Supporting Statement A

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Supporting Statement for United States Energy and Employment Report Data Collection
     Part A: Justification
OMB No. 1910-5179



August 2026


 

Table of Contents
Part A: Justification	1
Introduction	2
A.1. Legal Justification	3
A.2. Needs and Uses of Data	4
A.3. Use of Technology	6
A.4. Efforts to Identify Duplication	7
A.5. Provisions for Reducing Burden on Small Businesses	8
A.6. Consequences of Less-Frequent Reporting	8
A.7. Compliance with 5 CFR 1320.5	9
A.8. Summary of Consultations Outside of the Agency	11
A.9. Payments or Gifts to Respondents	11
A.10. Provisions for Protection of Information	12
A.11. Justification for Sensitive Questions	12
A.12A. Estimate of Respondent Burden Hours	13
A.12B. Estimate of Annual Cost to Respondent for Burden Hours	14
A.13. Other Estimated Annual Cost to Respondents	15
A.14. Annual Cost to the Federal Government	15
A.15. Reasons for Changes in Burden	15
A.16. Collection, Tabulation, and Publication Plans	16
A.17. OMB Number and Expiration Date	17
A.18. Certification Statement	17


	
	
Introduction
Provide a brief introduction of the Information Collection Request.  Include the purpose of this collection, note the publication of the 60-Day Federal Register Notice, and provide the list of forms within this collection.
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) requests Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval of a revision to the OMB Control Number 1910-5179: Energy and Jobs Survey, also referred to as the United States Energy and Employment Report (USEER) Data Collection. The current approval expires December 31, 2027.
The Energy and Jobs Survey supports the publication of the United States Energy and Employment Report (USEER). The USEER is an annual DOE publication that provides estimates of employment and workforce characteristics across electric power generation; electric power transmission, distribution, and storage; fuels; energy efficiency, including heating, cooling, and building-envelope activities; motor vehicles and component parts; and related energy activities. The collection supports the annual survey, analysis, consultation, and public-reporting requirements of 42 U.S.C. § 18841.1
The report has been published by either the Department of Energy (DOE) or the National Association of State Energy Officials (NASEO) and the Energy Futures Initiative (EFI) annually since 2016. DOE published the original 2016 and 2017 reports, NASEO and EFI published the 2018, 2019, and 2020 reports, and the report returned to DOE for publication in 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025, and 2026. 
A 60-day Federal Register notice was published on February 26, 2026, at 91 FR 9606. No comments were received. A 30-day Federal Register notice was published on September 4, 2026, at 91 FR 56872.
This request is to revise the previously approved survey instrument and methodology. This package includes: 

