Statistical Programs 2014

 

INTRODUCTION

Statistical Programs of the United States Government: Fiscal Year 2014 outlines the funding proposed for Federal statistical activities in the President’s Budget.

This report fulfills a responsibility of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA, 44 U.S.C. 3504(e)(2)) to prepare an annual report on statistical program funding. The annual report provides Congress with a consolidated source for key budgetary and programmatic information about the Federal statistical system.

The report has four chapters. Chapter 1 discusses the value of Federal statistics, describes the structure of the Federal statistical system, and provides a summary of the budget for statistical programs, including purchases and reimbursements, for FY 2012-2014. Chapter 2 provides details about principal statistical agency programs, highlights the effect of congressional action on FY 2012 and 2013 budget requests, and identifies major program changes planned for FY 2014. Chapter 3 describes significant statistical programs of other Federal agencies and identifies major program changes anticipated in FY 2014. Chapter 4 describes ongoing efforts to maintain and improve Federal statistical programs, including the development and periodic revision of statistical standards and guidelines, selected interagency initiatives to improve the quality and usefulness of the Nation’s statistical products, and various collaborations among Federal statistical agencies. In addition to budgetary resources data, the appendices include information on staffing levels for the principal statistical agencies, and the category of statistics produced by each Department.

The report is available in electronic form. The electronic version can be accessed on the Internet through the OMB web site: www.whitehouse.gov/omb/inforeg_statpolicy/. The report is also located at www.fedstats.gov/ (go to “Federal Statistical Policy”). At both sites, users also may access editions of the Statistical Programs report from prior years.

Please direct any inquiries to Katherine K. Wallman, U.S. Chief Statistician, Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, Washington, D.C. 20503.

 

CHAPTER 1: Overview of the Federal Statistical System and Statistical Program Budgets

This chapter introduces the reader to the Federal statistical system. It describes the value of Federal statistics as a public good, the structure of the system, and the budget for major Federal statistical programs for fiscal years (FY) 2012-14. It highlights the effects of congressional action on the President’s FY 2013 budget request and anticipated differences in proposed funding for FY 2014. The chapter concludes with a description of statistical work performed by agencies on a reimbursable basis and agency purchases of statistical services and products.1

The Value of Federal Statistics

Statistical activities span a wide range of tasks. At their core, statistical activities include the collection, processing, or tabulation of statistical data for publication, dissemination, research, analysis, or program management and evaluation.2 The share of budget resources spent on supporting Federal statistical activities is relatively modest—about 0.04 percent of GDP in non-decennial census years and roughly double that in decennial census years. Yet, the data provided by Federal statistical programs provide critical support for both public- and private-sector policymaking, program management, and evaluation.

A sense of this value can be obtained in some instances by comparing the dollars spent on providing key statistics to the dollars that such statistics drive in the economy and society. For example, the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ prices and cost-of-living programs—including the Consumer Price Index (CPI), the Producer Price Index, the Consumer Expenditure Survey, and related activities—had an estimated budget authority of $205 million in FY 2013.3 Output from the CPI component of the program is used for annual cost-of-living adjustments to payments for retirees and other beneficiaries under Social Security, which provided $66.5 billion in benefits to 57.1 million people in June 2013—a difference of 1 percentage point in the CPI amounts to almost $8 billion in additional (or reduced) Social Security benefits in the subsequent year.4 Annual changes in the CPI also affect changes in commercial and residential rents, public- and private-sector wages, and components of the Federal income tax code. Reports of monthly changes in the CPI are a major input for Federal Reserve Board decisions in setting short-term interest rates and to financial decisions throughout the public and private sectors. There are other such examples of consequential statistics throughout government and the economy.

Some statistical programs may lack such clear links to public- and private-sector financial outlays, but they nonetheless serve other key purposes. These statistical programs provide information to inform policy makers and the public about the social and economic health of the Nation, States, Tribes, territories, and localities. For example, the Bureau of Economic Analysis provides estimates of Gross Domestic Product not only for the Nation each quarter, but also for these smaller geographies each year. The Census Bureau’s American Community Survey provides critical economic, social, demographic, and housing information for every community in the U.S. every year. The information is used to help determine how more than $400 billion in Federal and state funds are distributed each year. Local governments use the information to plan community development projects, to determine where services and programs are needed, and for transportation planning.  Businesses use the information to determine where to locate or expand. 

Other statistical programs provide empirical evidence for developing and evaluating Federal, State, Tribal, territorial, local, and private-sector programs. For example, the American Housing Survey, sponsored by the Office of Policy Development and Research in the Department of Housing and Urban Development and conducted by the Census Bureau, provides valuable data on housing conditions and housing finance which inform housing policy. The Commercial Buildings and Residential Energy Consumption Surveys, sponsored by the Energy Information Administration, provide valuable data for public- and private-sector policy making on end uses of various types of energy for heating, cooling, and information technology.

Still other statistical programs provide estimates of key variables for essential social science research that then informs the public and policy makers. For example, the National Long-Term Care Survey, funded by the National Institute on Aging, produced unexpected findings of declining disability rates for older Americans over time, which have had implications for understanding work-to-retirement transitions and the need for medical care for the elderly.

In sum, Federal statistics yield relevant, accurate and objective information upon which government and private decisions are made. Absent the Nation’s relatively modest investment to produce Federal statistical products, both public and private decision makers would have significantly less quantitative evidence on which to base their choices.

The Structure of the Federal Statistical System

The U.S. has a highly decentralized statistical system, spanning 129 agencies spread across the Government, all of which are engaged, to some degree, in collecting data and producing statistics.

Principal Statistical Agencies

A Federal statistical agency is an agency or organizational unit of the Executive Branch whose activities are predominantly the collection, compilation, processing, or analysis of information for statistical purposes.5 A substantial portion of our official statistics is produced by the 13 agencies that have statistical work as their principal mission. Excluding funding for the decennial census ($486.6 million proposed for FY 2014), approximately 37 percent ($2,337.6 million proposed for FY 2014) of overall funding for Federal statistical activities provides resources for these 13 agencies. These principal statistical agencies are: Bureau of Economic Analysis; Bureau of Justice Statistics; Bureau of Labor Statistics; Bureau of Transportation Statistics; Census Bureau; Economic Research Service; Energy Information Administration; National Agricultural Statistics Service; National Center for Education Statistics; National Center for Health Statistics; National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics; Office of Research, Evaluation and Statistics (SSA); and Statistics of Income (IRS).

Statistical Programs of Other Federal Agencies

The remaining 63 percent of total resources allocated to statistical work in the U.S. is carried out by some 116 programs in the Executive Branch that conduct statistical activities in conjunction with another program mission, such as providing services (for example, medical care benefits for the elderly and the poor) or enforcing regulations (for example, with respect to the environment, transportation, or occupational safety). These statistical components are units conducting statistical activities within a program agency, and include a broader set of organizations than principal statistical agencies.

Additionally, there are other Federal agencies whose statistical activities are excluded from this annual compilation because they are not part of the Executive Branch. These agencies include the Congressional Budget Office, which develops and applies projection models for the budgetary impact of current and proposed Federal programs; the Federal Reserve Board, which compiles the widely used Flow of Funds report and other statistical series and periodically conducts the Survey of Consumer Finances; and the U.S. Government Accountability Office, which uses statistical data in evaluations of government programs.

The Office of Management and Budget

In addition to other responsibilities under the PRA, the OMB Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) coordinates the Nation’s decentralized Federal statistical system. The 1995 reauthorization of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1980 and other legislation give OMB the authority to approve all agency information collection requests, including all those for surveys and other statistical information. OIRA’s Statistical and Science Policy (SSP) Office, headed by the U.S. Chief Statistician, coordinates the activities of the Federal statistical system to ensure the efficiency and effectiveness of the system; and the integrity, objectivity, impartiality, utility, and confidentiality of information collected for statistical purposes. To achieve these goals, SSP establishes statistical policies and standards, identifies priorities for improving programs, evaluates statistical agency budgets, reviews and approves Federal agency information collections involving statistical methods, and coordinates U.S. participation in international statistical activities.

The U.S. Chief Statistician also promotes integration across the Federal statistical system by chairing the Interagency Council on Statistical Policy (ICSP), whose 13 member principal statistical agencies span 9 cabinet departments and 2 other agencies (please see bold and italicized entries in Table 1). Some of these agencies report directly to the secretary or other high-level official of their cabinet department; others are one, two, or even more layers farther down in the hierarchy. Several of these agencies have Federal-State cooperative statistical programs that produce some of the Nation’s most important statistics, such as national birth and death rates from vital records maintained by State registrars and estimates of employment from wage records maintained by State employment security offices. The ICSP began operating informally in the late 1980s and was authorized by statute in 1995.

As required by the Paperwork Reduction Act, the U.S. Chief Statistician’s office annually issues this report. It also prepares a chapter each year in the Analytical Perspectives volume of the President’s budget, which provides a cross-cutting analysis of the budget requests for the principal statistical agencies.6

An Overview of Statistical Program Budgets

Statistical programs differ in organizational structure and in the means by which they are funded. Some statistical programs, such as labor force statistics and energy statistics, are carried out by principal statistical agencies (the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Energy Information Administration, respectively). For most of the principal statistical agencies, funding appears as a line item in the President’s Budget. In other cases, agencies have statistical programs that support their program planning and evaluation functions, or that are an outgrowth of their administrative responsibilities. In these cases, the budget for statistical activities is included in the total appropriation for that agency, including an allocation of the salaries and operating expenses for the statistical program. In addition, a statistical program is not always executed by the agency that sponsors it. In these instances, the work is done on a reimbursable basis by another Federal agency or by a State, Tribal, or local government or a private organization under contract.

In some cases, funding for statistical activities may increase or decrease as a result of the cyclical nature of surveys. Such increases or decreases should not be interpreted as changes in agency priorities, but rather as the normal consequences of the cyclical nature of the programs. Agencies also experience increases or decreases in their budgets because they conduct one-time surveys or studies in a particular fiscal year. In other cases, changes in an agency’s funding for statistical activities can affect which surveys an agency maintains in its portfolio, the breadth of topics and the sample size of a particular survey, and the accuracy and precision of statistical aggregates estimated from data.

This section describes direct funding, reimbursements, and purchases of Federal statistical activities in FY 2012-2014. This description is limited to agencies that have direct funding for statistical activities of at least $500,000 in FY 2012, or estimated direct funding for statistical activities of at least $500,000 in either FY 2013 or FY 2014. Using these criteria, the report includes the budgets for statistical programs and activities for 13 principal statistical agencies and 116 other agencies (inclusive of organizational units that in official nomenclature are institutes, centers, services, and offices) that carry out statistical activities in conjunction with other program missions, such as providing services, managing and evaluating programs, or enforcing regulations. For the purposes of this report, programs meeting these criteria are termed statistical programs.

Direct Funding

Whether statistical work is performed inside or outside the agency, the direct funding reflects the level of statistical activities in support of the agency’s mission. Table 1 presents direct program funding for FY 2012, FY 2013, and FY 2014 for statistical programs, by department and agency.

For FY 2012, the actual direct funding for Federal statistical programs was $6,740.2 million ($6,294.1 million, excluding decennial census)--a slight decrease from the estimated President’s budget request of $6,780.1 million ($6,314.4 million, excluding decennial census), but a slightly larger share of appropriated funds than agencies originally estimated for FY 2012 by $96.7 million (1.5 percent). Nonetheless, 36 percent of statistical programs (among them, four principal statistical agencies) reported actual funding declines for FY 2012.

In FY 2013, Federal statistical programs reported appropriated funding at $6,353.8 million ($5,985.6 million, excluding decennial census), a 5.5 percent decrease from the President’s budget request of $6,722.3 million ($6,292.7 million, excluding decennial census). Overall, 61 percent of statistical programs experienced cuts in FY 2013, including all 13 principal statistical agencies. To accommodate sequester funding levels, programs have reduced or postponed statistical activities and have cut staff hiring, training, and travel.

For FY 2014, Federal statistical programs requested $6,838.7 million in the President’s budget ($6,352.1 million, excluding decennial census)--a 7.0 percent increase over the FY 2013 appropriation. Should the sequester continue to be in place in FY 2014, agencies anticipate cuts would bring additional challenges, including the potential for canceled or delayed data collections. Chapters 2 and 3 describe statistical program planning in greater detail for FY 2013 and 2014.

Table 1. Direct Funding for Statistical Programs, FY 2012–2014 (In millions of dollars)
DEPARTMENT/Agency	2012 Actual	2013 Estimate	2014 Estimate
AGRICULTURE
Agricultural Research Service	5.9	5.7	5.7
Economic Research Service	77.7	71.4	78.5
Food and Nutrition Service	35.0	38.0	39.3
Foreign Agricultural Service	26.5	24.5	25.9
Forest Service	69.2	64.6	66.8
National Agricultural Statistics Service 1	158.6	166.6	159.6
Natural Resources Conservation Service	136.6	132.1	136.7
Risk Management Agency	4.0	4.0	4.0
World Agricultural Outlook Board	4.4	4.7	4.8
COMMERCE
Bureau of Economic Analysis	92.2	89.8	100.2
Census Bureau	972.3	887.0	1,012.5
Current 2	283.3	266.7	286.0
Periodic	689.0	620.0	726.4
Decennial Census	446.1	368.2	486.6
Economics and Statistics Administration	3.8	3.5	3.9
International Trade Administration	7.1	6.0	6.6
National Institute of Standards and Technology	4.4	1.4	0.8
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration	125.8	123.6	138.1
National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service	63.7	64.1	74.7
National Marine Fisheries Service	62.1	59.5	63.5
Patent and Trademark Office	1.8	1.8	1.8
DEFENSE
Army Corps of Engineers	6.1	5.3	5.7
Defense Manpower Data Center	11.0	10.3	10.4
TRICARE Management Activity3	23.4	22.3	20.5
EDUCATION
Federal Student Aid	0.5	0.0	0.0
Institute of Education Sciences	319.6	303.3	375.9
Institute of Education Sciences (excluding NCES)	18.3	18.0	18.6
National Center for Education Statistics 4	301.3	285.0	357.4
Office of Civil Rights	2.2	0.5	4.9
Office of Elementary and Secondary Education	26.4	25.5	15.5
Office of Innovation and Improvement	7.4	8.5	14.2
Office of Planning, Evaluation, and Policy Development	13.8	14.4	15.7
Office of Postsecondary Education 5	9.3	11.8	78.2
Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services 6	31.7	30.9	22.3
Office of Vocational and Adult Education	2.0	1.9	1.9
ENERGY
Energy Information Administration	105.0	99.5	117.0
Office of Health, Safety, and Security	15.6	13.2	13.2
HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES 7
Administration for Community Living8	5.2	4.8	4.9
Administration for Children and Families 9	114.8	74.1	72.4
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality	176.5	180.8	169.3
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)	511.8	504.3	546.6
National Center for Health Statistics	138.7	138.7	181.5
CDC (excluding NCHS)	373.1	365.6	365.1
Agency for Toxic Substance and Disease Registry	0.6	0.6	0.6
Center for Global Health	2.3	2.8	2.8
National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion	67.0	64.5	63.5
National Center for Emerging Zoonotic and Infectious Diseases	13.3	12.6	14.3
National Center for Environmental Health	19.9	19.0	19.0
National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, Sexually Transmitted Disease, and Tuberculosis Prevention	173.7	175.4	173.8
National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases	21.7	18.9	19.2
National Center for Injury Prevention and Control	2.2	2.2	2.2
National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities	26.1	24.3	24.4
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health	27.3	26.2	26.2
Public Health Scientific Services	19.1	19.1	19.1
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services	28.1	27.7	28.5
Health Resources and Services Administration	30.1	20.0	22.7
Indian Health Service	5.5	5.5	5.5
National Institutes of Health	1191.1	1119.2	1129.8
National Cancer Institute	116.3	116.3	116.3
National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine	9.8	9.8	9.8
National Eye Institute	0.6	0.7	0.7
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute	140.7	140.7	140.7
National Human Genome Research Institute	4.2	5.1	5.1
National Institute on Aging 10	16.6	12.6	12.6
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism	19.2	15.6	6.8
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases	147.7	139.3	149.9
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering	4.6	4.6	4.6
National Institute of Child Health and Human Development	159.4	150.3	150.3
National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders	12.9	6.9	6.8
National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research	0.3	1.0	1.0
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases	150.2	148.6	148.8
National Institute on Drug Abuse	101.3	101.9	103.0
National Institute on Environmental Health Sciences	111.8	108.7	105.9
National Institute of Mental Health	1.5	2.0	2.1
Office of the Director11	194.0	155.2	165.4
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation	18.0	18.0	18.3
Office of Population Affairs	4.1	2.8	4.1
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration	156.3	143.7	152.3
HOMELAND SECURITY
Bureau of Customs and Border Protection	32.2	23.5	20.8
Citizenship and Immigration Services 12	3.5	0.3	2.8
Coast Guard	4.6	1.7	0.9
Federal Emergency Management Agency	7.9	9.5	9.0
Office of Immigration Statistics	2.6	2.7	2.7
HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Housing	5.8	5.9	6.1
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Policy Development and Research	51.4	42.8	50.7
Office of Public and Indian Housing	7.8	6.3	5.0
INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management	2.1	2.4	2.4
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management 13	4.1	4.1	2.8
Bureau of Reclamation	10.7	12.0	10.7
Fish and Wildlife Service	8.8	6.1	4.9
Geological Survey	510.7	518.3	575.7
National Park Service	5.2	4.9	4.9
Office of Natural Resources Revenue	4.2	4.2	4.2
JUSTICE
Bureau of Justice Statistics 4	52.8	55.1	64.0
Bureau of Prisons	10.5	9.5	9.2
Drug Enforcement Administration	3.9	3.5	3.1
Federal Bureau of Investigation 14	4.1	4.0	2.9
National Institute of Justice 15	0.0	1.0	0.0
Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention	4.9	3.0	4.0
LABOR
Bureau of Labor Statistics	609.1	577.2	613.8
Employment and Training Administration	57.9	53.1	48.3
Mine Safety and Health Administration	2.2	2.5	2.5
Occupational Safety and Health Administration	34.7	32.9	34.3
Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs	1.0	1.1	1.5
Wage and Hour Division	5.1	5.4	5.3
STATE
Office of the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator	1.5	1.5	1.6
TRANSPORTATION
Bureau of Transportation Statistics	24.8	25.9	26.0
Federal Aviation Administration 16	8.4	7.2	9.2
Federal Highway Administration 17	18.2	20.2	30.0
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration	9.0	7.5	6.9
Federal Railroad Administration	7.7	7.4	5.6
Federal Transit Administration	5.0	5.2	5.3
Maritime Administration	0.7	0.7	0.5
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 18	63.7	37.4	42.6
Office of the Secretary of Transportation	1.5	1.5	1.5
Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration	5.0	7.0	7.4
TREASURY
Statistics of Income Division (Internal Revenue Service) 19	38.7	33.1	35.0
VETERANS AFFAIRS
Board of Veterans’ Appeals 20	0.1	0.1	0.1
National Cemetery Administration	1.4	1.0	1.0
Office of Policy and Planning	6.1	5.5	5.3
Office of Policy and Planning (excluding NCVAS) 21	0.0	0.0	1.0
National Center for Veterans Analysis and Statistics	6.1	5.5	4.3
Veterans Benefits Administration	17.5	18.4	15.4
Veterans Health Administration22	95.2	89.2	91.0
OTHER AGENCIES
Broadcasting Board of Governors	13.2	8.4	11.4
Consumer Product Safety Commission	27.0	23.6	22.4
Environmental Protection Agency	38.9	37.8	36.2
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission	1.9	1.8	1.6
Institute of Museum and Library Services 23	1.9	1.9	1.8
National Aeronautics and Space Administration	10.8	10.6	10.7
National Science Foundation	190.2	192.7	190.4
National Science Foundation (excluding NCSES)	146.9	151.1	141.7
National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics	43.3	41.7	48.7
Office of National Drug Control Policy	2.0	2.1	1.5
Small Business Administration	1.3	0.8	0.7
Social Security Administration	60.6	60.7	70.8
Office of Program Development and Research	24.8	28.3	33.8
Office of Research, Evaluation, and Statistics	29.4	26.1	30.0
Office of Retirement Policy	6.5	6.3	7.0
U.S. Agency for International Development	99.8	78.9	79.1
TOTAL	6,740.2	6,353.8	6,838.7
Total, excluding decennial census	6,294.1	5,985.6	6,352.1

