updated supportingstatement A

SUPPORTING STATEMENT

A. Justification

1. Necessity of Information Collection

The Census of State and Local Law Enforcement Agencies (CSLLEA), a recurring BJS data collection, is the only systematic, national-level data collection providing a complete enumeration of the Nation’s state and local law enforcement agencies and counts of their personnel. The CSLLEA also serves as a comprehensive source of national statistics about the functions performed by these agencies. There is no other source for these important statistics. The data are collected from all of the more than 18,000 agencies across the country, Previous CSLLEA data collections have been conducted every four years, and have also served as the sampling frame for the LEMAS Survey of State and Local Law Enforcement Agencies, most recently conducted in 2007.

Some selected findings from the last CSLLEA conducted in 2004:

Number of agencies and personnel

• In September 2004, 17,876 State and local law enforcement agencies with the equivalent of at least 1 full-time officer were operating in the U.S.

• State and local law enforcement agencies employed nearly 1.1

million persons on a full-time basis, including 732,000 sworn personnel.

• Most State and local law enforcement agencies were small, with about half employing fewer than 10 officers.

Overall employment trends

• From 2000 to 2004, full-time employment by State and local law enforcement agencies nationwide increased overall by 57,400 (or 5.6%).

• Sworn personnel increased by 23,900 (or 3.4%), and nonsworn by 33,500 (or 10.8%).

• The number of sworn personnel added from 2000 to 2004 was less than the increase observed from 1996 to 2000 (44,500) or from 1992 to 1996 (55,400).

Employment by type of agency

• From 2000 to 2004, sworn employment rose by 1% in local police departments, 6% in sheriffs' offices, and 2% in State law enforcement agencies.

• Sheriffs' offices increased their number of nonsworn employees by 17% compared to 1% for local police and State law enforcement agencies.

• More than half of State and local law enforcement personnel worked for local police departments

Police departments in large cities

• Two-fifths of the nation's 50 largest local police departments saw a decline in sworn personnel during this period, including 6 of the 7 largest.

• The New York City Police Department remained the nation's largest law enforcement agency in 2004, with 36,118 officers, but it employed 11% fewer officers than in 2000.

The statutory authorization to collect these data is derived from Title 42 U.S.C. Section 3732 (Attachment 1), in which the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) is authorized to collect and analyze statistical information regarding the operation of the criminal justice system at the Federal, state, and local levels.

2. Uses of Information

The data collected under the CSLLEA program are used to provide national counts of law enforcement agencies, their personnel, and the functions they perform. These statistics are requested and used by police chiefs, sheriffs, legislators, planners, researchers, and others to identify personnel and budgetary needs, trends, and priorities in law enforcement. The CSLLEA has been used to track employment trends in State and local law enforcement in the U.S. since 1992, and will continue to inform policy making, planning, and budgeting at all levels of government.

Below is a representative list of organizations that have requested BJS law enforcement data over the past 2 years. The many unaffiliated individuals who also request information are not included. Uses of information include policy decisions, budget hearings, research and planning, market research, benchmark comparisons, grant applications, and journalistic purposes. BJS tracks the types of information requested that can be provided through its law enforcement data collections, as well as those requests that its data can’t fulfill. Data that are frequently requested solidify their position to remain in the instrument or as candidates to be added. Other requests that have merit and can be met with relatively simple modifications to the instrument will also be seriously considered. BJS also maintains a web-based information request system called “askbjs” that is a valuable source for BJS as it as determines how its information is used. Information requestors play an important role in helping BJS determine the content of the CSLLEA and other law enforcement data collections.