    • a mixed-mode web and Computer Assisted Telephone Interviewing instrument,
    • associated definitions and respondent help materials,
    • Supporting Statement A,
    • Supporting Statement B,
    • OMB Form 83-I,
    • and the statutory authority.
Major revisions include:
    • Revised occupational and workforce modules. The 2026 survey collected detailed wage, benefit, qualification, and career-path information for up to four occupations. The 2027 survey replaces this with an adaptive occupation staffing module that captures the distribution of energy employees across broad or detailed O*NET-SOC occupation groups depending on ease of information retrieval. Workforce demographic questions were also revised to improve use of employer records and employee self-identification.
    • New AI, environmental compliance, and business-activity measures. The 2026 survey did not collect information on artificial intelligence (AI) or environmental compliance employment. The 2027 survey adds questions on AI use and workforce effects, employees supporting environmental compliance, and a business activity measure selected by the respondent based on relevance and ease of reporting. Depending on the establishment’s activities, this measure may include production, capacity, construction value, or energy-related revenue.
    • Streamlined eligibility, classification, and establishment reporting. The 2026 survey included a separate facilities-construction (FACCON) eligibility and routing path and less detailed rules for assigning workers to establishments. The 2027 survey removes the separate FACCON pathway, incorporates qualifying construction activities into the general energy framework, improves sector and technology classification, and clarifies treatment of remote, hybrid, field, and project-site employees.
    • Improved employment, hiring, and workforce-development measures. The 2026 survey relied more heavily on detailed employee counts and broad hiring-difficulty questions. The 2027 survey simplifies employment reporting, allows approximate percentage allocations across sectors and technologies, distinguishes hiring from recruitment, identifies specific recruitment barriers and prolonged vacancies, and expands questions on Registered Apprenticeship Programs and workforce partnerships.
    • Reduced burden and improved survey administration. The 2026 survey included several business, revenue, transportation, and component-parts questions that were lower priority or burdensome. The 2027 survey removes or consolidates many of these questions and expands web- and phone-specific instructions, routing, help text, reference periods, consistency checks, and use of reasonable estimates to improve comprehension and data quality while reducing burden.
Qualifying energy-establishment2 responses are estimated to require an average of approximately 45 minutes, including the time needed to review instructions, consult records or other employees, complete the occupation staffing module, and review the response. Larger or more occupationally complex establishments may require additional time.
A.1. Legal Justification
Explain the circumstances that make the collection of information necessary. Identify any legal or administrative requirements that necessitate the collection. Attach a copy of the appropriate section of each statute and regulation mandating or authorizing the information collection. 
The collection of this information is outlined in 42 U.S.C. 18841: Survey, analysis, and report on employment and demographics in the energy, energy efficiency, and motor vehicle sector of the United States. The statute establishes an “Energy Jobs Council” comprised of inter-agency representatives that shall conduct a survey of employers in the mentioned sectors and perform an analysis of the employment figures and demographics in the sectors. 
Further, the statute states that the report data, including employment figures, must be made publicly available on the Department of Energy’s website annually. 
Consistent with 42 U.S.C. § 18841(c)(2)(A), DOE will produce and make publicly available energy employment estimates at the national, state, and county levels, to the extent permitted by statistical quality and confidentiality requirements. All estimates will be subject to applicable CIPSEA protections and disclosure review before publication.
42 U.S.C. § 18841(b)(2) also establishes three requirements for the USEER survey and analysis methodology. The methodology must: (1) be based on the methodology approved by the Office of Management and Budget in 2016 under OMB Control Number 1910-5179; (2) use a representative, stratified sampling of businesses in the United States; and (3) be designed to elicit a comparable number of responses from businesses in each State and from businesses with the same North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) codes represented in the 2016 and 2017 U.S. Energy and Employment Reports.
The 2027 USEER preserves the core features of the 2016-approved methodology while updating its implementation for current data, technologies, and survey conditions. The survey remains establishment based and uses industry or NAICS, establishment size, and geography as core sampling and allocation variables. Bureau of Labor Statistics Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) establishment and employment totals inform sample allocation, weighting, and estimation, and the sampling frame continues to combine establishments known to have potential energy-related activity with a broader national establishment frame used to identify additional qualifying establishments.
The 2027 design strengthens the statistical implementation of this methodology through probability-based sample selection, explicit selection probabilities, nonresponse adjustments, calibration, and design-based variance estimation. It also updates frame sources, current-year employment controls, eligibility definitions, survey routing, and other procedures needed to reflect current conditions. These changes preserve the core design and comparability objectives of the 2016-approved methodology while improving statistical rigor and transparency. Consistent with the terms of OMB’s 2016 clearance, DOE may update survey terms and definitions as necessary to reflect changing technologies and market conditions.
To implement the statutory State and NAICS comparability requirement, DOE will use the 2016 and 2017 USEER response distributions as historical benchmarks when allocating the 2027 sample and monitoring data collection. The 2027 design will preserve coverage of the historical NAICS domains used in those reports, accounting for subsequent NAICS revisions as necessary, while allowing supplemental coverage needed for current energy activities. Supporting Statement B describes these procedures in greater detail.
This revised data collection is needed to maintain the usefulness and coverage of the annual USEER as energy technologies, business activities, and workforce information needs change. 
A.2. Needs and Uses of Data
Indicate how, by whom, and for what purpose the information is to be used. Except for a new collection, indicate the actual use the agency has made of the information received from the current collection 
DOE uses USEER survey data to measure and analyze employment and workforce characteristics across the U.S. energy economy. The survey complements existing federal industry and occupational data because energy-related work occurs across many industries and cannot always be identified from an establishment's North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code or an employee's occupation alone. By asking establishments directly about their energy-related activities and workers, USEER can identify energy employment across energy technologies, business activities, and supply chains.
DOE has used data from the current collection to produce annual estimates and analyses of energy employment by sector, technology or subsector, industry or value-chain activity, geography, occupation, and workforce characteristics. The 2026 USEER uses survey results to analyze employment trends, employer-reported hiring difficulty, difficult-to-fill occupations, and workforce demographics across the major energy sectors. USEER products also provide state and other geographic data and supporting tables for workforce and economic analysis. DOE combines the survey results with other federal statistical data, including Bureau of Labor Statistics data, to provide a more complete picture of energy labor markets.
DOE offices use USEER results to identify workforce needs, assess hiring and skill shortages, inform workforce and program planning, and track changes in energy employment. State and local agencies, educational institutions, workforce-development organizations, training providers, industry organizations, researchers, job seekers, and other stakeholders use USEER data for workforce, training, and economic-development planning.
These revisions serve the following purposes:
    • Improvement to instructions and administrative procedures. These changes are intended to improve clarity and data quality while limiting respondent burden. It directs respondents to report for the sampled establishment; classify employees using primary job duties rather than job titles; and provide best estimates or percentages when exact values are not readily available; consult or transfer specialized sections to a knowledgeable employee.

