately. The data will be included in the O*NET alternate (lay) titles database which supports O*NET OnLine and O*NET Code Connector and is available as a downloadable file from the O*NET Resource Center Web site.

17. ETA will display the OMB number and expiration date on the ETA 741.

18. There are no exceptions.

B. Collection of Information Employing Statistical Methods

The collection of information does not employ statistical methods.

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