Federal agencies

National Institute of Justice

Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention

Bureau of Justice Assistance

National Drug Intelligence Center

U.S. Dept. of Justice, Civil Rights Division

Federal Bureau of Investigation

U.S. Government Accountability Office

U.S. Customs and Border Protection

U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security

U.S. Dept. of Veterans Affairs

Financial Crimes Enforcement Network

Non-Federal agencies

San Francisco Board of Supervisors

Memphis-Shelby Crime Commission

New York City Police

Fulton County District Attorney’s Office

Wisconsin Bureau of Law Enforcement

California Board of Equalization

Fairfax County Police

George Washington University Police

Media

Philadelphia Inquirer

The Oregonian

New York Times

Washington Post

St. Louis Post-Dispatch

USA Today

Smart Money magazine

Wall Street Journal

LSU Daily Reveille

Miami Herald

Daytona Beach News-Journal

Des Moines Register

Associated Press

Academic institutions

University of Maryland – College Park

George Washington University

State University of New York – Albany

Penn State University

University of South Florida

Milwaukee Area Technical College

University of New Mexico

Iowa State University

Organizations

International Association of Chiefs of Police

International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators

National Sheriffs’ Association

International Police Mountain Bike Association

National Association of Pretrial Services Agencies

National Association of Bail Insurance Commissioners

Institute on Race and Justice

Omaha Police Union

National Fraternal Order of Police

VERA Institute

PEW Charitable Trusts

Private companies

Wireless Alert Technologies

Stifel Nicolaus Capital Markets

Science Applications International Corporation

Beretta USA, Inc.

3. Efforts to Minimize Burden

The Census of State and Local Law Enforcement Agencies (CSLLEA) was conducted in 2004 to update the previous census data collected in 2000. CSLLEA updates are conducted every 4 years, to provide national counts of law enforcement agencies and personnel and to create a more accurate sampling frame for the LEMAS Survey of State and Local Law Enforcement Agencies, which was last conducted in 2007. The 2008 CSLLEA results will be used as the sampling frame for the 2010 LEMAS survey. The CSLLEA update allows the sampling frame to more accurately reflect agency closures and mergers, as well as the opening of new agencies. It also incorporates updated personnel counts which are used for stratification purposes.

The 2008 CSLLEA data collection methodology includes Along-form@ and Ashort-form@ variations of the data collection instrument. The 3,225 sampled agencies will the 4-page (CJ-38L) form and the other 15,775 agencies will receive the 2-page CJ-38S) form. BJS will also offer a web-based response option as part of this data collection. Based on previous law enforcement data collections, BJS estimates that up to 40% of respondents will use this electronic option. BJS has also attempted to minimize the complexity of questions and ensured that terminology conforms to current standard practices in law enforcement. It is estimated that data collection will take 90 minutes per long-form respondent and 30 minutes per short-form respondent. BJS will provide for the respondent to submit data through the web, by mail, or by fax. Personal telephone interviews will be conducted for nonrespondents.

4. Efforts to Identify Duplication

There will be no duplication of effort based on the nature and scope of this survey. The information sought is not obtainable from any other data source. The only other Federal agency that conducts a national data collection of State and local law enforcement agencies is the FBI. Their data are limited to personnel counts and reported crime counts for agencies that participate in the Uniform Crime Reporting program. This limitation makes the FBI data unable to provide complete national counts of agencies and personnel, and therefore inadequate as a sampling frame for the LEMAS survey.

5. Minimizing Burden on Small Businesses

Not applicable. No information will be gathered from small businesses.

6. Consequences of Not Conducting Collection

The 2004 CSLLEA was limited to an inventory of agency functions and personnel counts. The 2008 CSLLEA will also collect such information, but a sample of 3,225 agencies will receive a longer questionnaire that includes two additional pages of questions related to the recruitment, hiring, and retention of sworn personnel. This data collection will be the only source of national data on law enforcement agency personnel, functions, and measures of hiring and retention. There are no other sources for these data.

If this collection were cancelled then there would be no updates to the BJS report Census of State and Local Law Enforcement Agencies, 2004 http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/abstract/csllea04.htm, and users of criminal justice data would have to rely on outdated personnel counts from the 2004 CSLLEA. Also, a planned public use data file at the National Archive of Criminal Justice Data would not be created.

7. Special circumstances that would increase respondent burden

There are no special circumstances that would require a respondent to report more than once, report in less than 30 days, retain records over three years, or in any other foreseeable way increase the respondents burden to provide the requested information.

8. Public Comments and Consultations

BJS meets with police organizations such as the International Association of Chiefs of Police, National Sheriffs’ Association and the Police Executive Research Forum to discuss their information needs. Focus groups are also held where police administrators can provide input about the questions being proposed and suggest new items as well. Academic experts are also consulted. Information needs from other agencies within the Department of Justice (e.g., National Institute of Justice, Office of Community-Oriented Policing Services) are also considered. A content analysis of information requests to BJS since the last survey is also a part of the process. News reports and professional publications are also referenced for any emerging issues that merit consideration. Consultants on recent waves of the survey have included the following points-of-contact as well as others within their organizations and within their memberships, if applicable (this list is not intended to be exhaustive):