 

NOTE: Figures shown in Table 1 have been provided by the agencies and are derived from “total budget authority” shown in the program and financing schedule for these agencies in the President’s FY 2014 Budget. The names of certain agencies are indented in the table to indicate that the agency is a component of a larger organizational unit listed above it and its budget figures are included in the figures reported for the larger unit. Principal statistical agencies appear in bold italics for ease of reference. Components may not add to stated totals because of rounding.

1 NASS totals include $42.0, $58.0, and $42.0 million in FY 2012, FY 2013, and FY 2014, respectively for the periodic Census of Agriculture.

2 Census Bureau Salaries and Expenses funds include discretionary and mandatory funds.

3 Actual funding in FY 2012 for TRICARE Management Activity was higher than reported in the prior year’s report. For FY 2012, TRICARE Management Activity received funds for Defense Health Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation statistical activities not only from Office of Business and Economic Analysis (as previously reported), but also from Health Program Analysis and Evaluation (which had been considered research funding and therefore excluded from the prior year’s report).

4 For comparability across agencies, the following agency amounts include indirectly appropriated estimated salaries and expenses: National Center for Education Statistics ($16.0, $15.0, and $17.0 million) and Bureau of Justice Statistics ($8.0, $7.0, and $7.0 million). Amounts in parentheses after each agency are for FY 2012, FY 2013, and FY 2014 respectively, and are rounded to nearest million.

5 The FY 2013 appropriation of $11.8 million is an increase $2.3 million over the amount estimated for FY 2013 in last year’s report ($9.5 million). This increase was primarily due to the shifting of FY 2012 expenses for the evaluation of the TRIO Upward Bound program into FY 2013 and an increase in the amount of funds used to support Web data collection for Campus Crime and Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act surveys in response to an advisory board recommendation.

6 The FY 2014 President’s budget request of $22.3 million is an $8.7 million reduction from FY 2013 appropriation of $30.9 million. This is a reduction of $8.7 million from the FY 2013 level because OSERS is projected to have carryover funds from FY 2013 that will (with this new funding) be sufficient to meet the technical assistance needs of States in FY 2014.

7 Funding shown here does not include resources allocated through the Prevention and Public Health Fund.

8 ACL was created in 2012 by consolidating the Administration on Aging (AoA), the Office on Disability (OD), and the Administration on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AIDD) into a single agency. The FY 2012 estimate of $3.5 million as shown in the FY 2013 report reflected only AoA’s budget. The FY 2012 actual appropriation of $5.2 million as shown in the FY 2014 report reflects the combined AoA, OD, and AIDD budgets for ACL.

9 ACF’s FY 2012 actual appropriation amount of $114.8 million is an increase of $43.5 million over the FY 2012 appropriated estimate of $71.3 million projected in the FY 2013 report. The FY 2013 estimated appropriation of $74.1 million is an increase of $20.9 million over FY 2013 budget request of $53.2 million. Both increases reflect a correction in the coverage of activities included.

10 NIA’s FY 2012 actual appropriation amount of $16.6 million is an increase of $3.4 million over the FY 2012 appropriation of $13.3 million. The FY 2012 actual amount included $3.0 million for the Health ABC Study contract that was not included in the previously reported FY 2012 estimate.

11 Funds for the National Children’s Study (NCS) reside in the Office of the Director’s budget for NIH, in the amounts of $193.0 million, $155.0 million, and $165.0 million for FY 2012, FY 2013, and FY 2014, respectively, which NICHD uses to fund NCS activities.

12 CIS totals include funds from both direct funds and fee revenue.

13 The difference between the previously reported FY 2013 statistical activities funding estimate ($3.5 million) and the current FY 2013 statistical activities funding estimate information ($4.1 million) is attributed to the reorganization of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation, and Enforcement (BOEMRE). In October, 2011 BOEMRE was replaced by two agencies: the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) and the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE). The statistical activity funding currently reported for FY 2013 reflects BOEM activities.

14 The previously reported FY 2013 estimate ($5.1 million) was based on a cost estimate which distributed IT support requirements uniformly across several IT systems. The current FY 2013 estimated cost is $3.9 million. This lower estimate results from a refined Activity-Based Costing model which more accurately distributes the IT requirements across the several IT systems based upon the actual levels of IT support needed by those systems.

15 The decrease between NIJ’s FY 2013 request and FY 2013 appropriation for statistical activities reflects a correction in the coverage of activities included.

16 The FAA, due to inadvertent error, had previously underreported FY 2012 budget figures for the Aviation Safety Reporting System (ASRS). The increase from $2.1 million to $3.0 million reflects a correction in the coverage of activities included.

17 The FHWA, due to the inadvertent exclusion of the Office of Policy Transportation Statistics Program and the Urban Congestion Report Program, previously underreported budget figures by $7.0 million and $8.0 million for FY 2012 and FY 2013 respectively.

18 NHTSA’s FY 2013 estimate in the prior year’s report did not include salaries and benefits and was underreported by approximately $10.8 million.

19 The decrease of $6.4 million between the previously reported FY 2013 estimate and the current FY 2013 estimate resulted from the realignment of SOI information technology staff within the context of the larger Research, Analysis, and Statistics business unit (RAS).

20 The FY 2012 estimate provided for BVA in the FY 2013 report was incorrect. The decrease from $4.0 million to $0.138 million for FY 2012 reflects a correction in the coverage of activities included.

21 OPP FY 2013 budgetary changes resulted from office reorganization.

22 VHA figures submitted with the prior year’s report were under-reported by approximately $31.5 million. The correct numbers for the FY 2013 report are: $118.3 million, $90.5 million, and $91.0 million for FY 2011, FY 2012, and FY 2013 respectively.

23 IMLS’s appropriation does not include the staff costs. Staff and other administrative costs are included in the agency’s administrative budget and are not separately available.

Reimbursable and Purchase Programs

Agencies whose missions are primarily or entirely statistical often perform statistical work for others on a reimbursable basis. These reimbursements come from other agencies within the same department or from other Federal agencies, State, Tribal, territorial, local governments, and occasionally the private sector or foreign governments. Sometimes data collected by one agency for its programmatic purposes can be used for a different programmatic purpose in another agency. Further, some agencies have reimbursable programs but do not necessarily perform all the statistical work (for example, the Defense Manpower Data Center of the Department of Defense). Rather, they use part of the reimbursable program money to purchase statistical work from other Federal agencies.

Agencies may also contract for statistical services with other Federal agencies, State, Tribal, territorial, and local governments, or private sector organizations. When a contract is a transfer of funds to another Federal agency, it is a direct program obligation in the budget of the purchasing agency, and is part of the reimbursable program of the agency providing the service. Agencies such as the Institute of Education Sciences (IES), for example, may purchase more than their direct funding for statistics allows, because they receive the difference from other Federal agencies under their reimbursable programs.

Reimbursable Programs

During FY 2014, Federal agencies covered by this report would be reimbursed an estimated $845.9 million in statistical services. Approximately 80 percent of this reimbursable income would come from other Federal agencies.

Census anticipates the largest reimbursable program in FY 2014, estimated at $268.7 million. Most of this work ($259.4 million) involves data collection and preparation of tabulations for other Federal agencies. In particular, Census expects to perform approximately $92.9 million of reimbursable work for BLS to conduct the Consumer Expenditure Survey, the Current Population Survey, the Demographic Survey Sample Redesign, the American Time Use Survey, the Telephone Point of Purchase Survey, and other tabulations and surveys. Additionally, work that Census expects to perform for NCES includes the Private Schools Survey, the School and Staffing Survey, and the intercensal estimates of poverty; for NCHS, the National Health Interview Survey, the National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey, and the National Hospital Discharge Survey; for HUD, the American Housing Survey and the Housing Sales Survey; for BJS, the National Crime Victimization Survey and the National Prisoner Statistics Program; for OJJDP, the Census of Juveniles in Residential Placement; for EIA, the Manufacturing Energy Consumption Survey; and, for NCSES, the National Survey of College Graduates. Census also receives funds from USAID, other Federal agencies, foreign government agencies, and international organizations to conduct demographic, geographic, and socioeconomic studies, and to strengthen statistical practices around the world through technical assistance, training, and software products.

The Geological Survey anticipates the next largest reimbursable statistics program in FY 2014, estimated at $286.8 million. About 60 percent of this reimbursable income is from other Federal agencies. Reimbursable activities include research projects to provide results used in land and resource management decisions, maintaining long-term monitoring networks, and development of tools to make geologic and hydrologic information available for decision-making.

Most of the reimbursable statistical work anticipated to be performed by NCHS ($94.8 million) would be done for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and for the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The National Death Index will continue to receive reimbursement from both CDC and non-Federal sources. Reimbursable work funded by non-Federal entities will also support the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey and the National Health Interview Survey.

Intradepartmental agreements also support most of the reimbursable work conducted by the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) and NCES. IES anticipates receiving $20.2 million to conduct evaluations for other agencies in the Department of Education (ED), including $6.5 million for Evaluation of the Promise Neighborhoods program, $4.8 million for Evaluation of the Investing in Innovation Fund, $2.3 million for the GEAR-UP College Savings Account Demonstration Evaluation and $2.0 million for the evaluation of the TRIO Upward Bound Program. NCES anticipates receiving approximately $8.5 million from other agencies for statistical activities, including $4.0 million for obtaining intercensal estimates of poverty, and $1.7 million for the National Indian Education Study for ED’s Office of Elementary and Secondary Education.

Similarly, intradepartmental transfers support much of the reimbursable statistical work of Department of Agriculture (USDA) agencies. Approximately $19.1 million of the National Agricultural Statistics Service’s (NASS) reimbursable work is anticipated to support other agencies in USDA. In particular, NASS would receive $8.0 million from the Economic Research Service (ERS) for the Agricultural Resource Management Survey; $6.5 million from the Farm Service Agency for estimates of prices received by farmers, pulse crop data, and county level cash rental rates; $1.1 million from the Foreign Agricultural Service to assist foreign countries with agricultural statistical services; and $0.8 million from the Risk Management Agency for county estimates of commodity production and yield. NASS also would receive $0.7 million from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health for miscellaneous statistical assistance, and $0.9 million from DOL for agriculture labor statistics. Several other reimbursable agreements are anticipated with agencies in USDA, DOI, and NSF.

In FY 2014, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) anticipates a reimbursable program of $19 million, which includes funds provided by the Social Security Administration (SSA) to support the development of occupational data for use in the SSA’s disability programs.

Purchases of Statistical Services

Agencies may also purchase statistical services from other Federal agencies, State, Tribal, and local governments, or private sector organizations.

When a contract is a transfer of funds to another Federal agency, it is a direct program obligation in the budget of the purchasing agency, and is part of the reimbursable program of the agency providing the service. Agencies such as IES, for example, may purchase more than their direct funding for statistics allows, because they receive the difference from other Federal agencies under their reimbursable programs.

During FY 2014, Federal agencies covered by this report anticipate purchasing an estimated $2,579.6 million in statistical services. About 60 percent of these services would be purchased from the private sector.

Agencies that expect to purchase more than $100.0 million in statistical services in FY 2014 are the National Center for Education Statistics ($340.4 million), the Census Bureau ($252.2 million), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (excluding NCHS) ($232.0 million), the Bureau of Labor Statistics ($192.9.million), the National Center for Health Statistics ($160.4 million), the National Science Foundation (excluding NCSES) ($148.8 million) and the National Institutes of Health ($148.8 million).

The largest purchasers of statistical services from the State, Tribal, and local governments are the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (excluding NCHS) ($168.0 million), the Bureau of Labor Statistics ($86.0 million), the National Center for Education Statistics ($76.9 million), the National Center for Health Statistics ($49.2 million), the Employment and Training Administration ($43.1 million), the National Agricultural Statistics Service ($30.0 million), and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration ($27.9 million). CDC funds reimburse localities for their cooperation in the reporting of diseases. BLS funds support the cooperative labor force statistics program. NCES provides funds to State educational agencies to support development and implementation of statewide longitudinal data systems for collecting and reporting education data. States also receive funding to support data collection activities. ETA funds grants to States to collect and analyze labor market information on growth industries and occupations; to catalogue knowledge, skills and abilities required for standard occupations, and to support an electronic network of career information. NASS supports cooperative agreements with local governments and universities as part of its County Estimates Survey program. The National Marine Fisheries Service in NOAA funds data collection activities used for monitoring marine recreational fishing effort and catch in all regions.

Table 2 shows reimbursements and purchases for statistical activities.