    • Improved energy-sector and establishment classification. Revised screeners improve identification and classification of establishments performing qualifying energy work, including supply-chain, construction and installation, operations and maintenance, and professional-service activities. The instrument also improves classification of process heat, fuels, transportation technologies, and other energy activities. The separate facilities-construction eligibility and routing pathway used in 2026 has been removed; qualifying construction activities are now classified within the applicable energy sector and business activity.

    • Improved employment and energy-activity measurement. Revised questions establish clearer rules for assigning payroll employees, independent contractors, workers employed by other organizations, and remote, hybrid, field, and project-site workers to the sampled establishment. The survey also measures current and prior-year energy-related employment and allows approximate percentage allocations across energy sectors and technologies. These data support more consistent estimates of employment levels, changes, and the distribution of workers across energy activities.

    • Improved workforce characteristics collection. The revised questions emphasize employee self-identification and information available in employer records and distinguish unavailable information from zero counts. These data support analysis of the composition of the energy workforce and workforce-development needs.

    • Streamlined and restructured hiring, recruitment, apprenticeships, and workforce development. Revised questions measure hiring, active recruitment, difficult-to-fill occupations, specific recruitment barriers, and positions remaining open for 90 days or more. Questions on participation in Registered Apprenticeship Programs and collaboration with educational institutions, workforce systems, apprenticeship programs, labor organizations, and training providers provide information on how employers develop and obtain needed workers. These measures strengthen USEER's ability to identify occupational and skill shortages and inform workforce-development planning.

    • New business activity and environmental compliance questions. New questions measure employees directly supporting environmental compliance and allow establishments to report an operational measure appropriate to their energy activity, such as production, capacity, infrastructure installed, construction value, or energy-related revenue. These data can support analysis of the relationship between employment and the scale of establishment activity and provide information on the workforce supporting environmental compliance.


    • New Artificial Intelligence module. A new module measures whether establishments use artificial intelligence (AI), the business functions in which AI is used, and reported effects on total employment, hiring, skill requirements, and employee work assignments. These data allow DOE to assess how AI adoption is associated with workforce changes within energy establishments.

    • New Occupation staffing module replacing occupation wage module. The new occupation staffing module collects the distribution of energy-related employees across detailed O*NET-SOC occupations or broader occupational groups. Respondents may provide counts or approximate percentages and may use broader occupational groups when detailed classification is not reasonably available. These data support more complete analysis of where energy employment is concentrated by occupation, identification of occupations associated with hiring needs, and analysis alongside separately available occupational labor-market and wage data. The module does not collect occupation-level wages, salaries, benefits, or payroll amounts.
A.3. Use of Technology
Describe whether, and to what extent, the collection of information involves the use of automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses. 
     The survey will be administered and data will be collected through a secure web survey and Computer Assisted Telephone Interviewing. The programmed instrument will use establishment-specific routing and skip patterns so respondents see only applicable energy activities, technologies, workforce questions, and follow-up items. The system will automatically carry forward employee totals and establishment information reported earlier, calculate totals, flag possible inconsistencies, and let respondents correct their answers or keep them if they are their best estimates. 
The web instrument will permit respondents to save and return, consult records, and, where operationally supported, transfer a specialized section to another knowledgeable employee without restarting the survey. Telephone respondents may schedule callbacks or consult another employee.
The occupation staffing module will use the current survey-year SOC occupation universe as a controlled lookup rather than displaying every occupation in a static grid. Respondents using the detailed path will search by job title, duties, keyword, or SOC code; browse by major group; review plain-language and full descriptions; compare ambiguous occupations; and enter counts or approximate percentages only for selected occupations. Establishments with more than 50 energy-related employees may select detailed occupations or SOC major groups. Establishments with 50 or fewer energy-related employees begin with detailed reporting but may switch to major groups when detailed information is not reasonably available.
The CATI procedure is a secure web handoff for the occupation staffing module. Time spent completing a web handoff, consulting another employee, or completing the section during a callback is included in the burden estimate.
The response data, cleaned timing data, and approved paradata will be used to monitor burden, item nonresponse, navigation difficulty, total edits, and occupation-classification problems. Any post-approval changes that affect the respondent universe, data elements, substantive purpose, or approved burden will be submitted to OIRA before implementation.