(1) Matthew Scheider, Ph.D., Assistant Director

Program/Policy Support and Evaluation Division

U.S. Department of Justice, COPS Office

1100 Vermont Ave., NW

Washington, DC 20530

(2) Debra Cohen, Ph.D., Social Science Analyst

Program/Policy Support and Evaluation Division

U.S. Department of Justice, COPS Office

1100 Vermont Ave., NW

Washington, DC 20530

(3) Rob Chapman, Social Science Analyst

Program/Policy Support and Evaluation Division

U.S. Department of Justice, COPS Office

1100 Vermont Ave., NW

Washington, DC 20530

(4) Bruce Kubu

Police Executive Research Forum

1120 Connecticut Ave., NW

Suite 930

Washington, DC 20036

(5) John Firman

International Association of Chiefs of Police

515 North Washington Street

Alexandria, VA 22314

(6) Tim Woods

National Sheriffs Association

1450 Duke Street

Alexandria, VA 22314

9. Provision of Payments or Gifts to Respondents

Not applicable. The Bureau will not provide any payment or gift of any type to respondents. Respondents participate in the survey on a voluntary basis.

10. Assurance of Confidentiality

Respondents will be informed that survey participation is voluntary. The data collected are in the public domain and not subject to confidentiality guarantees. All data, except names of individual respondents, will be made available for public use.

11. Justification for Sensitive Questions

There are no questions of a sensitive nature included in the data collection.

12. Estimate of Respondent Burden

The short form (CJ-38S) will be sent to 15,775 law enforcement agencies, and the long form (CJ-38L) will be sent to a stratified random sample of 3,225 agencies (see Section B - Statistical Methods, below, for greater detail). The average time required to complete the survey for each long-form agency is 90 minutes, and for short-form agencies, 30 minutes. These estimates are based on experience garnered from previous administrations of the CSLLEA, pre-testing conducted as part of those previous administrations, as well as consideration of the currently proposed instrument. The total respondent burden is estimated at 12,725 hours. Respondents will be asked to respond once. The estimated burden was derived from the previous iteration of the survey, and from review of the proposed information collection instruments.

The survey form, in most cases, will be filled out by one person per respondent, equivalent to the GS-14 / 01 level ($98,033 per year). The cost to the respondent would be $71 per long-form, and $24 per short-form. For all respondents combined, the approximate cost would be $606,400.

13. Estimate of Respondents= Cost Burden

This information collection will require only information that is already generated and maintained by the respondents. There is no additional cost to respondents other than the cost of filling out the survey form.

14. Cost to Federal Government

The total cost to the Federal government for this survey is estimated at $929,659, all to be borne by the Bureau of Justice Statistics. Office costs are based on 6 months full-time work of a GS-14 /09 Statistician salary ($124,175 per year) and benefits (33 percent of salary) and indirect costs (20% of salary) of the Bureau of Justice Statistics.

Summary of Cost Estimates

Office Costs (BJS)

Salaries $49,017

Benefits (33%) 16,339

Travel 3,000

Equipment and supplies 1,500

Consultants and contracts 0

Other costs 0

Indirect costs (20%) 9,803

Subtotal 79,659

Collection costs (grantee) 850,000

Total cost to government $929,659

15. Reasons for Change in Burden

As part of the LEMAS program, the CSLLEA shares the same OMB clearance number as the LEMAS sample survey. For the 2008 CSLLEA, the burden estimate is being increased by 5,325 hours over that of the 2007 LEMAS survey. This is due primarily to the fact that the 2007 Survey of State and Local Law Enforcement Agencies (form CJ-44), was a sample survey of about 3,200 agencies, compared to about 19,000 agencies being contacted for the CSLLEA.

16. Publication Plans and Schedule

Information collected from law enforcement training academies will be reported in a Bureau of Justice Statistics bulletin, “Census of State and Local Law Enforcement Agencies, 2008.” and a special report that focuses on recruitment, hiring, and retention issues. The data will then be made available to the public through the National Archive of Criminal Justice Data (NACJD), operated by the Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR).

The projected schedule for data collection, publication and data release is as follows:

Preparation and pretesting Months 1 - 3

Data collection Months 3 - 8

Data processing/analysis Months 8 - 12

Publication release Month 13

Data release to public Month 13

17. Display of Expiration Date

The expiration date will be shown on the survey form.

18. Exceptions to the Certification Statement

There are no exceptions identified in Item 19, ACertification for Paperwork Reduction Act Submissions,@ of OMB Form 83-I.