 

Table 2. Reimbursable and Purchase Programs, FY 2014 (In millions of dollars)
DEPARTMENT/ Agency	Reimbursements				Purchases
	TOTAL	State/Local/Tribal Governments	Private Sector1	Other Federal Agencies	TOTAL	State/Local/Tribal Governments	Private Sector1	Other Federal Agencies
AGRICULTURE
Agricultural Research Service	0.2	0.0	0.0	0.2	2.4	0.0	0.0	2.4
Economic Research Service	1.4	0.0	0.0	1.4	11.5	0.0	1.9	9.6
Food and Nutrition Service	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Food and Agricultural Service	2.0	0.0	0.0	2.0	0.9	0.0	0.0	0.9
Forest Service	9.0	0.0	9.0	0.0	12.1	0.0	0.0	12.1
National Agricultural Statistics Service	21.9	2.9	0.0	19.1	39.4	30.0	0.0	9.4
National Resources Conservation Service	5.1	0.0	0.0	5.1	13.3	2.8	0.5	10.0
Risk Management Agency	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	3.9	0.0	3.9	0.0
World Agricultural Outlook Board	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
COMMERCE
Bureau of Economic Analysis	1.5	0.0	0.0	1.5	1.3	0.0	0.0	1.3
Census Bureau	268.7	0.0	9.3	259.4	252.5	0.0	250.8	1.7
Economic and Statistics Administration	4.5	0.0	0.0	4.5	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
International Trade Administration	0.2	0.0	0.0	0.2	4.5	0.0	3.3	1.2
National Institute of Standards and Technology	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration	1.3	1.3	0.0	0.0	47.0	27.9	19.1	0.0
Patent and Trademark Office	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
DEFENSE
Army Corps of Engineers	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	1.0	0.0	0.5	0.5
Defense Manpower Data Center	2.0	0.0	0.0	2.0	5.2	0.0	5.2	0.0
TRICARE Management Activity	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	17.4	0.0	17.4	0.0
EDUCATION
Federal Student Aid	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Institute of Education Sciences1	20.2	0.0	0.0	20.2	34.1	0.0	34.1	0.0
National Center for Education Statistics	8.5	0.0	0.0	8.5	340.4	76.9	250.2	13.3
Office of Civil Rights	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	4.9	0.0	0.0	4.9
Office of Elementary and Secondary Education	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	15.3	0.0	3.0	12.3
Office of Innovation and Improvement	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	14.2	0.0	0.3	13.9
Office of Planning, Education, and Policy Development	7.5	0.0	0.0	7.5	2.7	0.0	2.7	0.0
Office of Postsecondary Education	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	74.2	0.0	69.9	4.3
Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.4	0.0	0.4	0.0
Office of Vocational and Adult Education	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	1.8	0.0	1.8	0.0
ENERGY
Energy Information Administration	0.8	0.0	0.0	0.8	47.5	0.0	47.4	0.1
Office of Health, Safety, and Security	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	1.0	0.0	0.0	1.0
HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Administration for Community Living	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	4.9	0.0	4.9	0.0
Administration for Children and Families	17.4	0.0	0.0	17.4	72.4	0.9	69.4	2.1
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	66.5	0.0	56.5	10.0
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 2	1.4	0.0	0.0	1.4	232.0	168.0	55.3	8.7
National Center for Health Statistics	100.9	0.0	6.2	94.8	160.4	49.2	58.9	52.3
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	28	0.0	27.9	0.1
Health Resources and Services Administration	0.6	0.0	0.0	0.6	6.8	0.0	4.7	2.1
Indian Health Service	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
National Institutes of Health	1.5	0.0	0.0	1.5	148.8	0.2	131.8	16.8
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation	2.0	0.0	0.0	2.0	4.4	0.0	0.9	3.5
Office of Population Affairs	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.8	0.0	0.0	0.8
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration	0.5	0.0	0.0	0.5	20	9.0	8.9	2.1
HOMELAND SECURITY
Bureau of Customs and Border Protection	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.3	0.0	0.3	0.0
Citizenship and Immigration Services	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	2.7	0.0	2.3	0.4
Coast Guard	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.9	0.5	0.4	0.0
Federal Emergency Management Agency	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	2.5	0.0	2.5	0.0
Office of Immigration Statistics	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.3	0.0	0.3	0.0
HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Housing	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	2.1	0.0	2.1	0.0
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Policy Development and Research	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	50.8	0.0	7.3	43.5
Office of Public and Indian Housing	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	5.0	0.0	5.0	0.0
INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management	2.4	2.4	0.0	0.0	2.4	0.0	0.0	2.4
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Bureau of Reclamation	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	3.1	0.0	0.0	3.1
Fish and Wildlife Service	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	1.0	0.0	0.0	1.0
Geological Survey	286.8	98.1	20.1	168.6	19.5	0.0	19.5	0.0
National Park Service	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	1.2	0.7	0.2	0.3
Office of Natural Resources Revenue	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
JUSTICE
Bureau of Justice Statistics	22.0	0.0	0.0	22.0	71.7	6.0	22.0	43.7
Bureau of Prisons	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	6.2	6.2	0.0	0.0
Drug Enforcement Administration	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Federal Bureau of Investigation	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
National Institute of Justice	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	2.6	0.0	1.5	1.1
LABOR
Bureau of Labor Statistics	19.0	0.0	0.5	18.5	192.9	86.0	14.0	92.9
Employment and Training Administration	2.1	0.0	1.0	1.1	44.2	43.1	1.1	0.0
Mine Safety and Health Administration	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Occupational Safety and Health Administration	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	2.4	1.5	0.9	0.0
Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Wage and Hour Division	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	2.5	2.0	0.5	0.0
STATE
Office of the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
TRANSPORTATION
Bureau of Transportation Statistics	5.9	0.0	0.0	5.9	4.7	0.0	0.0	4.7
Federal Aviation Administration	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	7.4	0.0	0.0	7.4
Federal Highway Administration	10.0	10.0	0.0	0.0	11.3	0.0	10.9	0.4
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	6.9	3.0	1.2	2.7
Federal Railroad Administration	0.2	0.0	0.0	0.2	3.7	0.0	3.7	0.0
Federal Transit Administration	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	5.2	0.0	3.8	1.4
Maritime Administration	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.3	0.0	0.3	0.0
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	34.2	0.0	34.2	0.0
Office of the Secretary of Transportation	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration	1.0	0.0	0.0	1.0	0.2	0.0	0.0	0.2
TREASURY
Statistics of Income Division (Internal Revenue Service)	2.3	0.0	0.1	2.2	0.5	0.0	0.4	0.1
VETERANS AFFAIRS
Board of Veterans’ Appeals	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
National Cemetery Administration	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.4	0.0	0.4	0.0
Office of Policy and Planning 3	0.9	0.0	0.0	0.9	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
National Center for Veterans Analysis and Statistics	2.1	0.0	0.0	2.1	0.2	0.0	0.0	0.2
Veterans Benefits Administration	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	15.4	0.0	15.4	0.0
Veterans Health Administration	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	10.9	0.0	10.0	0.9
OTHER AGENCIES
Broadcasting Board of Governors	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	9.3	0.0	9.3	0.0
Consumer Product Safety Commission	3.5	0.0	0.0	3.5	5.9	0.2	5.7	0.0
Environmental Protection Agency	0.3	0.0	0.0	0.3	18.1	10.5	6.6	1.0
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.7	0.0	0.7	0.0
Institute of Museum and Library Services	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.4	0.0	0.0	0.4
National Aeronautics and Space Administration	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
National Science Foundation 4	7.1	0.0	0.0	7.1	148.8	0.0	148.8	0.0
National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics	1.7	0.0	0.0	1.7	41.5	0.0	30.1	11.4
Office of National Drug Control Policy	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	1.5	0.0	1.5	0.0
Small Business Administration	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.2	0.0	0.0	0.2
Social Security Administration 5	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	29.3	0.0	9.5	19.8
Office of Research, Evaluation, and Statistics	0.5	0.1	0.0	0.4	19.8	0.0	12.1	7.7
U.S. Agency for International Development	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	78.4	0.0	68.9	9.5
TOTAL	846.9	114.8	46.2	685.9	2,579.6	537.7	1,588.0	453.9

 

1 Excluding NCES.

2 Excluding NCHS.

3 Excluding NCVAS.

4 Excluding NCSES.

5 Excluding ORES.

 

CHAPTER 2: Principal Statistical Agency Programs

The programs that provide essential statistical information for use by governments, businesses, researchers, and the public are carried out by agencies spread across every department and several independent agencies. This chapter presents brief descriptions of the statistical programs of the agencies covered in this report.7 Each principal statistical agency is described, followed by highlights of the FY 2013 and FY 2014 budget requests and a summary of major program changes for FY 2014.8

Several agencies produce statistics within a given topical domain, adding each agency’s particular expertise to Federal statistics as described. Appendix B provides a summary of statistical programs by topic coverage by department.

Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA)

BEA, of the Department of Commerce (DOC), is a principal source of Federal Economic Statistics. BEA is responsible for the preparation, development, and interpretation of the Nation’s economic accounts. National economic accounts cover Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and related accounts. International economic accounts involve balance-of-payments data critical to monetary, trade, investment, exchange rate, and financial policies. BEA’s direct investment programs are required by law and are critical to understanding the impact of U.S. and foreign multinational companies on the U.S. and world economies. Other BEA programs include the regional economic accounts, the basis for virtually all States’ spending and revenue forecasts, and industry economic accounts, which provide the infrastructure for other BEA accounts and many other key government statistics, such as BLS’s Producer Price Index.

Highlights of Congressional Action on the President’s FY 2013 Budget Request

The FY 2013 appropriation of $89.8 million was $6.7 million less than the President’s request. This FY 2013 budget enables BEA to maintain core statistical programs that produce statistics that feed into the estimation of GDP and related statistics, are required by law, and/or are required for the administration of Federal programs. This level of funding also supports the proposals in the President’s budget request for quarterly GDP by industry as well as decomposition of income, but not at the full level requested. Temporarily suspended as a result of the FY 2013 appropriation were: 1) production of Regional Input-Output Impact Multipliers (RIMS), 2) publication of detailed Local Area Personal Income Statistics, and 3) analytical products using the Foreign Direct Investment data BEA collects and publishes. These would be restored under the FY2014 President’s Budget.

Highlights of the FY 2014 Budget Request and Major Program Changes

The President’s budget request for FY 2014 of $100.2 million would allow BEA to continue to improve the relevance, accuracy, and timeliness of the Nation’s economic accounts and to keep BEA’s statistics in pace with the ever-changing U.S. economy. Base funds will be used for work outlined in the BEA Strategic Plan, which provides a detailed plan for maintaining and improving those accounts. For FY 2014, BEA is requesting support for an effort to improve the coverage and detail of direct investment data in support of the SelectUSA initiative.9 BEA would improve coverage of foreign direct investment by: 1) developing a survey of new foreign direct investment; 2) adding State-level data on fixed assets, property, and manufacturing; and 3) reducing reporting thresholds to include more emerging businesses. The data collected under these new efforts would be widely used by State, Tribal, and local governments as well as several Federal agencies. Also, the agency would continue to implement a critical modernization of its information technology system that will lead to an increase in operational efficiency and security of BEA’s statistical production and analysis. BEA also would continue to develop new measures of GDP by industry on a quarterly basis to provide real-time information on the health and stability of sectors within the U.S. economy. Additionally, the agency would replace its “Advance” GDP by industry measures, which are currently available only on an annual basis, with the new quarterly measures of GDP by industry.

Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS)

BJS, of the Department of Justice (DOJ), is a principal source of Crime and Justice Statistics. BJS collects, analyzes, publishes, and disseminates statistical information on all aspects of the criminal justice system; assisting State, Tribal, and local governments in gathering and analyzing justice statistics; and disseminating high value information and statistics to inform policy makers, researchers, criminal justice practitioners and the general public. BJS’s current statistical portfolio consists of about fifty separate data collections composed of ongoing annual and periodic collections. Additionally, the statistical operations are complemented or supported by nearly two dozen ongoing research and development projects or activities. The suite of collections and other projects form an ongoing statistical information infrastructure that supports the production of timely, relevant national statistics, forming an evidence base for informing critical criminal justice decision making at all levels of government.

Highlights of Congressional Action on the President’s FY 2013 Budget Request

The FY 2013 appropriation of $55.1 million was $12.2 million less than the President’s request for BJS’s Criminal Justice Statistics Program (CJSP). The estimate for salaries and expenses has been revised downward to $7.1 million largely reflecting the expected impact of the continuing departmental hiring freeze. $36.0 million of the appropriation was allocated for the operation and redesign of the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS). The appropriation also allows the Attorney General to set aside up to 2 percent of Office of Justice Program funds made available for grant or reimbursement programs for use by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) and BJS for research, evaluation, or statistical purposes. The appropriation, together with set aside funds, will permit BJS to continue to collect and analyze statistical data on all aspects of the criminal justice system; assist State, Tribal, and local governments in collecting and analyzing justice statistics; and disseminate quality information and statistics.

Highlights of the FY 2014 Budget Request and Major Program Changes

The President’s budget request for FY 2014 of $52.9 million to support the Criminal Justice Statistics Program is an increase of $4.9 million above the FY 2013 level. This level of funding would allow BJS to improve crime victimization statistics, derived from the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS), with special emphasis on exploring the feasibility of generating sub-national estimates and enhancing data on the crimes of rape and sexual assault. The funding would also support law enforcement data collections including surveys of Federal, State, Tribal, and local law enforcement agencies, national statistics on arrest-related deaths, and data about police-public contacts. Prosecution and court statistics would also be supported, including data about criminal case processing, problem-solving courts, State court criminal appeals, statistics on the delivery of indigent defense services, sentencing statistics, and Tribal court statistics. With this funding BJS could also support corrections statistics describing changes in populations in Federal and State prisons and in local jails, including their characteristics and time served; probation and parole populations and outcomes on probation and parole; deaths that occur in custody; health care in correctional facilities including mental health care delivery; and assaults against probation officers. Recidivism statistics and Federal criminal justice statistics from U.S. Attorneys, U.S. Courts, U.S. Sentencing Commission, and the Bureau of Prisons would also be supported. The agency also would continue exploration of the use of administrative records data in police and correctional agencies to provide new statistics in these areas, including recidivism information, arrests, and offenses known to the police. Additionally, BJS would expand the surveys of inmates in prisons and jails to inform the process of re-entry and improve the availability of justice statistics for Indian country. The agency also would continue to support the enhancement of criminal justice statistics available through State statistical analysis centers.

Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS)

BLS, of the Department of Labor (DOL), is a principal source of Economic and Health and Safety Statistics. BLS is responsible for measuring labor market activity, working conditions, and price changes in the economy. BLS collects, processes, analyzes, and disseminates data on: employment and unemployment; projections of the labor force and employment by industry and occupation; prices and inflation at various levels of the economy; consumer expenditures; wages and employee benefits; occupational injuries and illnesses; and productivity and technological change in U.S. industries. BLS also collects and reports data on the occurrence of work-related injuries and illnesses in private industry, and on work-related fatal injuries in private and public sector establishments, including the self-employed.

Highlights of Congressional Action on the President’s FY 2013 Budget Request

The FY 2013 appropriation of $577.2 million for BLS was $41.0 million below the President’s request. At this funding level, BLS eliminated the Measuring Green Jobs products, the Mass Layoff Statistics program and the International Labor Comparisons program. In addition, the BLS implemented operational reductions, including curtailing spending and implementing a hiring freeze, both of which may impact the quality and quantity of some BLS data. The FY 2013 appropriation maintains biennial fielding for the National Longitudinal Surveys. The appropriation did not include the program increases included in the President’s request (specifically: adding an annual CPS supplement and modernizing the Consumer Expenditure (CE) survey).

Highlights of the FY 2014 Budget Request and Major Program Changes

The President’s budget for FY 2014 of $613.8 million includes a program increase of $1.6 million to add an annual supplement to the CPS to address data gaps and capture data on contingent work and alternative work arrangements in even years, and on other topics in odd years. The FY 2014 request also includes $2.5 million in funding to modify the CE Survey to support Census in its development of a supplemental statistical poverty measure. In addition, the 2014 request carries forward eliminations from the FY 2013 appropriation, including eliminating Measuring Green Jobs products (resulting in a savings of $8.1 million), and eliminating the Mass Layoff Statistics and the International Labor Comparisons programs, (resulting in savings of $1.8 million and $2.0 million, respectively). The reductions in spending associated with these eliminations would be used to finance other, more critical needs. In addition to the program initiatives and eliminations described above, BLS would reduce costs by consolidating IT help desk services.

Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS)

BTS, of the Department of Transportation (DOT), is a source of Social and Demographic Statistics. BTS is a component of the Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA). BTS compiles, analyzes, and disseminates information on the Nation’s transportation systems and their safety. Programs address topics such as freight and travel statistics, transportation economics, geospatial information systems, and airline transportation statistics. BTS administers the National Transportation Library, which maintains and facilitates access to statistical and other information needed for transportation decision making. BTS enhances the quality and effectiveness of DOT’s statistical programs through research, development of guidelines, and promotion of improvements in data acquisition and use.

Highlights of Congressional Action on the President’s FY 2013 Budget Request

The FY 2013 appropriation level $25.9 million for BTS was a $12.1 million reduction (-31.7%) from the $38.0 million requested in the FY 2013 President’s budget and a reduction of 0.2% from the $26.0 million provided under the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP 21). As a reimbursement to the Confidential Close Calls Reporting Systems, BTS also received $0.8 million from the Federal Railroad Administration and $1.0 million from the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority. At this funding level BTS supports critical travel, and freight statistics programs, as well as work in geospatial data, transportation economics, and the information dissemination services of the National Transportation Library. However, FY 2013 funding did not permit the reestablishment of the National Long Distance Travel Data Program ($3.0 million); a Safety Data and Analysis Initiative ($2.0 million); and the Freight Statistics Program ($8.0 million) to fund the Commodity Flow Survey (CFS); Vehicle Inventory and Use Survey (VIUS); and the International Freight Data System (IFDS).