A.4. Efforts to Identify Duplication
Describe efforts to identify duplication. 
DOE reviewed existing federal statistical sources that could provide employment, occupational, demographic, workforce, or technology-adoption information needed for USEER. These include the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW), Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), and Current Employment Statistics (CES), as well as the U.S. Census Bureau Quarterly Workforce Indicators (QWI) and Business Trends and Outlook Survey (BTOS). DOE uses existing federal data where they can meet USEER analytical needs rather than collecting the same information again from respondents.
These sources do not provide the energy-specific information required for USEER. QCEW provides establishment employment and wage data by North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) industry, while OEWS provides occupational employment and wage estimates by occupation, industry, and geography. QWI provides employment, workforce-flow, and demographic measures by industry and other employer and worker characteristics. However, these sources do not identify which employees within an establishment support particular energy sectors or technologies, nor do they allocate an establishment's energy-related employees across energy activities and occupations. USEER therefore collects this energy-specific information directly from qualifying establishments.
The 2027 instrument further reduces duplication by replacing the 2026 occupation wage and benefit module with an occupation staffing module. The revised module collects the distribution of energy-related employees across occupations but does not collect occupation-level wages, salaries, benefits, or payroll amounts. When appropriate, DOE may combine the USEER occupation staffing estimates with existing OEWS wage data through a separately documented statistical method rather than collecting duplicative wage information from respondents.

DOE also reviewed Census Bureau BTOS questions on artificial intelligence (AI). BTOS measures AI use across U.S. employer businesses, including use across business functions and effects on work and business operations. The 2027 USEER instrument limits its AI questions to information needed to connect AI adoption with USEER's energy-specific establishment classifications and workforce measures, including effects on employment, hiring, skill requirements, and employee work assignments. BTOS does not identify the energy-related employee population within an establishment or classify establishments by the energy sectors and technologies used for USEER reporting. The USEER AI questions therefore provide energy-workforce information that cannot be obtained directly from BTOS.
A.5. Provisions for Reducing Burden on Small Businesses 
If the collection of information impacts small businesses or other small entities, describe any methods used to minimize burden. 
     Small establishments are necessary to produce representative USEER estimates, and the instrument incorporates several features to reduce their burden. Respondents may complete the survey online or by telephone, save and return where supported, schedule callbacks, consult records or another employee, and provide best estimates when exact values are not readily available.
The survey uses establishment-level routing and skip patterns so respondents receive only applicable questions. It does not impose a new recordkeeping or retention requirement and asks respondents to use information maintained in the ordinary course of business.
The occupation staffing module avoids displaying the full SOC universe as a static list. Respondents select only occupations present at the sampled establishment and then enter counts or percentages for those selections. Establishments with 50 or fewer energy-related employees begin with detailed occupation reporting but may switch to SOC major groups when detailed information is not reasonably available. Counts or approximate percentages are accepted. These features reduce record-retrieval and classification burden for establishments whose records do not support detailed SOC coding.
DOE will monitor completion time, item nonresponse, breakoff, reporting level, number of occupations or groups selected, total-edit activity, and “Other or uncertain” responses by establishment size and survey mode.
A.6. Consequences of Less-Frequent Reporting
Describe the consequence to Federal program or policy activities if the collection is not conducted or is conducted less frequently, as well as any technical or legal obstacles to reducing burden. 
This collection is necessary to implement 42 U.S.C. § 18841, which requires the Department of Energy, and the Energy Jobs Council, to survey employers in the energy (including the electric power generation and fuels sector; and the transmission, storage, and distribution sector), energy efficiency, and motor vehicle sectors; analyze the resulting employment and demographic information; and publish the U.S. Energy and Employment Report annually. If the collection were not conducted, the Department of Energy would lack the survey data required to prepare the statutorily mandated report and make the collected data publicly available. Conducting the collection less frequently would not satisfy the statutory requirement to issue the report annually.

