Justification for Nonsubstantive Change (dropping BES Questions)

Non-Substantive Change Request

Annual Retail Trade Survey

(0607-0013)

In its recent request for OMB review of this collection, the Census Bureau informed OMB of its intention to drop detailed business expenses questions for the 2018 survey year. These questions, collectively referred to as the Business Expenses Supplement are fielded only in year's ending in "2" or "7" consistent with the years of the Economic Census. The questions being dropped from all forms are question numbers 13 and 14.

In addition, we are also eliminating the foreign inventories questions which are no longer needed by the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA). For question 7-Value of Inventories, sub-items E and F are being removed from the form. Sub-item 7 E. Requested respondents to check "yes" or "no" on whether any of their inventories were stored outside of, or enroute to, the 50 states and the District of Columbia in 2017. Sub-item 7 F. Requested respondents provide the value of the inventories from Sub-Item 7.E. These questions are being removed because the response to these questions was poor and essentially had no data users Government or Private. This question was placed on the forms in 2004 at the request of BEA as part of an effort to capture greater portions of the global supply chain. Census Bureau staff met with BEA officials and confirmed that these data items were no longer needed for their GDP estimates and are being removed.