Highlights of the FY 2014 Budget Request

The President’s budget request for FY 2014 is $26.0 million. BTS would maintain its priority core programs. Additionally, the FY 2014 Budget proposes to convert RITA into the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology within the Office of the Secretary. BTS would also expand its Close Calls Reporting Program through reimbursable agreements with agency partners who seek better statistics on conditions that contribute to safety risks. In addition, BTS anticipates receiving $4.0 million in reimbursable funds from FAA for aviation statistical program activities. This program collects and disseminates airline financial, traffic, performance and operational data from 130 U.S. airlines. The agency would continue product dissemination for the 2012 Commodity Flow Survey. The agency also would expand work on performance measures as required by MAP-21. Additionally, BTS would identify opportunities to integrate and improve safety data across transportation modes and support collection of data on passenger travel. BTS would work with operating administrations throughout the Department of Transportation to establish performance measures and provide statistics that support major transportation decisions such as estimates of the value of transportation infrastructure and facilities to inform DOT investment strategies.

Census Bureau (Census)

Census, of the Department of Commerce (DOC), is a principal source of Social and Demographic and Economic Statistics.

Census’s major periodic social demographic programs include the 2020 Decennial Census, the American Community Survey (ACS), and the Intercensal Demographic Estimates. Fiscal Year 2013 is the second year of a three-year research and testing phase for the 2020 Decennial Census. The ACS is an ongoing survey providing updated demographic, social, economic, and housing data for every community in the United States every year. The Intercensal Demographic Estimates program develops updated population estimates in years between decennial censuses for areas such as States, counties, metropolitan statistical areas, and functioning governmental units. These estimates have various uses in funding and planning, including the distribution of Federal program funds, as denominators for various Federal time series, as population controls for major household surveys, and for planning local transportation and health care services. Census’s current demographic statistics program provides information on the number, geographic distribution, and social and economic characteristics of the population, including official estimates of income and poverty, homeownership, and housing vacancies.

Census’s periodic economic statistics includes several periodic censuses every five years, covering the years ending in two and seven. The Economic Census program activities cover manufacturing; mineral industries; construction industries; retail and wholesale trade; service industries; transportation; which contribute to the estimation of the Gross Domestic Product and other indicators of economic performance. Statistics on businesses without paid employees, on businesses owned by minorities, women, and veterans, and businesses in Puerto Rico are also provided. The Census of Governments collects State and local data on public finance, public employment, and governmental organization. It is the only source of comprehensive and uniformly categorized data on the economic activities of approximately 90,000 State and local governments, which account for about 12 percent of GDP and nearly 16 percent of the U.S. workforce. Census’s current economic statistics programs provide public and private sector data users with relevant, accurate, and timely national statistical profiles of every sector of the U.S. economy from manufacturing to housing to services on monthly, quarterly, and annual bases. Proposed initiatives include strengthening program evaluation capabilities at Census and providing greater access to Federal statistical and administrative data for use by researchers at Census’s Research Data Centers.

Highlights of Congressional Action on the President’s FY 2013 Budget Request

The FY 2013 appropriation of $887.0 million was $113.4 million less than the FY 2013 President’s Budget request of $1,000.4 million. The appropriation significantly reduces funding for 2020 Decennial Census Research and Testing Program. These reductions will not allow Census to carry out the Research and Testing plan as originally planned for FY 2013, pushes scheduled field tests into FY 2014, and may jeopardize Census’s ability to deliver the preliminary design efficiency options for the 2020 Decennial Census in FY 2015. Reductions in staffing, both at the National Processing Center and at Headquarters, will delay the release of the 2012 Economic Census reports by three to six months. In addition, Census will suspend the 2012 Information and Communication Technology Annual Survey. Funding reductions to current demographic statistics prevent the implementation of new supplemental poverty measures and delay data release of the 2014 panel of the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP). Reductions to the American Community Survey will eliminate investments in program management, processing infrastructure, and research programs impacting efficiency and quality of data production. Finally, the reductions to the Geographic Support program will delay important work related to Census’s Master Address File.

Highlights of the FY 2014 Budget Request and Major Program Changes

The President’s budget request for FY 2014 of $1,012.5 million is an increase of $125.5 million over the FY 2013 appropriation. The request includes a $3.5 million increase to Economic Studies to enhance Census’s Research Data Center network; a $0.3 million increase to Economic Studies to analyze Federal programs designed to assist U.S. businesses; a $5.0 million increase to support the development of a supplemental statistical poverty measure from the Current Population Survey to complement the current official measure; and a $154.2 million increase for the funding of the third year of the research and testing phase of the 2020 Decennial Census. The FY 2014 request also includes; a $20.9 million decrease to Economic Census and a $1.7 million decrease in the Census of Governments that reflect the transitions from data collection to data dissemination; a decrease of $7.7 million to Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) to reflect the completion of the FY 2013 Event History Calendar field test and to reflect administrative savings based on the re-designed SIPP being in the field for FY 2014; and a decrease of $10.6 million to Geographic Support. Census would continue critical research and testing for the 2020 Decennial Census program to support fundamental changes to program, business, operational, and technical processes. The agency would complete data collection and the review and publication of industry reports for the five-year benchmarking Economic Census. Additionally, Census would complete data processing and development of data products for the Census of Governments. The agency also would deepen and broaden an existing Statistical Community of Practice and Engagement test bed to identify effective automated methods to improve the interoperability of cross-agency statistical and administrative data. Census also would pilot increased collaboration between Census and other Federal agencies, where Census would provide a secure mechanism for restricted access to those agencies’ confidential data through its Research Data Centers and possibly establish additional data linkage and disclosure procedures.

Economic Research Service (ERS)

ERS, of the Department of Agriculture (USDA), is a principal source of Economic Statistics. ERS provides economic and other social science research and analysis on agriculture, food, natural resources, and rural America. The information and analysis produced by ERS informs policy and program decisions made across the spectrum of USDA missions. ERS data are made accessible to USDA stakeholders and the general public through research, commodity market projections, outlook analyses, and development of economic and statistical indicators. ERS’ new survey, the National Household Food Acquisition and Purchase Survey (FoodAPS), captures household food acquisition data from a nationally representative sample of 5,000 households.

Highlights of Congressional Action on the President’s FY 2013 Budget Request

The FY 2013 appropriation of $71.4 million was a decrease of $6.0 million from the FY 2013 President’s budget request. ERS focused on the areas that are most important in informing decision makers and on the topics where ERS has particular strengths. Although ERS continued to cover the breadth of USDA programs, core programs were reduced in some areas, ultimately leading to fewer research reports, less frequent updates of published data, and less flexibility in addressing new issues.

Highlights of the FY 2014 Budget Request and Major Program Changes

The President’s budget request for FY 2014 of $78.5 million is an increase of $7.1 million over the FY 2013 appropriation of $71.4 million. Funding would support ERS’ highest priority core programs, including (1) research exploring how investments changing global marketplace; (2) research on economic issues related to developing natural resource policies and programs that respond the need to protect and maintain the environment and the challenges of climate change while improving agricultural competitiveness and economic growth; (3) research on production agriculture, domestic and international markets, Federal farm policies, and trade to develop and disseminate analysis of the U.S. food and agriculture sector’s performance in the context of increasingly globalized markets; and (4) conducting food and nutrition research to evaluate the Nation’s nutrition assistance programs, to study the relationship among the many factors that influence food choices and health outcomes including obesity, and to focus on enhancing methodologies for valuing societal benefits associated with reducing food safety risks. In addition, the funding includes $2.5 million to support a new program enhancement, Research Innovations for Improving Policy Effectiveness, which will strengthen ERS’ ability to conduct research through two innovative strategies—the use of behavioral economics and the statistical use of administrative data—to address critical information gaps that hinder policy effectiveness.

Energy Information Administration (EIA)

EIA, of the Department of Energy (DOE), is a principal source of Natural Resources, Energy and Environmental Statistics. EIA collects, analyzes, and disseminates independent and impartial energy information to promote sound policymaking, efficient markets, and public understanding of energy and its interaction with the economy and the environment.

Highlights of Congressional Action on the President’s FY 2013 Budget Request

The FY 2013 appropriation of $99.5 million represents a decrease of $16.9 million over the FY 2013 President’s Budget request and a $5.5 million decrease over FY 2012 actual funding. This funding enables EIA to maintain a core program that collects, analyzes, and disseminates independent and impartial energy information to promote sound policymaking, efficient markets, and public understanding of energy and its interaction with the economy and the environment. Specifically, this level of funding enables EIA to continue the collection of data for the Commercial Buildings Energy Consumption Survey, which is the only statistically reliable source of energy consumption, expenditures, and end-uses in U.S. commercial buildings. EIA also continues to maintain the National Energy Modeling System to provide Federal, State, Tribal, and local policymakers and other customers access to reliable forecasts and analyses; also it would continue to provide critical information on crude oil and product prices. EIA continues efforts to improve the web-based delivery of energy information by launching a comprehensive, dynamic, and interactive view of State energy data and information. Because of the $16.9 million reduction, EIA has delayed the Residential Energy Consumption Survey until FY 2014; postponed exploring a number of methodological improvements for EIA’s end-use energy consumption data program; slowed the modernization of data collection and processing systems and methods; and suspended publication of the Annual Energy Review and its companion publication, Energy Perspectives. Instead, the Monthly Energy Review will incorporate annual historical data for about 70 key tables.

Highlights of the FY 2014 Budget Request and Major Program Changes

The President’s budget request for FY 2014 of $117.0 million represents an increase of $17.4 million over the FY 2013 appropriation. This level of funding would enable EIA to maintain a core program that collects, analyzes, and disseminates independent and impartial energy information to promote sound policymaking, efficient markets, and public understanding of energy and its interaction with the economy and the environment. For FY 2014, EIA would complete the Commercial Buildings Energy Consumption Survey, including an initial release of data in 2014. EIA would also launch the 2014 Residential Energy Consumption Surveys which collects information from a nationally representative sample of housing units, including data on energy characteristics of homes, usage patterns, and household demographics. Additionally, the agency would investigate National Academy of Sciences recommendations to improve the processes that underlie the complex, multi-year commercial and residential buildings energy consumption surveys. EIA would also modernize and streamline data collection processes across its energy supply surveys, including significant upgrades to the systems and processes used to produce many key reports. The agency would expand efforts to increase public understanding of linkages between energy markets and those for other commodities and assets. Additionally, EIA would enhance customer access and usability of energy information by developing more integrated and interactive dissemination platforms.

National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS)

NASS, of the Department of Agriculture (USDA), is a principal source of Economic; Natural Resources, Energy, and Environment; and Social and Demographic Statistics. NASS collects, summarizes, analyzes, and publishes data on the number of farms and land in farms; acreage, yield, production, and stocks of crops; inventories and production of livestock, including eggs and dairy products; prices received by farmers for products, prices paid for commodities and services, and related indexes; agriculture production and marketing data; cold storage supplies; agricultural chemical use; and other related areas of the agricultural economy. On a reimbursable basis with DOL funds, NASS conducts the Farm Labor Survey, which provides estimates of the number of hired workers; average hours worked, and wage rates at national, regional, and selected State levels. NASS conducts the Census of Agriculture every five years. The census provides national, State, and county data as well as selected data for the U.S. territories.

Highlights of Congressional Action on the President’s FY 2013 Budget Request

The FY 2013 appropriated budget of $166.6 million reflects a decrease of $12.8 million from the FY 2013 President’s budget request of $179.5 million. Given this level of funding, NASS examined its entire program to determine where cuts or delays would least affect NASS’s mission. Accordingly, this funding reduction required mid-year suspension of several reports. In some cases, funding shortfalls were offset by replacing survey data with less well-suited administrative data. Also, funding for the Census of Agriculture, which was targeted for a $20.9 million increase to support the cyclical nature its 5-year program, was reduced by $4.5 million from the President’s budget of $52.5 million. Because of this reduced funding for the data collection and processing of the Census of Agriculture, zip code tabulations and county profiles will not be completed. The census will cover Puerto Rico but the other U.S. territories will not be covered.

Highlights of the FY 2014 Budget Request and Major Program Changes

The FY 2014 President’s Budget request of $159.6 million reflects a net decrease of $7.0 million from the FY 2013 appropriation. At this level of funding, $8.7 million would be provided for the Agricultural Estimates program to restore the FY 2013 suspended reports, estimates, and surveys. The Nursery Report would be eliminated, but these data would be incorporated with the Census of Horticulture, as part of the Census of Agriculture follow-on program. The decrease of $15.7 million for the Census of Agriculture is the result of normal reduction in activity levels due to the cyclical nature of its 5-year program. In FY 2014, NASS would publish Census of Agriculture products by congressional district, watershed, zip code, and Indian reservation. Additionally, NASS would conduct the Farm and Ranch Irrigation Survey (Redesigned Follow-on survey) providing one of the most complete and detailed profiles of irrigation in the U.S. The agency would also conduct the Census of Aquaculture follow-on survey to provide a comprehensive picture of the aquaculture sector at the State and national level. NASS would also begin conducting four of the Current Industrial Reports formerly compiled by the Census Bureau through the end of 2011.

National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)

NCES, of the Department of Education (ED), is a principal source of Social and Demographic Statistics. NCES maintains survey programs that provide information on education from early childhood through adulthood, including early childhood to elementary and high school and post-secondary longitudinal surveys, international studies, the Common Core of Data, and the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System. NCES also collects and reports information on the academic performance of students as well as the literacy level of the adult population. The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) is NCES’s primary tool for assessing what American elementary and secondary students know and can do in academic subjects. NCES also administers the Statewide Data Systems program, which provides grants to the States for the management and analysis of individual student data to improve student academic performance and close achievement gaps.

Highlights of Congressional Action on the President’s FY 2013 Budget Request

The FY 2013 appropriation of $285.0 million for the Statistics, Assessment, and Statewide Data Systems programs was $32.0 million less than the President’s request. Funding is being used to collect comprehensive data on public elementary and secondary schools and districts; a survey of private elementary and secondary schools; the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), a comprehensive collection system that collects information on postsecondary institutions; the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study Kindergarten Class of 2010–2011; and work on international assessments, including the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) and the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA). FY 2013 funding also provides support for the NAEP, the only nationally representative and continuing assessment of what American students know and can do. Assessments in 2013 include national and State reading and math assessments at grades 4, 8, and 12. The Statewide Data Systems program provides support to States to enable them to build comprehensive, longitudinal student data systems that will promote the use of data to improve student achievement.

However, because the Department did not receive requested funding for 2013, it was unable to implement a pilot State-level PISA or support state data system initiatives designed to improve information linkages between and among secondary and postsecondary institutions, as well as to develop linkages to workforce data. In addition, due to sequestration, NCES plans to defer the collection of transcripts for the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study: Kindergarten Class from the end of 4th grade to the end of 5th grade; delay the National Household Education Survey from 2014 to 2015; delay the full-scale Adult Training and Education Survey from 2014 to 2015; cancel the 2013 Teacher Compensation Survey;  reduce field test work for the Schools and Staffing Survey, and reduce the statistical products dissemination budget.

Highlights of the FY 2014 Budget Request and Major Program Changes

The President’s budget request for FY 2014 of $357.4 million is an increase of $72.3 million above the FY 2013 appropriation. These funds would support three major programs: Statistics, Assessment, and Statewide Data Systems. In addition, $8.5 million from reimbursable statistical activities will be used for intercensal estimates of poverty, the National Indian Education Study, a School Survey on Crime and Safety, and enhancements to the Early Childhood Longitudinal Survey: Kindergarten Class. A $6.0 million increase in the Statistics program would allow NCES to provide States the opportunity to participate in a pilot PISA study, which would enable the participating States to benchmark the performance of their 15-year-old students against international standards in reading literacy, mathematics literacy, and science literacy.

In addition, an $8.0 million increase in the Statistics program would allow the Department to collect critical National Postsecondary Student Aid Survey (NPSAS) data every 2 years. The increased periodicity would provide more timely information on educational costs, financial aid, enrollment, and student progress, including one of the most important issues facing postsecondary education today: tuition increases and their relationship to future enrollment and financial aid. In FY 2014, NCES plans to collect student-level institutional administrative data on a 2-year cycle to supplement the NPSAS survey data with more frequent information on educational costs, financial aid, enrollment, and progress. This relatively small investment in more frequent data collection will help ensure that higher education reforms, including any changes to policies, are based on recent and relevant evidence. Given the magnitude of the student aid program − the Department estimates that over $150 billion in new student aid will be available in 2014 − such studies are essential. The remaining increase above the final 2013 appropriation would allow NCES to reinstate activities delayed due to sequestration.

The request for the Assessment program of $132.3 million provides support for the NAEP and the National Assessment Governing Board (NAGB). This level of funding would allow the program to fulfill its mission of providing important information on student achievement over time.

The requested $85.0 million for Statewide Data Systems includes a $10.0 million increase that would support postsecondary and workforce initiatives designed to improve information on students as they progress from high school to postsecondary education and the workforce. Such information can help ensure that all students are prepared for higher education and for employment, as well as funding for $36.0 million in new grant awards. At the requested level, approximately $28.4 million would support continuation costs of State grants awarded in 2012, and the remaining funds would support activities to improve data coordination, quality, and use for all States. In FY 2014, NCES plans to support, through funds for the Statewide Data Systems program, and in partnership with the Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, and Council of Economic Advisers, a postsecondary data initiative designed to improve statistics on students as they progress from high school to postsecondary education and the workforce. In addition, Data Systems funds would support new State grant awards to improve early childhood data systems and to improve data usage.