Further, the lack of labor market data in the energy sector has been widely noted.3,4,5  Energy generation, distribution and consumption are embedded in many different sectors of the economy and energy-focused jobs are attributed to their industry, rather than energy technology. Therefore, energy jobs are often classified with traditional occupational identifiers. For example, under the current job classification system, a welder is not differentiated between working on an oil pipeline, a water main, an energy efficient office building, or a piece of construction equipment. USEER thus identifies energy-related employment within existing industry and occupation classifications, allowing energy work to be analyzed separately.
If the collection is not conducted, federal agencies will not have accurate data on labor market trends in key energy sectors during a time of rapid technological change in the energy sector. Without the data collection, both federal and state policymakers will not be able to plan for new workforce skills demands or prepare for retraining workers.
Since changes in energy technologies and increasing power demand are affecting different regions of the country in different ways, state and regional data is also necessary for both economic and workforce development purposes. Hiring difficulty data is essential to provide guidance to training providers to prepare course offerings and curricula that are aligned with changing energy technology and employer needs. Similarly, demographic profiles of the energy workforce are necessary to identify gaps in labor supply including aging workforce trends.  
Less-frequent collection would also reduce DOE’s ability to identify current changes in energy employment, occupational staffing, hiring difficulty, technology adoption, workforce demographics, and state and regional labor-market conditions. It would also reduce comparability with annual QCEW, OEWS, and other economic data used in estimation and benchmarking.
A.7. Compliance with 5 CFR 1320.5
Explain any special circumstances that require the collection to be conducted in a manner inconsistent with OMB guidelines: 
(a) requiring respondents to report information to the agency more often than quarterly; 
(b) requiring respondents to prepare a written response to a collection of information in fewer than 30 days after receipt of it; 
(c) requiring respondents to submit more than an original and two copies of any document; 
(d) requiring respondents to retain records, other than health, medical government contract, grant-in-aid, or tax records, for more than three years; 
(e) in connection with a statistical survey, that is not designed to produce valid and reliable results that can be generalized to the universe of study; 
(f) requiring the use of statistical data classification that has not been reviewed and approved by OMB; 
(g) that includes a pledge of confidentiality that is not supported by authority established in statute of regulation, that is not supported by disclosure and data security policies that are consistent with the pledge, or which unnecessarily impedes sharing of data with other agencies for compatible confidential use; or
(h) requiring respondents to submit proprietary trade secrets, or other confidential information unless the agency can demonstrate that it has instituted procedures to protect the information’s confidentiality to the extent permitted by law. 
The collection will be conducted in a manner consistent with 5 CFR 1320.5. Respondents will be asked to respond no more than annually. DOE will not require a response in fewer than 30 days, submission of more than an original and two copies, or retention of records beyond the period ordinarily maintained by the establishment. The collection does not establish a new recordkeeping requirement.
Supporting Statement B describes the representative stratified sample, weighting, nonresponse adjustment, estimation, variance, imputation, quality-control, and disclosure procedures used to produce valid and reliable statistical results. The collection uses OMB-approved NAICS and SOC classifications. DOE will not make a pledge of confidentiality unless it is supported by statutory authority and compatible disclosure and data-security procedures. Information that may be proprietary or commercially sensitive will be protected to the extent permitted by law and under applicable statistical-confidentiality protections. No special circumstance requiring an exception from OMB guidelines is anticipated.


A.8. Summary of Consultations Outside of the Agency
If applicable, provide a copy and identify the date and page number of publication in the Federal Register of the agency’s notice, required by 5 CFR 1320.8(d), soliciting comments on the information collection prior to submission to OMB. Summarize public comments received in response to that notice and describe actions taken in response to the comments. Specifically address comments received on cost and hour burden.
DOE conducted direct outreach to federal agencies, state agencies, and non-governmental organizations to understand data needs and availability, frequency of data collection, recordkeeping, and format of deliverables, among other items. It also regularly convened its statutorily required Energy Jobs Council, which is made up of representatives of state and federal agencies and other key stakeholders. Specifically, DOE conducted outreach to the following organizations:
    • Bureau of Labor Statistics
    • U.S. Census Bureau
    • U.S. Energy Information Administration
    • state energy and workforce agencies
    • other energy-sector stakeholders

Consultations addressed the availability of establishment records, clarity of instructions and definitions, survey frequency, reporting modes, occupation classification, expected burden, and methods of reducing burden.
A 60-day Federal Register notice was published on February 26, 2026, at 91 FR 9606. No comments were received.
Following publication of the 60-day notice, DOE further revised the proposed collection, including replacing the prior occupation wage module with a complete occupation staffing module. The average burden of the survey instrument for qualifying energy establishments is estimated to be about 45 minutes.  
The final 30-day notice was published on September 4, 2026, at 91 FR 56872. and described the final response count, burden hours, respondent cost, and revised instrument.
DOE may conduct targeted cognitive, usability, and programming tests with fewer than 10 in-scope establishments or respondents, as appropriate, before fielding depending on DOE funding availability. Testing would focus on revised screeners, establishment reporting instructions, race and ethnicity reporting, business activity and environmental compliance reporting, AI usage, and the occupation staffing module. DOE would document the testing dates, respondent characteristics, findings, and resulting clarifying changes. Material changes identified through testing would be submitted to OIRA before implementation.