National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS)

NCHS, of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), is a principal source for Health and Safety Statistics. NCHS is responsible for the collection, maintenance, analysis, and dissemination of statistics on the nature and extent of the health, illness, and disability of the U.S. population; the impact of illness and disability on the economy; the effects of environmental, social, and other health hazards; health care costs and financing; family formation, growth, and dissolution; and vital events (births and deaths). NCHS has placed emphasis on health and health care data systems and enhancing internationally comparable measures of disability.

Highlights of Congressional Action on the President’s FY 2013 Budget Request

The FY 2013 appropriated amount of $138.7 million is $23.2 million less than the amount requested in the FY 2013 President’s budget. NCHS also received $22.3 million in Prevention and Public Health Funds (PPHF), approximately $6.0 million less than anticipated. Because of the $23.2 million reduction, NCHS did not pursue initiatives related to expansion of electronic death records to remaining jurisdictions, implementation of new questions into the full National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), and improvements in data collection methodology. The funded level allows NCHS to maintain full field operations for the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES); conduct the NHIS; collect a full 12-months of core birth and death records to provide the Nation’s official vital statistics data; conduct selected components of the National Health Care Surveys to reflect changing patterns of health care delivery and public health; and enhance the quality and usability of data access tools through improved tutorials. Funds received from the PPHF are used to maintain and expand the content added to the NHIS to monitor the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and to maintain and increase the expanded sample instituted to obtain State estimates including conducting related methodological evaluations. PPHF also is used to expand the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NAMCS) sample size to permit additional State level estimates. Also, PPHF are used to implement electronic birth record systems in the remaining two States that are in the process of re-engineering their web-based electronic systems for the 2003 U.S. Standard Birth Certificate, and to fund a subset of States that are using Electronic Death Registration Systems (EDRs) to complete coverage so they can quickly report mortality outcomes for monitoring the impact of ACA in their States and communities.

Highlights of the FY 2014 Budget Request and Major Program Changes

The FY 2014 request of $181.5 million for health statistics is an increase of $42.8 million above the FY 2013 appropriation. The increase prioritizes and supports the expansion of vital statistics to gradually phase in electronic death records in remaining jurisdictions, which would also support development and implementation of new sample designs for population-based surveys following the 2010 Census, as well as improvements and expansions of data collection methods. This investment would expand NCHS’ capability to monitor key health indicators at the national, State, Tribal, and local level.

The FY 2014 budget request maintains NCHS’s capacity to support its ongoing seminal health and healthcare surveys and data collection systems, using personal interviews, healthcare records, physical examinations, diagnostic procedures, lab tests, and vital event registrations. The agency would release the first data from the National Study of Long-Term Care Providers. Additionally, NCHS would expand information from its family of provider surveys in order to monitor health care utilization more closely. In particular, NCHS would launch a web-based follow-up of participants to the NHIS to track changes in health behaviors resulting from the ACA changes in access to health services. The 2013-2014 NHANES would enhance data collection on tooth fluorosis and exposure to fluoride in children. The budget also allows NCHS to purchase 12 months of birth and death data from the vital registration jurisdictions. Additionally, the FY 2014 proposal includes a request of $30 million in Prevention Fund dollars for Healthcare Surveillance/Health Statistics. This would be shared between NCHS and the Office of Surveillance, Epidemiology, and Laboratory Services, in an amount to be determined.

National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics (NCSES)

NCSES, of the National Science Foundation (NSF), is a principal source for Social and Demographic, Education and Economic Statistics. NCSES serves as the central Federal clearinghouse for the collection, interpretation, analysis, and dissemination of objective data on science, engineering, technology, and research and development. NCSES is called on to support the collection of statistical data on research and development trends, the science and engineering workforce, U.S. competitiveness, and the condition and progress of the Nation’s STEM education; to support research using the data it collects and on methodologies in areas related to the work of the Center; and to support the education and training of researchers in the use of its own and other large-scale, nationally representative data sets. NCSES has broad responsibility for statistics about the science and engineering enterprise. NCSES designs, supports, and directs a coordinated collection of periodic national surveys and performs a variety of other data collections and research, providing policymakers, researchers, and other decision makers with high quality data and analysis on R&D, innovation, the education of scientists and engineers, and the science and engineering workforce.

Highlights of Congressional Action on the President’s FY 2013 Budget Request

The FY 2013 appropriated amount of $41.7 million allowed NCSES to essentially maintain its ongoing programs, to conduct a pilot survey and necessary methodological work required to gather information about doctoral recipients early in their careers in preparation for the full-scale Early Career Doctorates Survey (ECDS), and to continue development of the new Microbusiness Innovation Science and Technology Survey (MIST), which will measure innovation activities among small firms in the U.S. Additional collaborative work with other agencies continued on tagging and extracting administrative records to measure research and development activities with higher quality and lower burden than current methods.

Highlights of the FY 2014 Budget Request and Major Program Changes

The President’s budget request for FY 2014 of $48.7 million represents an increase of $7.0 million over the FY 2013 appropriation. These amounts include salaries and expenses that are not directly appropriated. At this level of funding NCSES would maintain and enhance ongoing programs that provide researchers and the science policy community relevant, accurate, and timely information. Within the proposed funding level, NCSES would close a growing gap in its national estimates for research and development funding and performance by a) developing and implementing a survey of nonprofit organizations, b) increasing the frequency of a survey on State government research and development, and c) further developing and testing strategies for the MIST. It will also expand the scope of administrative records sources that NCSES is exploring to augment the full suite of its existing surveys. NCSES would explore, with several other Federal agencies, the feasibility of using agencies’ administrative records to measure R&D activity, including approaches to improving other agencies’ data sets. Additionally, NCSES would develop improved innovation measures in the Business R&D and Innovation Survey. The agency would also plan and design program modifications to develop improved science, technology and innovation indicators for the future. NCSES would review pilot survey results in preparation for the full-scale ECDS and conduct an experiment to increase the accuracy of postdoctoral researcher measures in the Survey of Graduate Students and Postdocs in Science and Engineering.

Office of Research, Evaluation, and Statistics (ORES)

ORES, of the Social Security Administration (SSA), is a principal source for Social and Demographic and Economic Statistics. ORES performs demographic and socioeconomic research to assess the impact of program changes or alternatives. SSA also collects, tabulates, and publishes data on the Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance, and the Supplemental Security Income programs and their beneficiary populations. ORES also collects, tabulates, and publishes data on earnings for people in employment covered under Social Security and Medicare.

Highlights of Congressional Action on the President’s FY 2013 Budget Request

The FY 2013 appropriation of $26.1 million was a decrease of $3.1 million from the FY 2013 President’s budget request. This level of funding permits ORES to provide support for data collections conducted by other Federal agencies that inform Social Security-related analysis; make improvements to data quality and processes; and conduct extramural data analysis and model development. Due to the decrease in funding, however, the Retirement Research Consortium (RRC) centers conducted a reduced number of projects than in previous years.

Highlights of the FY 2014 Budget Request and Major Program Changes

The President’s budget request for FY 2014 of $30.0 million was an increase from the FY 2013 funding level $26.1 million. ORES would fund two Disability Research Centers, through the Disability Research Consortium, to conduct disability-related research, focusing on collaborative efforts with other government agencies and interagency groups. The agency would continue to fund retirement-related research through a Retirement Research Consortium. ORES would complete the latest improvements to its Modeling Income in the Near Term micro-simulation model and update the model with new Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) and SSA-administrative data. ORES also would continue to fund design, development, and testing of the instrument for an SSA-funded supplement to the re-engineered SIPP. ORES would complete the final phase of the multi-year project to modernize and automate processes for producing statistical tables and publications.

Statistics of Income (SOI)

SOI, of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), which resides in the Treasury Department, is a principal source of Economic Statistics. SOI collects, analyzes, and disseminates information on the Federal tax system. In support of this mission, SOI annually conducts more than 100 different projects that involve data from tax returns and information documents. Three of SOI’s largest projects produce annual income, financial, and tax data collected from individual, corporate, and partnership returns. Tax data reflecting U.S. and international economic activities are also collected annually from a number of other tax returns with smaller filing populations, including estate, gift, and excise tax returns. In addition, data are collected from information returns filed by tax-exempt organizations, issuers of tax-exempt government bonds, and fiduciaries of split-interest trusts, as well as from a wide range of information documents, such as Forms W-2 and 1099. The statistical data gathered, analyzed, and published by SOI are used by Federal agencies, academics, researchers, and the general public to analyze tax policy, project tax revenues, and estimate the overall impact of tax law changes on the economy and the U.S. budget.

Highlights of Congressional Action on the President’s FY 2013 Budget Request

The FY 2013 appropriation of $33.1 million was $6.4 million below the President’s request. The decrease reflects the realignment of SOI information technology staff within the context of the larger Research, Analysis, and Statistics business unit (RAS). For FY 2013, SOI continued to support critical base program requirements and delivered all data files and outputs to its primary customers. Furthermore, SOI redesigned its pages on IRS.gov to better serve customers’ needs. SOI also has initiated measures to reduce spending by limiting travel, enhancing automated processes for classifying tax return information and improving a linked, individual-based longitudinal dataset constructed from administrative population data.

Highlights of the FY 2014 Budget Request and Major Program Changes

The President’s budget request for FY 2014 of $35.0 million is an increase of $1.9 million over the FY 2013 appropriation. At this level of funding, SOI would maintain current levels of service as well as to support expanded statistical program requirements resulting from changes to the tax laws. SOI would use a portion of its budget to continue developing cost-saving initiatives, such as streamlining administrative systems, automating data collection processes, and expanding capacity to remotely train and direct its programs. The agency would integrate population and information return data with SOI-edited data to provide rich longitudinal and/or cross-sector data that can be used to better understand the complex interaction between taxes and economic behavior. SOI would develop improved statistical techniques for identifying and correcting outliers and data anomalies in IRS administrative population files. Additionally, SOI would partner with tax policy experts within and outside government to produce top quality research on important tax administration issues. SOI would develop new products and tools that will better meet the needs of our customers, including refining our Web presence, pursuing a robust joint research program, and introducing new products that enhance our existing statistical datasets. SOI would revise the disclosure methodology of the individual income tax public-use file based on independent reviews, thereby improving the utility of the data.

CHAPTER 3: Statistical Programs of Other Federal Agencies

In addition to the thirteen principal statistical agencies, there are approximately 116 other programs throughout the Federal Government that were engaged in statistical activities of at least $500,000 in FY 2012, or estimated annual budgets of that amount in either FY 2013 or FY 2014. This chapter presents brief descriptions of these other statistical programs organized by department or independent agency. A summary of major FY 2014 changes for these programs conclude the discussion.

As noted in the prior chapter, several agencies produce statistics within a given topical domain, adding each agency’s particular expertise to Federal statistics as described. Appendix B provides a summary of statistical programs by topic.

Department of Agriculture

In addition to two principal statistical agencies (ERS and NASS), the Department of Agriculture (USDA) has seven additional agencies that maintain statistical programs which provide Economic; Natural Resources, Energy, and Environment; and Social and Demographic Statistics.

Statistical Programs

The Agricultural Research Service (ARS) monitors and assesses U.S. food consumption by conducting surveys and providing information for food and nutrition related programs and public policy decisions.

The Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) conducts surveys, program evaluations, and studies to evaluate the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, the Child Nutrition Programs, the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program, and other programs it administers.

The Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) maintains a worldwide agricultural market intelligence and commodity reporting service to provide U.S. farmers and traders with information on world agricultural production and trade for use in adjusting to changes in world demand for U.S. agricultural products. Reporting includes data on foreign government policies, analysis of supply and demand conditions, commercial trade relationships, and market opportunities. In addition to survey data, crop condition assessment relies heavily on computerized analyses of satellite, meteorological, agricultural, and related data. Commodity markets, the U.S. Government, the U.S. Intelligence Community, and agriculture industry stakeholders continue to demand accurate and timely global crop production estimates and weather related food supply issues from FAS satellite imagery analysis as commodity prices become higher and more unstable.

The Forest Service (FS) conducts the Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) program, which is the only program that collects, compiles, archives, analyzes, and publishes State, regional, and national inventory information on all ownerships for forest land in the U.S. FIA is mandated to improve the understanding and management of our Nation’s forests by maintaining a continuous, comprehensive inventory of the status, condition, and trends in the health and diversity of the country’s forest ecosystems. FIA also monitors primary wood using facilities through statistical samples and develops statistical techniques to query private forest landowners about their resource objectives and management strategies.

The Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) provides information on the status, condition, and trends of the Nation’s natural resources. It also assists with the implementation of natural resource conservation practices and systems that meet established technical standards and specifications. NRCS assesses, acquires, develops, interprets and disseminates natural resource data and information to enable knowledge-based planning and decision making at all landscape scales.

The Risk Management Agency (RMA) conducts actuarial analysis for Federal crop insurance programs. The Strategic Data Acquisition and Analysis (SDAA) unit plays an integral role in the Agency’s strategic goals to enhance and ensure the integrity of the Federal Crop Insurance program. SDAA accomplishes its mission through the use of cutting edge technology, including data warehousing, data mining and the utilization and integration of remote sensing tools in RMA’s business processes. SDAA directly supports RMA program units that are responsible for ensuring the program’s product development, underwriting guidelines, and oversight activities are in accordance with the Federal Crop Insurance Act, as amended.

The World Agricultural Outlook Board (WAOB) serves as the Department’s focal point for economic intelligence and the commodity outlook for U.S. and world agriculture. WOAB coordinates, reviews, and approves the monthly World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates report, which provides USDA’s comprehensive forecasts of supply and demand for major U.S. and global crops and U.S. livestock. WAOB also houses the Joint Agricultural Weather Facility, which monitors the weather and assesses its likely impact on crops around the world.

Major Program Changes for FY 2014

FAS would continue to collect and publish export sales data for pork under its long-standing Export Sales Reporting program. FAS may also include distillers’ dried grains to covered commodities under this program. FS would restore timely inventory data to manage the nation’s forests, although inventory operations in interior Alaska will continue to be postponed. NRCS would accelerate mapping and digitizing soil surveys and continue its comprehensive accounting of the nation’s soil carbon content; develop and issue water supply forecasts and continue operations and maintenance activities to assure data quality.

Department of Commerce

In addition to two principal statistical agencies (BEA and Census), the Department of Commerce (DOC) has five additional agencies that maintain statistical programs which provide Economic; Natural Resources, Energy, and Environment; and Social and Demographic Statistics.

Statistical Programs

The Economics and Statistics Administration (ESA) produces studies, reports and analysis on topics such as: intellectual property, U.S. competitiveness and innovation, and the digital economy.

The International Trade Administration (ITA) collects and disseminates data on imports, exports, production, prices, and foreign direct investment in the U.S., as well as other economic data to analyze domestic and foreign market situations. ITA also tracks data on international inbound arrivals and U.S. outbound air travel supplemented with spending data on Canadian and Mexican travelers to the U.S. The Office of Travel and Tourism Industries (OTTI) in ITA maintains a web site to provide limited statistical data to U.S. companies on international travel to and from the U.S., and provides projections of international arrivals to the U.S.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) gathers worldwide environmental data about the oceans, earth, air, space, and sun and their interactions to describe and predict the state of the physical environment. In fulfillment of this mission, NOAA’s National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service maintains national data centers that preserve and disseminate the agency’s climatic, oceanographic, and geophysical data and selected environmental information collected by other agencies. The Data Center Operations program provides NOAA the operational capability to close the gap in long-term safe storage of and access to the Nation’s environmental data and information. NOAA’s Climate Data Records program transforms raw satellite data into unified and coherent long-term environmental observations and products.

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), through its Technology Innovation Program (TIP), stimulates the acceleration of innovation in the U.S. by supporting high risk, high reward research in areas of critical national need through projects proposed and cost shared by U.S. businesses and institutions of higher education and other organizations.

The Patent and Trademark office (PTO) compiles statistical information on patent activity by geographic origin, technological subject matter, ownership, and other characteristics; samples patent and trademark cases to measure quality aspects in the processing of applications; and undertakes customer survey activities.

Major Program Changes for FY 2014

NIST would continue wind-down activities for the TIP program, with plans to shut down in mid-FY 2014. NOAA’s National Marine and Fish Survey (NMFS) would implement more frequent and robust surveys of fishing participants, thereby improving the timeliness and quality of catch statistics and better enabling fishery managers to anticipate exceeded allowable catch and prevent overages.

Department of Defense

The Department of Defense (DOD) has three agencies that maintain statistical programs and is a source for Economic, Health and Safety, and Social and Demographic Statistics.

Statistical Programs

The Defense Manpower Data Center (DMDC) maintains the largest archive of personnel, manpower, and training data in the DOD. DMDC’s statistical activities include an enlistment testing program to support screening of military applicants, a client support program to provide statistical support to the Office of the Secretary of Defense, and the personnel survey program to support the DOD’s Human Resources Strategic Plan.

On October 1, 2013, the Defense Health Agency (DHA) will replace the TRICARE Management Activity (TMA). DHA will continue to evaluate the TRICARE health plan and perform design, collection, and analysis of statistical surveys; prepare forecasts and projections; and develop statistical models for publication, research, and program management. It will also collect and analyze data from military hospitals and clinics to identify system-wide outcome measures, proven practices, and innovative methods for financing high quality health care to help improve the health system and to advance the health of DOD beneficiaries.