A.9. Payments or Gifts to Respondents 
Explain any decision to provide any payment or gift to respondents, other than remuneration of contractors or grantees. 
There will be no payments or gifts (incentives) to respondents.
A.10. Provisions for Protection of Information 
Describe any assurance of confidentiality provided to respondents and the basis for the assurance in statute, regulation, or agency policy. 
DOE will collect and use survey responses for exclusively statistical purposes. Information acquired under a pledge of confidentiality for exclusively statistical purposes will be protected consistent with the Confidential Information Protection and Statistical Efficiency Act, including 44 U.S.C. § 3572, and other applicable statutes and DOE policies.
Authorized personnel who require access to identifiable information will be designated as statistical agents through contracts or agreements containing the required restrictions and will perform exclusively statistical activities in compliance with CIPSEA. All personnel with access will receive applicable confidentiality, privacy, and information-security training and will sign required acknowledgments.
Direct identifiers and contact information will be maintained separately from analytic response files to the extent operationally practicable and linked through unique study identifiers. Access will be limited according to job responsibilities. Identifiable data will be protected during collection, transmission, storage, analysis, linkage, and disposition using approved encryption, access controls, logging, secure environments, and data-management procedures.
Before publication, DOE or the administering organization will perform disclosure review considering direct and indirect identification risk, including small cells, dominant establishments, differencing risk, geographic detail, and combinations of characteristics. Suppression, aggregation, perturbation, complementary suppression, or other disclosure-avoidance methods may be used as appropriate. DOE will not rely solely on a fixed rule concerning three or fewer establishments.
A.11. Justification for Sensitive Questions 
Provide additional justification for any questions of a sensitive nature, such as sexual behavior and attitudes, religious beliefs, and other matters that are commonly considered private. This justification should include the reasons why DOE considers the questions necessary, the specific uses to be made of the information, the explanation to be given to persons from whom the information is requested, and any steps to be taken to obtain their consent. 
The collection does not ask about sexual behavior, religious beliefs, or similar personal matters. However, several establishment-level questions may be considered sensitive, confidential, or proprietary, such as race and ethnicity; voluntary disability and veteran self-identification recorded by the employer; union or labor-agreement coverage; and business activity measures.
Race and ethnicity, gender, veteran, disability, age, education, and union-coverage information is needed to satisfy the statutory requirement to analyze workforce demographics and to identify workforce gaps and trends. The respondent reports aggregate employee counts from available establishment records. The instrument instructs the respondent not to infer an employee’s characteristics from name, appearance, language, occupation, or other information. Respondents may report that information is unavailable and may skip or refuse an item.
DOE is planning to collect the seven minimum race and ethnicity categories and is requesting an exemption from collecting full set of detailed subcategories. The respondent is reporting by proxy for an establishment-level subset of employees; many establishments do not maintain detailed subgroup information for that subset; detailed collection would require many additional employee-count fields; detailed establishment cells would frequently be too small for reliable or publishable estimates; and the added burden would likely increase missing, estimated, and inconsistent responses. The instrument preserves the seven minimum categories, permits reporting alone or in combination, and separately records unavailable or unmappable information. 
The business activity measures support analysis of employment intensity that will be of high value for workforce planning activities. Respondents may provide best estimates when exact values are not readily available and may decline to answer.
A.12A. Estimate of Respondent Burden Hours 
Provide estimates of the hour burden of the collection of information. The statement should indicate the number of respondents, frequency of response, annual hour burden, and an explanation of how the burden was estimated. Unless directed to do so, DOE should not conduct special surveys to obtain information on which to base hour burden estimates. Consultation with a sample fewer than 10 potential respondents is desirable. 

DOE based burden estimates on experience with previous web and telephone completion times, respondent record consultation, and qualifying and non-qualifying response paths. 
The 2027 qualifying energy-establishment survey is estimated to require an average of 45 minutes, including the new occupational staffing module that replaces the previous occupational wage module. 
This is about the same average time required from the 2026 survey instrument, which also estimated an average of 45 minutes.
Replacing the 2026 wage module with an occupation staffing module reduces the need for respondents to report detailed, potentially sensitive wage and benefit information that may not be readily available. It also provides a more complete picture of the occupations supporting energy-related work and allows DOE to combine establishment staffing data with reliable federal occupational wage data for more consistent analysis. 
For burden-estimation purposes, DOE assumes that every qualifying energy-establishment respondent reaches and completes the occupation staffing module.
Projected respondent counts are based on 2026 USEER data collection results and updated incidence and response experience. Supporting Statement B explains the sample design and expected response rates. Table A1 provides the annual responses, frequency, burden per response, and annual burden by response path.
In summary, there are 45,406 total potential respondents for the 2027 USEER; from this total, 10,811 qualifying respondents to the baseline USEER survey with the new occupation staffing module are expected. The estimated burden for this group is 8,108 hours. In addition, 34,595 non-qualifying respondents to the baseline USEER survey (burden=634 hours) are expected. Total respondent burden for the entire USEER effort is estimated to be 8,742 hours.





Table A1. Estimated Respondent Hour Burden.

Collection Path
Type of Respondents
Number of Respondents
Annual Number of Responses
Burden Hours Per Response
Annual Burden Hours
Annual Reporting Frequency
Qualifying energy establishment — web/phone/CATI, including occupation staffing module
Business (HR) representatives
 10,811
10,811
45 minutes / 0.75 hours
8,108
 1
USEER Incidence Response — (non-qualifying establishment,. Phone, Web)
Business (HR) representatives
 34,595
34,595
1.1 minutes / 0.0183 hours
634
 1
TOTAL
 
45,406
45,406
 
8,742
 

A.12B. Estimate of Annual Cost to Respondent for Burden Hours 
Provide estimates of annualized cost to respondents for the hour burdens for collections of information, identifying and using appropriate wage rate categories. The cost of contracting out or paying outside parties for information collection activities should not be included here. Instead, this cost should be included under ‘Annual Cost to Federal Government’. 

To calculate the annual cost, DOE averaged the median wage of the six (6) most common occupational titles of USEER respondents, using the most recent national data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics from May 2025, released in May 2026.6 The occupations include:

    • Construction Managers ($55.28)
    • Human Resources Specialists ($36.51)
    • First-Line Supervisors of Office and Administrative Support Workers ($33.41)
    • Statistical Assistants ($24.20)
    • First-Line Supervisors of Mechanics, Installers, and Repairers ($38.39)
    • First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers ($35.79)

The average of these median hourly wages is $37.26. 

In March 2026, wages and salaries for private-industry workers represented 69.9 percent of total employer compensation; total compensation averaged $46.60 per hour compared with $32.60 in wages and salaries. The resulting ratio of total compensation to wages is approximately 1.43, which DOE rounds to 1.4 for purposes of estimating respondent labor costs.

DOE then applied this 1.4 multiplier for a total compensation (wage plus benefits) rate of $52.17 per hour.

 This was then multiplied by the total burden hours of 8,742 for a total estimated annual burden of $456,070. 

Table A2. Estimated Respondent Cost Burden

Type of Respondents
Total Annual Burden Hours
Hourly Wage Rate
Total Respondent Costs