The Army Corps of Engineers (ACE) acquires, processes, distributes, and archives statistical data on domestic and U.S. foreign waterborne commerce and vessel operations on inland waterways and in ports of the U.S., Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Statistical functions are handled by the Waterborne Commerce Statistics Center (WCSC), an element within the U.S. Army Institute for Water Resources, Navigation Data Center. WCSC assists the ACE Civil Works Program by providing timely and accurate data and management decision support information for the annual Civil Works performance-based budgeting program. WCSC maintains a database to provide input into navigation performance measures and to produce monthly, quarterly, and annual calendar and fiscal year statistics summarized by port, inland waterway, and Corps navigation project. The ACE provides these data to other Department of Defense and Federal transportation, resource, and Homeland Security agencies to support their activities. Additionally, ACE produces a comprehensive U.S. foreign waterborne transportation database by matching the Customs and Border Protection vessel movement file for U.S. foreign traffic to manifest-based cargo data and trade-based cargo data to improve the geographic accuracy of cargo moves.

Major Program Changes for FY 2014

DMDC would enhance analysis of internet sites built and maintained by DMDC. TMA anticipates delays in responding to analytical requests due to the decrease in funding. ACE would improve navigation architecture to support national multimodal freight policy. It would also develop and implement automated data collection systems harmonized across multiple platforms. Lastly, ACE would integrate the Coast Guard’s Authoritative Vessel Identification Service and the Coast Guard’s National Automated Identification System to validate and enhance vessel movement.

Department of Education

In addition to one principal statistical agency (NCES), the Department of Education (ED) has nine additional agencies that maintain statistical programs and is a source for Health and Safety and Social and Demographic Statistics.

Statistical Programs

The Institute of Education Sciences (IES) conducts education research and evaluations. Its National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance (NCEE) conducts large scale evaluations of education programs and practices supported by Federal funds; provides research-based technical assistance to educators and policymakers; and supports the synthesis and the widespread dissemination of the results of education-related research and evaluation throughout the U.S. The IES National Center for Education Research (NCER) supports rigorous research that addresses the Nation’s most pressing education needs from early childhood to adult education. The IES National Center for Special Education Research (NCSER) supports surveys and research to expand the knowledge and understanding of the educational needs of infants, toddlers, and children with disabilities.

The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) supports the collection of data on key education and civil rights issues in our nation’s public schools. These data comprise a variety of information including student enrollment and educational programs and services, disaggregated by race/ethnicity, sex, limited English proficiency and disability.

The Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE) supports statistical activities conducted by other offices, such as an impact evaluation of mathematics professional development for elementary school teachers, the National Indian Education Study, a school survey on crime and safety, and an evaluation of the Comprehensive Assistance Centers. In addition, OESE handles the Migrant Student Information Exchange (MISX), the technology that allows States to share educational and health information on migrant children who travel from State to State and who, as a result, have student records in multiple States’ information systems.

The Office of Innovation and Improvement (OII) supports studies conducted by IES, including evaluations of the DC Opportunity Scholarship Program, and the Investing in Innovation Fund. In addition, OII supports technical assistance to improve data quality.

The Office of Planning, Evaluation, and Policy Development (OPEPD) develops and maintains EDFacts, a multidimensional data system that includes electronic data received from States, school districts, and schools. It also develops long term cost estimates for the Federal student aid programs, using such data as the Pell Grant applicant file, the National Student Loan Data System, Census data, and a range of longitudinal surveys conducted by NCES. In addition, it oversees the data quality initiative, which provides technical assistance and audits to improve data on program performance.

The Office of Postsecondary Education (OPE) formulates Federal postsecondary education policy and administers programs to increase access to quality postsecondary education. OPE collects participant data to assess the effectiveness of the TRIO Upward Bound, a program to prepare low income elementary and secondary students for postsecondary education. In addition, OPE collects and analyzes performance data for a variety of other programs, including those designed to help low income, first generation students enter and complete college. OPE provides funds to other agencies within the Department of Education to conduct program evaluations.

The Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) supports a number of statistical activities. The Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) supports technical assistance to States to improve data collections that provide information on students with disabilities. The National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR), another component of OSERS, supports national data centers that coordinate data collection activities of burn injury, traumatic brain injury, and spinal cord injury. They also provide statistical assistance on data collection methodology. In addition, NIDRR funds Rehabilitation Research Training Center training in demographics and statistics, employment policy, and measurement.

Other offices within ED that provide funding for statistical activities are Federal Student Aid (FSA) and the Office of Vocational and Adult Education (OVAE), which funds activities promoting program accountability.

Major Program Changes for FY 2014

OCR would fund the Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC), which is conducted every other year. OCR has been working with NCES to identify key new data items, including items related to school safety, for inclusion in the 2013-2014 CRDC.

OPE would pursue an initiative to evaluate the 2014 GEAR UP competition and the TRIO Upward Bound program. The agency also would initiate Campus Crime and Equity in Athletics Data Disclosure Act (EADA) surveys. Additionally the agency would study dual enrollment programs, student financial assistance, loan counseling, risk-sharing, and launch a consumer information study. OESE would consolidate the evaluation of Title 1 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) into a broader evaluation authority aimed at supporting comprehensive evaluation of the implementation, outcomes, impact, and cost-effectiveness of ESEA programs. OII would support technical assistance and other activities to improve data quality in ED elementary and secondary education programs. Additionally, OII would, depending on outcome of advisory panel, perform an evaluation of the Promise Neighborhoods program. OVAE would fund work to promote program accountability.

Department of Energy

In addition to one principal statistical agency (EIA), the Department of Energy (DOE) has an office that maintains statistical programs and is a source for Natural Resources, Energy and Environmental; Health and Safety; and Social and Demographic Statistics.

Statistical Programs

The Office of Health, Safety, and Security (HSS) conducts epidemiological studies of the health effects of exposure to radiation and other hazardous substances. The Office’s Former Worker Screening Programs provide medical screening to help ensure the continuing health and safety of former workers who were exposed to hazards while they worked at DOE facilities. The U.S. Transuranium and Uranium Registries help ensure that radiological protection standards and workplace control measures for occupational exposures to plutonium, uranium, and other long-lived radioactive materials are protective of worker health. The Radiation Effects Research Foundation conducts epidemiologic studies of atomic bomb survivors and gathers valuable health effects information. The Russian Health Studies Program was developed to assess worker and public health risks from radiation exposure resulting from nuclear weapons production activities in the former Soviet Union.

Major Program Changes for FY 2014

None anticipated.

Department of Health and Human Services

In addition to one principal statistical agency (NCHS), the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has eleven additional agencies that maintain statistical programs and is a source for Health and Safety and Social and Demographic Statistics.

Statistical Programs

The Administration for Community Living (ACL) collects data to assess the quality, impact, and effectiveness of its program, including long-term services and support for older adults and programs for persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) collects information to monitor and evaluate its programs for children and youth, such as Head Start, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, child support enforcement, adoption assistance, foster care, child care, and child abuse programs.

The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) produces and disseminates information about the cost, quality, access, and effectiveness of health care. AHRQ’s Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) provides public and private sector decision makers with timely national estimates of health care use and expenditures; private and public health insurance coverage; and the availability, costs, and scope of private health insurance benefits. AHRQ prepares analyses of changes in behavior as a result of market forces or policy changes on health care use, expenditures, and insurance coverage; develops costs/savings estimates of proposed changes in policy; and identifies the impact of changes in policy for key subgroups of the population. Statistical activities of AHRQ are conducted through the use of grants, contracts, and interagency agreements. Intramural statistical activities of AHRQ involve primary analyses using data assembled from primary and secondary data sources.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) promote health and quality of life by preventing and controlling disease, injury, and disability. CDC provides data on morbidity, epidemiologic surveillance of infectious diseases, chronic diseases, occupational diseases and injuries, vaccine efficacy, and safety.10 In addition to NCHS, 11 programs under CDC conduct significant statistical work.

1. The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), Division of Health Studies, conducts health investigations, surveillance, and registries to describe the relationships between the presence of hazardous substances in the environment (particularly at hazardous waste sites) and public health status. The analysis for statistical significance of human disease, biomarkers, and other health outcomes in the presence of environmental contamination is the primary use of statistics by the agency.
2. The Center for Global Health has three divisions engaged in statistical work. The Division of Global HIV/AIDS (DGHA) supports data-driven decision-making that aligns with the evolving characteristics of the HIV/AIDS epidemic across resource-constrained countries. DGHA provides global technical leadership, capacity building, technical assistance and other support in statistical and epidemiologic methods to agencies, countries, and staff involved in the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief. The Global Immunization Division (GID) supports data-driven decision-making to align with the evolving epidemiologic scope of vaccine preventable diseases. GID provides global technical leadership, capacity building, technical assistance and other support in statistical and epidemiologic methods to guide programs and policies for global polio eradication, measles elimination, and strengthening of routine immunization systems. The Division of Parasitic Diseases and Malaria conducts surveillance, investigations, and studies of parasitic diseases to define disease etiology, mode of transmission, and populations at risk and to develop effective methods for diagnosis, prevention, control, and elimination.
3. The National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (NCCDPHP) develops models to determine prevalence and cost of diseases and conditions through predicted incidence rates, mortality rates, and birth rates. NCCDPHD also conducts longitudinal studies designed to help families, health care providers, schools, and communities develop effective policies and programs to improve the health of youth. The agency also examines the effectiveness and cost efficiency of approaches to improve quality of care, quality of life, and health status. NCCDPHD produces and disseminates State and national data in support of broader initiatives, such as the National Program of Cancer Registries.
4. The National Center for Emerging Zoonotic and Infectious Diseases (NCEZID) supports a national surveillance system for monitoring and public reporting of healthcare-associated events, such as outbreaks, water-borne and environmental diseases, and vector-borne diseases. NCEZID also develops new methods, adapts existing methods, and provides statistical consultation for statistical applications in epidemiologic or laboratory research studies.
5. The National Center for Environmental Health (NCEH) studies the relationship between human health and the environment to develop national public health programs and policies to prevent disease. NCEH investigates disease outbreaks and environmental threats related to noninfectious exposures in the U.S. and internationally. NCEH collects and analyzes child blood levels for surveillance and adult asthma prevalence at the State level. It supports the development of the National Environmental Public Health Tracking Network and the National Asthma Control Program.
6. The National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, Sexually Transmitted Disease, and Tuberculosis Prevention (NCHHSTP) analyzes, monitors, and reports on the extent and trends of the HIV epidemic and of other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). NCHHSTP develops statistical models describing changes in the prevalence and incidence of HIV infection over time; develops special studies to target HIV and other STD prevention activities and programs. NCHHSTP also develops mathematical models of tuberculosis (TB) transmission dynamics in order to assess and project the impact of intervention efforts and to prevent and control TB in the U.S.
7. The National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases (NCIRD) is responsible for preventing disease, disability, and death from vaccine-preventable diseases and other respiratory, enteric, and related diseases. As part of these efforts, NCIRD divisions conduct statistical, epidemiologic and laboratory studies aimed at defining disease burden, associated hospitalizations, and deaths; characterizing disease strains; estimating vaccine effectiveness; determining cost effectiveness of vaccines; and evaluating other control measures for non-vaccine preventable diseases. Assessment of vaccination coverage levels is another critical component of the national immunization program.
8. The National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC) conducts and funds a range of statistical activities, including the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System, and provides access to statistical data on fatal, nonfatal, and violence related injuries. NCIPC conducts four studies with the Consumer Product Safety Commission. These studies are the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System-All Injury Program, Self-Inflicted Injury, Firearm Injury Surveillance Study, and Assault Special Studies.
9. The National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities (NCBDDD) supports State surveillance programs aimed at determining the causes of developmental disabilities; provides major surveillance and research programs for both birth defects and developmental disabilities; and coordinates the National Birth Defects Prevention Study, a nationwide case control study aimed at determining the preventable causes of major birth defects.
10. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) develops surveillance programs on occupational injuries and illnesses; provides funding for the collection of occupational injuries and illness data; develops scientific collaborations to assist in the dissemination of new measurement technologies for clinical and epidemiological studies; and designs, conducts and analyzes experimental and observational research.
11. The Office of Public Health Scientific Services (PHSS), previously Office of Surveillance, Epidemiology and Laboratory Services, administers the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) Program. BRFSS is a nationwide health survey collecting State-specific information on the health status, risk behaviors, preventive health practices, and access to health care of adults 18 years and older.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) collect, analyze, and disseminate statistical data on the Medicare and Medicaid programs and the quality of care delivered by those programs. CMS also sponsors the Medicare Current Beneficiaries Survey to obtain longitudinal and cross-sectional information on health care utilization and expenditures, including expenditures not covered by Medicare; the sources of health care coverage and payment; and the assets, income, health, functional status, work history and family support systems of the Medicare population. Statistical databases and ongoing statistical tabulations include: beneficiary population and subgroups; characteristics of providers of service; person-based utilization data; utilization data for service locations; procedure-specific data for physicians and suppliers; longitudinal data on beneficiaries, characteristics, and service utilization; and tabulations of financial and statistical data from all Medicare-certified hospitals and hospital/health care complexes.

The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) collects data on general health services, the health professions workforce, and resource issues related to access, equity, quality, and cost of care. HRSA maintains the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients, the National Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network, and the National Bone Marrow Donor Registry. Furthermore, HRSA supports the NEXT Longitudinal Survey, a four-year longitudinal study of a representative sample of U.S. 10th grade children to identify the trajectory and predictions of adolescent health status and of health behaviors.

The Indian Health Service (IHS) provides health statistics concerning vital events, demography, and morbidity of American Indians and Alaska Natives who reside in the IHS service areas. IHS publishes these statistics in two monograph series: Trends in Indian Health and Regional Differences in Indian Health. IHS relies on vital event data from NCHS and demographic data from Census for its analysis. IHS also provides health care utilization management, patient care, and epidemiologic statistics regarding American Indians and Alaska Natives who receive healthcare from IHS.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) supports the design and implementation of epidemiological studies, clinical trials, biomedical and biostatistical research, and laboratory investigations conducted by the various institutes as described below. NIH also supports data collections on health and health-related topics by Federal agencies, industry, State and local governments, and private nonprofit organizations. Seventeen agencies within NIH conduct significant statistical activities.

1. National Cancer Institute (NCI) supports biometric research on cancer incidence, survival, and mortality by conducting clinical trials of cancer prevention, screening, and treatment; providing statistical consultation and support to research investigators; and adopting or developing statistical methods. NCI establishes and supports nationwide surveys and gathers statistical information in many areas of surveillance research, such as: cancer incidence, mortality, morbidity, survival, patterns of cancer care, cancer risk factors and health practices, cost of care, health systems operations applied to cancer control, and monitoring of progress in cancer diagnosis and treatment.
2. National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) conducts and supports research on complementary and alternative medicine, disseminates authoritative information to the public and professionals on the safety and efficacy of these modalities, and trains researchers in this field.
3. National Eye Institute (NEI) carries out studies of the causation, prevention, and treatment of eye diseases and vision disorders.
4. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) conducts basic epidemiological research related to heart, lung, and blood diseases. NHLBI supports research on temporal trends and population patterns in the prevalence, incidence, morbidity and mortality from these diseases; risk factors associated with them; clinical and behavioral interventions for prevention or treatment; and design and analysis of long term observational studies.
5. National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) conducts both applied and theoretical statistical research to identify the relationships between genes and human health by studying both common genetic disorders and rare diseases.
6. National Institute on Aging (NIA) conducts research on aging and age-associated diseases and conditions, including physical and cognitive functioning, by using population-based epidemiologic and biometric methods.
7. National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) conducts epidemiologic and statistical research. NIAAA conducts the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions (NESARC), which comprises a series of surveys on alcohol use, abuse and dependence and their associated disabilities in the U.S. NIAAA also conducts national surveillance of trends in annual per capita alcohol consumption as well as alcohol-related morbidity and mortality, and provides current statistics on numerous alcohol-related topics including drinking patterns and risk behaviors. The agency also monitors and analyzes State-by-State legislative activity using the Alcohol Policy Monitoring System (APIS).
8. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) provides biostatistical data management and logistical support for the analysis of HIV/AIDS clinical trials; and monitors and coordinates the numerous sites conducting HIV/AIDS and other infectious diseases clinical trials.
9. National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) provides funds for research in scientific fields where statistical analyses are essential tools in data analysis, including bioinformatics, image processing, and computational modeling and simulation.
10. National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) directs epidemiological and statistical programs that include research on risk factors of adverse pregnancy outcomes, clinical trials for the evaluation of obstetric management and neonatal intensive care, and data to understand recent trends in indicators of maternal and child health. NICHD also manages the National Children’s Study (NCS).
11. National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) supports epidemiologic studies about the normal and disordered processes of hearing, balance, smell, taste, voice, speech and language. NIDCD also develops and applies statistical methods as needed for epidemiologic and biometric research studies.
12. National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR) studies the oral health and health disparities of the U.S. population.
13. National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) studies recipients of pituitary-derived human growth hormone; the epidemiology of diabetes and its complications; digestive diseases and their complications; and major chronic kidney and urologic diseases.
14. National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) supports a broad program of research on the nature, patterns, extent, causes, and consequences of drug abuse. Such research includes studies on the incidence and prevalence as well as differential patterns of drug abuse among specific population groups; identification of high risk and underserved populations; economic, demographic, and socio-psychological aspects of drug abuse; and statistical and methodological approaches to conduct such studies. NIDA also supports research on the incidence and prevalence of HIV infection among drug abusers who are not in treatment at the community level, and the impact of outreach education and counseling interventions on seroincidence and behaviors which put drug abusers at risk for HIV infection.
15. National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) conducts a variety of statistical activities, such as environmental epidemiology; design and analysis of animal carcinogenicity experiments; studies in genetic toxicology; mathematical modeling of molecular phenomena; as well as risk assessment methodology development. Environmental epigenomics, a scientific field that addresses mechanisms governing how genes respond to environmental stressors or toxicants, is a growing area of NIEHS research investment, requiring new methods development in statistics and bioinformatics.
16. National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) provides biostatistical analysis and data management for studies in support of its mission to reduce the burden of mental illness and behavioral disorders through research on mind, brain, and behavior. NIMH’s mission is to transform the understanding and treatment of mental illnesses through basic and clinical research, paving the way for prevention, recovery, and cure.
17. Office of the Director (OD) in NIH supports data collections and analyses of populations training for and participating in medical research; as well as biological and medical sciences instrumentation and research facilities. OD also maintains a database on characteristics of America’s medical school faculties.

The Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) serves as the principal policy advisor to the Secretary of HHS providing direct support for the Secretary’s initiatives. Statistical activities are aimed at improving the effectiveness and efficiency of the health system through adoption of health information technology and include a variety of independent policy research and evaluation activities across the spectrum of the HHS’s programs, with particular attention to strategic, evaluation, legislative, and policy planning.

The Office of Population Affairs (OPA) serves as the focal point to advise the Secretary and the Assistant Secretary for Health on a wide range of reproductive health topics, including adolescent pregnancy, family planning and sterilization, as well as other population issues.

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) provides statistics on health problems related to the use and abuse of drugs and alcohol (the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention); substance abuse treatment (the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment); the mental health condition of the population (the Center for Mental Health Services); and the prevalence and incidence of substance abuse and its medical impact (the Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality).

Major Program Changes for FY 2014

With regard to CDC (excluding NCHS), FY 2014 budget reductions may impair the quality and timeliness of NCCDPHP’s National Program of Cancer Registries. Additionally, statistical support to NCCDPHP would be discontinued and oral health questions would not be added to BRFSS. NIOSH would eliminate its Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing program. However, NCEZID would begin implementation of CDC’s provisions of the Food Safety Modernization Act. These investments would help restore and improve State and local capacity to monitor foodborne illness and respond to outbreaks. Additionally, NCEZID would make improvements to the National Healthcare Safety Network, which allows CDC to target healthcare-associated infections (HAI) prevention efforts.

With regard to NIH’s plans for FY 2014, NCI would investigate the feasibility of implementing new data systems to monitor the outcomes and economic cost of cancer care in health care systems. Additionally, NCI would support efforts to expand epidemiologic studies exploring racial/ethnic cancer disparities; conduct methodological research to ensure cross-cultural equivalence in surveys; collect risk factor and screening data for small populations defined by geographic, racial/ethnic, socioeconomic, and other characteristics; and examine the national costs associated with cancer health disparities, and the cost of not treating all patients equally. NAID would participate in the multi-agency initiative, Coordinating Center for Organ Transplant, to help improve long-term transplant outcomes through clinical trials. NEI plans to develop new statistical methodologies for use in assessment of eye disease and evaluation of new treatments for age-related macular degeneration and uveitis. NIAMS would support the collection of arthritis data in the National Health Interview Survey as a means to evaluate progress in achieving Healthy People 2020 initiatives. NIDA would expand research to improve the validity of self-reported drug use on surveys (e.g., biological measures and improved survey methodologies), as well as implementation of some of these methodologies to already existing data collections. NIEHS would pursue additional investments in validation and field testing of exposure technologies as well as in specific environmental epidemiology projects to permit robust exposure assessment. NIMH would increase its support, in collaboration with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, of a clinical trial for a preventive HIV treatment for men at a high risk of acquiring HIV infection. NIAAA would discontinue the National Alcohol and Health Study (NHAS, also known as NESARC-III). NHGRI would begin a new Genomic Medicine program to support a consortium of collaborative Genomic Medicine Pilot Demonstration Projects.

OPA would increase the scope of research grants to include the use of statistics in assessing program performance and the progress of the family planning and reproductive health field.

SAMHSA’s Behavioral Health Services Information System (formerly DASIS) would deploy integrated substance abuse and mental health facility surveys. SAMHSA would continue to phase in the implementation of a Common Data Platform (CDP), which will provide a uniform collection and reporting system. During 2013 and 2014, SAMHSA would work closely with the National Association of State Alcohol and Drug Abuse Directors, the National Association of State Mental Health Directors, and State partners to identify, refine, and test measures that, where possible, build upon current efforts within States. SAMHSA’s Community Early Warning and Monitoring System (CE-EMS) would further develop the data system begun in FY 2012 in collaboration with AHRQ of community level data collection related to emergency departments. This expanded collaboration will engage additional Federal partners (USDA and NIEHS) to populate a database available to communities to monitor local behavioral health status. SAMHSA’s Program Studies on Treatment and Recovery (PSTAR) would monitor changing organizational, financing, and program management strategies affecting individuals requiring behavioral health care.

Department of Homeland Security

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has five agencies that maintain statistical programs and is a source for Economic, Health and Safety, and Social and Demographic Statistics.

Statistical Programs

The Citizenship and Immigration Service (CIS) conducts surveys of new immigrants to assess assimilation, education, health, quality of life, and other characteristics of new immigrants to the U.S. over time. CIS collects and maintains current demographic statistics from administrative data gathered through the E-verify program, which allows employers to verify the legal work status of employees. CIS also performs statistical analysis to evaluate the E-verify program’s overall effectiveness and its ability to identify impacts on employers and employees.

The Coast Guard maintains detailed statistics on all reportable recreational boating safety accidents and incidents throughout the U.S. and its territories. The National Recreational Boating Survey provides national and State-level data on boating participation, boat ownership, and exposure to risk.

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) collects entry data on aliens entering and denied admission to the U.S. These data are used by other agencies to monitor the status of nonimmigrant visitors for economic and enforcement purposes. CBP also produces statistical methods to address trade compliance issues, identify questionable import activity, and identify importers for auditing purposes.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) evaluates disaster victims’ satisfaction with emergency relief services received and the manner in which they were provided. FEMA’s U.S. Fire Administration provides statistics on fires in the U.S., analyzes fire incidents data to describe the national fire problem, and reports on topics such as firefighter fatalities.

The Office of Immigration Statistics (OIS) provides information on and analyses of immigrants, refugees, temporary visitors (nonimmigrants), persons naturalized, and aliens apprehended or removed to assess the effects of immigration in the U.S.

Major Program Changes for FY 2014

None anticipated.

Department of Housing and Urban Development

The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has three agencies that maintain statistical programs and is a source for Economic Statistics.

Statistical Programs

The Office of the Assistant Secretary for Housing maintains and analyzes statistics on housing and property improvement loans and on housing or property insured or rehabilitated under HUD mortgage insurance programs, including the inventory of HUD-held mortgages or HUD-owned properties.

The Office of Policy Development and Research (PD&R) provides data on the volume, characteristics, price, quality, and suitability of housing in the U.S.; on the construction and permanent financing required to achieve a smoothly functioning housing market; and on the status of the existing housing stock.

The Office of Public and Indian Housing (P&IH) conducts data collection and analysis projects in support of its mission to administer and monitor public housing and housing assistance programs, and to provide accurate information on fair market rents to families eligible to receive assistance.

Major Program Changes for FY 2014

PD&R would fund the American Housing Survey; the Survey of New Home Sales and Housing Completions; the Survey of Market Absorption of New Multifamily Units; the Survey of New Manufactured (Mobile) Housing Placements; and the Rental Housing Finance Survey. P&IH would streamline its statistical activities program due to budgetary constraints resulting in about a 4.6 percent reduction from the prior year submission. Specifically, service related to case management and project management contracts in support of Disaster Assistance Programs Gustav and Ike would be reduced.

Department of Interior

The Department of Interior (DOI) has seven agencies that maintain statistical programs and is a source for Natural Resources, Energy and Environmental Statistics.

Statistical Programs

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) publishes the “Public Land Statistics” annual report, which includes information about activities and associated workloads in managing public lands, the commodities produced, and the revenue collected and paid as a result of use of public lands.

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) is charged with managing the Nation’s offshore resources in a balanced way that promotes efficient and environmentally responsible energy development through oil and gas leasing, renewable energy development, and a commitment to rigorous, science-based environmental review and study. BOEM functions include offshore leasing, review and administration of oil and gas exploration and development plans, renewable energy development, resource evaluation, National Environmental Policy Act analysis, and environmental studies.

The Bureau of Reclamation (BoR) collects and analyzes data to monitor water, land, and hydropower operations of BoR developed water supply projects throughout the 17 western States. The data collected are used to analyze the effectiveness of water management activities and hydropower generation and improve water use practices to meet growing and changing demands for water.

The Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) conducts annual surveys to monitor the fish and migratory bird populations, track diseases of cultured and wild fish, measure the changing status of waterfowl and game bird populations, and evaluate harvests by fishermen and hunters. It also conducts surveys of the U.S. public on recreation associated with fish and wildlife activities and satisfaction surveys of visitors to the National Wildlife Refuge System.

The Geological Survey (GS) conducts applied research on the environment. The Climate and Land Use Mission Area provides scientific information on the impacts of climate and land use change on Earth and human systems to support land and resource managers in their decision making. The National Geological Geophysical Data Preservation Program manages the integrity and accessibility of geoscience samples and data. The National Geospatial Program conducts research to find innovative solutions for the National Map, and the National Spatial Data Infrastructure through its Center of Excellence in Geospatial Information Science. The National Cooperative Geologic Mapping Program’s STATEMAP component currently supports geologic mapping studies conducted by 45 State geological surveys. As the primary Federal science agency for water information, the GS Water Resources monitors and assesses the quantity and quality of the Nation’s freshwater resources, assesses sources and behavior of contaminants in the water environment, and develops tools to improve management and understanding of water resources. The Natural Hazards Mission Area supports applied research to provide policy makers and the public with a clear understanding of potential threats, societal vulnerability to these threats, and strategies for achieving resilience to natural hazards, such as earthquakes, hurricanes and tsunamis.

The National Park Service (NPS) monitors natural resources to inform resource stewardship decision-making. Areas of focus are air quality, water quality, ecological health, flood hazards, and forest geomorphology.

The Office of Natural Resources Revenue (ONRR) collects, reviews and disburses revenues from energy and mineral leases and other monies owed for the use of public resources on Federal, Tribal and Outer Continental Shelf lands. ONRR serves as a trustee of the royalty asset from Indian trust properties and as an advocate for the interests of Indian mineral owners, ensuring fulfillment of the Federal government’s Indian trust responsibility.

Major Program Changes for FY 2014

Due to budget constraints, FWS would decrease funding to conservation, research and monitoring efforts for migratory birds across the U.S. GS would increase research and development funding to advance priorities in science-based resource management and protection of public health and safety from hazards.

Department of Justice

In addition to one principal statistical agency (BJS), the Department of Justice (DOJ) has five additional agencies that maintain statistical programs and is a source for Crime and Justice Statistics.

Statistical Programs

The Bureau of Prisons’ (BOP) Office of Research and Evaluation (ORE) determines the prevalence of mental health conditions among the inmate populations; evaluates the effects of job training, drug treatment, and sex offender treatment programs for prisoners on their post-release outcomes; and studies the potential effects of proposed policy and legislation on the prison population. The National Institute of Corrections, within the BOP, focuses its research on areas of emerging interest and concern to corrections practitioners.

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) collects and maintains data on arrests, dispositions, drug removals, and work hours, as well as drug networks. DEA maintains and updates the publicly accessible National Clandestine Laboratory Register that contains data on clandestine laboratory seizures.

The FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting Program (UCR) collects criminal acts data from over 18,000 local, State, Tribal, and Federal law enforcement agencies nationwide. Statistical programs include: National Incident-Based Reporting System, Summary Reporting System, Federal Crime Reporting, Hate Crime Statistics, and Law Enforcement Officers Killed and Assaulted. UCR produces statistics on murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny-theft, motor vehicle theft, and arson. UCR also collects data on arrests, monetary values of stolen and recovered property, supplemental homicide data, line of duty officer deaths (felonious and accidental) and assaults, incidents of bias motivated crimes, and other factors relevant to criminal activity.

The National Institute of Justice (NIJ) provides objective, independent, evidence-based knowledge and tools to meet the challenge of criminal justice, particularly at local and State levels. NIJ’s research and evaluation programs aim to answer basic research questions and develop practical, applied solutions to crime.

The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) provides national leadership, coordination, and resources to prevent and respond to juvenile delinquency and victimization. As part of its mission, OJJDP collects and publishes data on the juvenile population in the area of criminalization, arrests, victimization, probations, corrections, re-entry, and aftercare.

Major Program Changes for FY 2014

UCR would continue comprehensive improvements to the timely collection, analysis, production and public access to its crime data. NIJ would implement the Violence Against Indian Women (VAIW) study.

Department of Labor

In addition to one principal statistical agency (BLS), the Department of Labor (DOL) has seven additional agencies that maintain statistical programs and is a source for Economic and Health and Safety Statistics.

Statistical Programs

The Employment and Training Administration (ETA) supports the collection and dissemination of local, State, and national occupational, wage, and other labor market information, as well as the production of Unemployment Insurance (UI) information for administration of employment, training, and UI programs. Through an interagency agreement with NASS, ETA also funds the annual National Agricultural Workers Survey that provides data on wage and migration history, type of crops worked, unemployment, benefits, housing, health care, and use of public programs.

The Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) collects and analyzes current information on employment and production, as well as on accidents, injuries, and illnesses in the mining industry. The data provide current accident, injury, and illness information to MSHA’s enforcement personnel, and to engineering, education, and training staff.

The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) ensures that workers in the Federal contracting community are recruited, hired, promoted, trained, terminated, and compensated in a fair and equitable manner. Statistical activities include supporting the use of statistical methodology in agency desk audits, onsite inspections, and compliance evaluations; and advising agency partners on statistical matters relating to reconciliation, settlement, and litigation of cases.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has overall responsibility for the national injury and illness recordkeeping system, which is based on employer records, and is used to determine the cases that are included in the annual BLS Occupational Safety and Health Survey. OSHA also maintains the OSHA Information System, a web-based application hosting detailed data on occupational injuries and illnesses from employers that are inspected or receive consultation.

The Wage and Hour Division (WHD) in DOL supports surveys of occupational wages in selected industries. Data are used to determine prevailing wage rates and fringe benefits for service occupations in Federal procurement activity.

Major Program Changes for FY 2014

Statistical activities performed by the ETA Evaluations would be transferred to the Chief Evaluation Officer, reducing the overall total of ETA’s statistical activities to offset budget reductions. OSHA would modernize its recordkeeping system and restore staffing as well as ensure the implementation and maintenance of critical IT support and infrastructure.

Department of State

The Department of State has one agency that maintains statistical programs and is a source for Health Statistics.

Statistical Programs

The Office of the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator (OGAC) in the Department of State is responsible for assuring accountability of The President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief. OGAC is also responsible for the development and communication of knowledge-based practices to improve program performance, as well as the systematic definition, collection, storage, analysis, and reporting of information about the Emergency Plan’s progress in reaching its goals and the impact of programmatic activities funded to reach these goals.

Major Program Changes for FY 2014

None anticipated.

Department of Transportation

In addition to one principal statistical agency (BTS), the Department of Transportation (DOT) has nine additional agencies that maintain statistical programs and is a source for Economic and Health and Safety Statistics.

Statistical Programs

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) collects, analyzes and disseminates data and statistics on a wide range of aviation airline and airport performance metrics, including information on aviation accidents, incidents and investigations; airlines and airports; airmen and aircrafts; aircraft activity; and aviation forecasts. FAA also manages the Aviation Staff Reporting System (ASRS), which compiles and analyzes safety-related reports and sends out Safety Alerts to the FAA, airport authorities, manufacturers, airlines, repair stations, and others for the purpose of identifying safety hazards and promoting corrective action to prevent accidents and incidents.

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) collects, analyzes, and disseminates data on the Nation’s highway system, including financing, travel, fuel consumption, vehicle registrations, highway system extent and safety, drivers licenses, and personal travel characteristics.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) collects and analyzes data on motor carriers and on commercial vehicle drivers and crashes.

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) collects and disseminates data on the railroad system, including traffic, safety, and accident reports, such as intermodal safety data for the geographic information system, and information on grade crossings and inspections.