Business (HR) representatives
 8,742
 $52.17
$456,070

TOTAL
8,742
 
$456,070


A.13. Other Estimated Annual Cost to Respondents
Provide an estimate for the total annual cost burden to respondents or recordkeepers resulting from the collection of information. 
DOE does not expect respondents to incur capital, start-up, software acquisition, equipment, recordkeeping, or recurring operating and maintenance costs beyond the labor burden reported in A.12. The collection uses web or CATI-assisted telephone response and information maintained in ordinary payroll, human-resources, finance, staffing, project, or business records. No new record-retention requirement is imposed.
A.14. Annual Cost to the Federal Government 
Provide estimates of annualized cost to the Federal government. 
The estimated cost to the Federal Government to conduct the 2027 USEER is approximately $3.3 million. This estimate includes costs for survey and statistical design; sampling-frame development and sample selection; questionnaire programming and basic testing; web and telephone data collection; respondent outreach and support; data cleaning, coding, weighting, estimation, and quality review; analysis and report production; project management and administration; and DOE program, statistical, acquisition, privacy, and Paperwork Reduction Act oversight.
DOE’s estimated cost for the 2027 USEER increases from about $1.9 million from the previous approval to $3.3 million for two main reasons. First, the prior contract ended in August 2026, and DOE is using a National Laboratory as the primary performer to avoid delays associated with a new competitive acquisition and related congressional notification requirements. This approach adds administrative and subcontract-management costs. Second, the 2027 survey has been substantially revised, including a new occupational staffing module that requires additional programming, testing, consistency checks, data processing, and statistical review. These higher costs are specific to the 2027 cycle and are not expected to represent the recurring annual cost of the survey.
A.15. Reasons for Changes in Burden
Explain the reasons for any program changes or adjustments reported in Items 13 (or 14) of OMB Form 83-I. 
DOE estimates 45,406 annual responses and 8,742 annual burden hours, compared with the currently approved 44,400 responses and 8,312 burden hours. This represents an increase of 1,006 responses and 430 burden hours when compared to the 2026 survey instrument estimates.
The change is attributable to adjustment in agency estimates. The revised estimate of the total number of responses is based on updated respondent counts from the 2025-2026 data collection. Meanwhile, the survey instrument changes are attributable to agency program changes, but these changes have not meaningfully changed our estimate of average time to complete the qualifying establishment survey. 
Respondent cost changes reflect the revised burden hours and updated occupational wage data.
Table A3 shows these changes. 
Table A3. ICR Summary of Burden
 
Requested
Program Change Due to Agency Discretion
Change Due to Adjustment in Agency Estimate
Previously Approved
Total Number of Responses
45,406
0 
 1,006
44,400
Total Time Burden (Hr)
8,742
0 
430
8,312
Total Cost Burden
$456,070
0 
$56,762
$399,308

A.16. Collection, Tabulation, and Publication Plans 
For collections whose results will be published, outline the plans for tabulation and publication. 
DOE will collect the information through the mixed-mode web and CATI procedures described in A.3 and Supporting Statement B. Data collection is planned for January 2027 through March 2027. Data cleaning, coding, editing, weighting, nonresponse analysis, estimation, disclosure review, and table production will occur from January 2027 to July 2027. DOE expects to publish the 2027 USEER by November 2027.
After data collection, DOE will perform establishment matching and deduplication; response review; coding of open-ended responses; logical and range editing; evaluation of item and unit nonresponse; and imputation of selected key variables where methodologically appropriate. Raw responses will be preserved, and edited, imputed, or scaled values will be separately identified.
Final analysis weights will reflect selection probabilities, unit-nonresponse adjustments, and calibration to QCEW or other approved control totals. Variances will be estimated using Taylor-series or replication methods that account for the stratified sample design. DOE will conduct a nonresponse-bias analysis using available frame characteristics and may flag or suppress estimates that do not meet precision, quality, or confidentiality standards.
Occupation staffing data will retain the reporting level selected by the respondent, the detailed SOC occupations or SOC major groups, raw counts or percentages, any scaled analytic values, total-edit and classification flags, and “Other or uncertain” information. Detailed occupation responses may be aggregated to SOC major groups. Establishments reporting only major groups will contribute to major-group estimates and will not be treated as having reported detailed SOC data unless a separate disaggregation method is documented, evaluated, and approved.
Wage calculations will be performed by associating external wage benchmarks from the BLS OEWS program with occupation staffing profiles. The resulting values will be identified as statistically assigned or modeled estimates rather than respondent-reported occupation wages. The methods and limitations will be documented.

Published products will include national, state, and county-level employment estimates, along with other national and subnational tables, charts, methodological documentation, quality notes, and disclosure-protected results. DOE will make county-level employment estimates publicly available consistent with 42 U.S.C. § 18841(c)(2)(A). County estimates that do not meet applicable statistical-quality or confidentiality standards will be flagged, suppressed, aggregated, or otherwise protected as appropriate.
Supporting Statement B provides complete statistical design and estimation procedures.
A.17. OMB Number and Expiration Date 
If seeking approval to not display the expiration date for OMB approval of the information collection, explain the reasons why display would be inappropriate. 
DOE will display the currently valid OMB control number and expiration date in the web instrument, CATI script, survey invitations, and other respondent-facing collection materials. 
The instrument will include the public-protection statement that no person is required to respond to a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number.
A.18. Certification Statement 
Explain each exception to the certification statement identified in Item 19 of OMB Form 83-I. 
This collection contains no exceptions to the certification requirements. DOE has reviewed the final instrument, Supporting Statements A and B, Federal Register notices, respondent disclosures, burden calculations, confidentiality procedures and certifies that they are consistent.