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) maintains the primary database for statistics on the transit industry, known as the National Transit Database (NTD). The NTD collects financial, operating and capital asset data from more than 700 transit systems operating in urbanized areas, and from over 1,300 transit systems operating in rural areas. The Drug and Alcohol Management Information System (DAMIS) collects annual drug and alcohol data from all FTA grantees and their contractors to determine the national random testing rate and candidates for compliance audits. The Transit Safety and Security Statistics Report and Analysis project collects, analyzes, and disseminates transit safety and security data.

The Maritime Administration (MARAD) collects, maintains and disseminates data on domestic and international trade, vessel port calls, and U.S.-flagged vessel data, along with maritime employment numbers. Additionally, MARAD occasionally conducts attitudinal and other primary research on topical maritime issues.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) collects, analyzes, and disseminates information on motor vehicle traffic crashes as well as on vehicle and highway safety programs. NHTSA maintains primary crash databases, including the National Automotive Sampling System and the Fatality Analysis Reporting System. NHTSA publishes and distributes annual traffic safety assessment and national occupant protection use data as well as analytical reports on a wide range of traffic safety topics at the national and State levels.

The Office of the Secretary of Transportation (OST) collects, analyzes, and publishes data to monitor competition in the airline and maritime industries.

The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) collects data to monitor transportation of hazardous materials.

Major Program Changes for FY 2014

FAA would restore funding cuts made due to sequestration in FY 2013. In addition, FAA would increase funding for two programs (the Aviation Policy and Plans Office and ASRS) above their pre-sequester levels due to the increasing intake of reports as new reporting sources contribute aviation safety information.

FHWA’s Office of Highway Policy would implement the National Household Travel Survey. Its Transportation Technology Innovation & Demonstration Program would end in April of 2014. FHWA’s Urban Congestion Report program will use a new data source for FY 2014. The scope of the urban areas covered under the program will expand to all urban areas over 1,000,000 in population.

FTA would update NTD reporting forms and guidance to reflect policy changes implemented by MAP-21. FTA plans to support the development of a next-generation IT platform for the NTD system, due to be completed by FY 2015.

MARAD no longer provides cruise ship statistics due the budget reductions and mission alignment.

NHTSA would continue the Data Modernization Project to improve NHTSA’s primary crash databases, including the Fatality Analysis Reporting System and the National Automotive Sampling System.

PHMSA’s Pipeline Safety would implement a National Pipeline Information Exchange Program (NPIX) that will standardize taxonomies for data, establish data quality attributes and metrics to monitor and report data quality performance, creating meta-data to support analytical interpretation of data. PHMSA plans to conduct an assessment and develop an action plan and timeline to improve the collection, analysis, reporting, and use of data related to accidents and incidents involving hazardous materials.

Department of Veterans Affairs

The Department of Veterans (VA) has six agencies that maintain statistical programs and is a source of Health and Safety and Social and Demographic Statistics.

Statistical Programs

The Board of Veterans’ Appeals (BVA) makes final decisions on behalf of the Secretary on appeals from decisions of local Department of Veterans Affairs Office (VA). BVA tracks statistics on the process of reviewing and making decisions on appeals.

The National Cemetery Administration (NCA) in VA uses projected veteran death statistics to estimate future demand for burial space and other memorial benefits. NCA uses living veteran statistics to estimate the number of veterans residing in geographic areas considered served by national and State veterans cemeteries. NCA also conducts annual surveys of customer satisfaction with National Cemeteries and Memorial Programs Service as well as periodic surveys of veterans related to their preferences for emerging burial and/or memorial benefits.

The Office of Policy and Planning (OPP) in the VA has two areas of statistical activities. First, the Office of the Actuary (OACT) provides Advanced Modeling and Actuarial Services to the Department of Veterans Affairs. OACT provides official veterans population projections for VA planning and budgeting; develops corporate predictive modeling and forecasts to support decision making about VA capital investments and future demand for VA services and benefits; and provides actuarial estimation for VA liability such as Compensation, Pension, and Burial benefits, and for Loss and Loss Adjustment Expenses, Medical Malpractice and Other Tort Claims. Second, the National Center for Veterans Analysis and Statistics (NCVAS) coordinates with other VA offices to collect, validate, analyze, and disseminate official statistics on the veteran population and VA programs. It also surveys users and non-users of VA programs through the National Survey of Veterans.

The Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) supports continuing analyses of veterans and VBA beneficiaries. The analyses cover VA compensation and pension, education, loan guaranty, vocational rehabilitation and employment services, and insurance programs. Priority statistical programs include the ongoing collection, improvement, and analysis of core data in areas such as disability, income, economic security, homelessness, and poverty.

The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) performs research on health services and medical conditions, including studies on veterans’ care in VA health care facilities. VHA performs statistical activities in support of patient safety, clinical outcomes analysis, research oversight, dental care, health administration, and other business activities. Additionally, VHA also conducts research in traumatic brain injuries, burn injuries, pain, and post deployment mental health related to veterans who served in Operation Iraqi Freedom or Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan.

Major Program Changes for FY 2014

VBA would expand statistical modeling and business intelligence capabilities. VHA would facilitate the collection of public health information on births and deaths from the 57 vital registration jurisdictions through the National Vital Statistics System. VHA would ensure sufficient statistical power in key health surveys to allow insight into the geographic distribution of health care needs and utilization, and enhancing the use of existing data systems and administrative data for assessing cost effectiveness. VHA would continue studying the barriers to the provision of comprehensive health care for women who are veterans in response to Public Law 111-163, Sec. 201-Women Veterans Health Care Matters. Additionally, VHA would conduct statistical analysis into the effectiveness and satisfaction of targeted training programs for clinical teams.

Statistical Programs In Other Federal Agencies

Statistical Programs

The Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG) is a source of Social and Demographic Statistics. The BBG oversees and coordinates the research and statistical functions for all broadcasting entities under its purview, including the Voice of America, Office of Cuba Broadcasting, Radio Free Asia, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, and the Middle East Broadcasting Networks. The BBG consolidates its research function into a centralized International Audience Research Project so that all entities and broadcasters can be assured of current, reliable, and statistically valid market and audience research on a periodic basis.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is a source of Health and Safety Statistics. The CPSC conducts data collection, analysis and dissemination activities on consumer product-related hazards and potential hazards. As part of its statistical program, CPSC maintains the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System that provides national consumer product-related injury statistics based on reporting from a sample of hospital emergency rooms. CPSC collects data for non-consumer product-related injuries for other Federal agencies. CPSC’s new public facing database, authorized under the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008, was implemented in March of 2011, and serves as a collecting point for reports of hazardous and potentially hazardous consumer products. The database allows consumers to report potentially unsafe consumer products, provides businesses with an opportunity to comment on those reports, allows aggregation of cases for analysis, and publishes those reports with business comments for the public to use when making consumer-product related decisions.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is a source of Natural Resources, Energy, and Environment Statistics. EPA monitors the quality of air; drinking, surface, and ground water; ecosystem status; and use and release of toxic or hazardous substances. Projects include State and local programs to report ambient air quality levels of pollutants and estimated emissions of pollutants from major stationary sources, and projection of future air quality levels through models that take into account past air quality monitoring data and emission data. Other statistical activities develop methods to document the distribution and determinants of exposure to pollutants experienced by the U.S. population, and methods to measure the potential effects of pollutants on human health and ecosystems. The Gulf of Mexico Program engages in a variety of statistical activities to inform restoration of the ecological and economic health of the Gulf of Mexico.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is a source of Social and Demographic Statistics. The EEOC collects workforce demographic composition data from public and private employers, and membership composition data from union and labor organizations. These data are used to carry out EEOC’s enforcement activities under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and are also used by other Federal, State, Tribal, and local agencies charged with enforcement of equal employment opportunity laws.

The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) is a source of Social and Demographic Statistics. IMLS supports the collection and analysis of data about the public use of libraries, museums, and online resources to support lifelong learning. The research is designed to identify national needs for and trends in museum, library, and information services; measure and report on the impact and effectiveness of services throughout the U.S., and strengthen national, State, Tribal, local, regional, and international communications and cooperative networks.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is a source of Natural Resources, Energy, and Environment Statistics. NASA collects remotely-sensed data to improve our understanding of and contribute to improved predictive capability for climate, weather, and natural hazards. NASA’s Global Modeling and Assimilation Office (GMAO) conducts research and development activities to maximize the impact of satellite observations. GMAO supports the National Climate Assessment (NCA) by providing tools that synthesize and integrate the existing satellite (and conventional) data streams to enable an on-going, permanent assessment capacity and capability.

The National Science Foundation (NSF) supports all fields of fundamental science and engineering, except for medical sciences. Accordingly, NSF is a source of Health and Safety, Economic, and Social and Demographic Statistics. In addition to the work of NCSES, NSF is tasked with keeping the U.S. at the leading edge of discovery in a wide range of scientific areas, ranging from astronomy to geology to zoology. The Directorate for Biological Sciences (BIO) in NSF maintains biological science research databases that include scientific information used in the health sciences such as genetic map data, data on the anatomy and circuitry of the nervous system, and three dimensional maps of the human brain integrated with neuroscience information. The Directorate for Education and Human Resources (EHR) in NSF supports the Project and Program Evaluation (PPE) program for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education program evaluation. EHR conducts program evaluations to assess the quality and impact of its programs. EHR also supports international assessments of student knowledge and curriculum, as well as contextual studies and indicators that monitor progress under NSF educational programs. The Social and Economic Sciences (SES) in NSF supports basic research on survey measurement, data collection procedures, and statistical issues related to survey design.

The Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) in the Executive Office of the President is a source for Social and Demographic Statistics. ONDCPS conducts research, analysis, management, and evaluation of programs such as the Drug Free Communities (DFC) program, the National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign, and the Arrestee Drug Abuse Monitoring (ADAM II) program.

The Small Business Administration (SBA) is a source for Economic Statistics. SBA supports databases on small businesses, including the Census’s Statistics of U.S. Businesses and Business Dynamics Statistics; conducts policy, economic, and statistical research on issues of concern to small business; and publishes statistics on small business characteristics and contributions.

The Social Security Administration (SSA) is a source for Social and Demographic Statistics. In addition to the work of ORES, SSA collects, tabulates, and publishes data on the Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance, and the Supplemental Security Income programs and their beneficiary populations. Additionally, SSA conducts in-depth statistical analyses to inform policymaking relevant to retirement and the economic security of older Americans.

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) is a source for Economic, Health and Safety, and Social and Demographic Statistics. USAID uses standardized surveys to collect information across countries to measure key indicators including infant and child mortality, fertility, family planning use, maternal health, child immunization, and malnutrition levels. Additionally, USAID supports capacity building in statistical offices in developing countries. USAID funds Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET), which brings together local, regional, and international partners from the government, private sector, and academia to provide early warning data on food security issues. Data are used to inform national and sector-level health strategies.

Major Program Changes for FY 2014

BBG would reduce statistical program cuts by extending the time between research studies and consolidating its statistical activities within the Office of Strategy and Development.

EPA’s Office of Water, Oceans and Wetlands (OWOW) would begin data analysis from the first statistically-valid survey to characterize the condition or quality of wetlands; initiate data collection for the second combined rivers-and-streams survey and release the National Coastal Assessment report.

In 2014, EEOC would conduct the annual EEO-1 Survey of Private Industrial Sectors, the biennial EEO-3 Survey of Elementary and Secondary School Districts, and EEO-5 Survey of Local Labor Unions.

IMLS would release findings from the Public Demand for Museum and Library Services Survey, which provides national level estimates for public use of museums and libraries in the U.S., the level of public satisfaction, and future needs.

NSF (excluding NCSES) would support the Federal government’s new Undergraduate Evaluation Framework.

SSA (excluding ORES) would work with BLS to continue collection and production testing for the Occupational Information Systems (OIS) project. SSA also would enhance the American Life Panel (ALP) sample to allow for more detailed research on vulnerable populations. Additionally, SSA would supplement the sample size of minority and low income populations in the Health and Retirement Study (HRS) to support research on retirement security among these groups.

CHAPTER 4: Statistical Standards, Interagency Groups, and Collaborative Initiatives

This chapter is organized into three sections. The first section provides brief descriptions of legislative directives, statistical standards and guidelines for statistical activity within the U.S Federal Government. These items are revised only periodically. The next section describes the various interagency groups and their focus to improve the performance of Federal statistics while the last section describes ongoing and new collaborations among the Federal statistical programs to improve the quality and usefulness of the Nation’s statistical products.

Statistical Policy Directives, Standards, and Guidance

Statistical Standards and Guidance on Agency Survey Collections

Trust in the accuracy, objectivity, and reliability of Federal statistics is essential to the ongoing and increasingly complex policy and planning needs of governmental and private users of these products. These data must be objective and free of bias in their presentation and available to all in forms that are readily accessible and understandable. As part of an ongoing effort to improve the quality, objectivity, utility, and integrity of information collected and disseminated by the Federal Government, OMB issued revised Standards and Guidelines for Statistical Surveys, which provide guidance for designing, conducting, and disseminating statistical surveys and studies sponsored by Federal agencies, in 2006. The standards and guidelines are intended to ensure that surveys and studies produce reliable data as efficiently as possible and that methods are documented and results presented in a manner that makes the data as accessible and useful as possible.

To assist agencies in preparing their information collection requests (ICRs) under the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA), OMB has also issued guidance on agency survey and statistical information collections. This document, entitled “Questions and Answers When Designing Surveys for Information Collections,” is intended for a broad audience of personnel who prepare ICRs but may not be familiar with some survey and statistical concepts. The guidance provides answers to a host of frequently asked questions about the OMB clearance process and expectations for key elements in the design and documentation of Federal statistical surveys. OMB’s statistical standards and guidance are available at http://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/omb/inforeg_statpolicy/.

Directives on the Release and Dissemination of Statistical Products

Statistical Policy Directive No. 3, Compilation, Release, and Evaluation of Principal Federal Economic Indicators, most recently updated in 1985, provides for the designation of statistical series that provide timely measures of economic activity as Principal Economic Indicators, and requires prompt but orderly release of such indicators. The intent of the directive is to: strike a balance between data timeliness and accuracy, preserve the time value of the economic indicators, prevent early access to information that may affect financial and commodity markets, preserve the distinction between the policy-neutral release of data by statistical agencies and their interpretation by policy officials, and provide for periodic evaluation of each indicator.

To further support the quality and integrity of Federal statistical information, in 2008 OMB published Statistical Policy Directive No. 4: Release and Dissemination of Statistical Products Produced by Federal Statistical Agencies that is designed to preserve and enhance the objectivity and transparency, in fact and in perception, of the processes used to release and disseminate the Government’s statistical products. Directive No. 4 covers Federal statistical products that are not covered by Statistical Policy Directive No. 3, Compilation, Release, and Evaluation of Principal Federal Economic Indicators; these include products that statistical agencies release in such areas as crime, education, health, and transportation.

Statistical Confidentiality and Statistical Data Sharing

The Confidential Information Protection and Statistical Efficiency Act of 2002 (CIPSEA) establishes a uniform set of safeguards to protect the confidentiality of individually identifiable information acquired from the public for statistical purposes, and strong criminal penalties for inappropriate disclosure of such information. The legislation reaffirms that pledges of confidentiality will be honored and gives additional weight and stature to policies that statistical agencies have pursued for decades, assuring respondents who provide statistical information that their responses will be held in confidence and will not be used against them in any government action. CIPSEA also authorizes the sharing of business data among the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), and the Census Bureau (Census). Thus it provides a framework to enhance the efficiency of the Federal statistical system by reducing reporting burden on the public and strengthening the quality and usefulness of the Nation’s Federal statistics.

A companion legislative proposal would make complementary changes to provisions set forth in the “Statistical Use” section of the Internal Revenue Code. These changes would represent the first major revision of these policies in decades, reducing the amount of sensitive tax information that will change hands to support statistical programs while substantially increasing the effectiveness of that support. A legislative proposal to accomplish these aims was developed by BEA, BLS, and Census in collaboration with OMB’s Statistical and Science Policy Office; endorsed by the Treasury Department; and submitted to the Congress.

To assist agencies in implementing the confidentiality provisions of CIPSEA, OMB issued implementation guidance in the Federal Register on June 15, 2007 (entitled, Implementation Guidance for Title V of the E-Government Act, Confidential Information Protection and Statistical Efficiency Act of 2002 (CIPSEA)). The guidance is available on OMB’s web site at http://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/omb/inforeg_statpolicy/.

The Interagency Confidentiality and Data Access Committee (CDAC), which operates under the auspices of the Federal Committee on Statistical Methodology (FCSM), considers common issues involving data access, confidentiality, and disclosure limitation. The group has several products that are available on its web site (http://www.fcsm.gov/committees/cdac/cdac.html), including generalized software for auditing suppression patterns in tables and best practices for disclosure limitation. CDAC sponsors seminars and members conduct tutorials on confidentiality under the auspices of the Washington Statistical Society and other organizations to promote discussion of techniques and issues related to the protection of confidential data.

Classification of Data on Race and Ethnicity

OMB’s standards for data on race and ethnicity provide a minimum set of categories for use when Federal agencies are collecting and presenting such information for statistical, administrative, or compliance purposes. Such consistency increases the comparability of data within and across agencies, enhancing data utility for policy makers and the public. In October 1997, OMB issued Standards for Maintaining, Collecting, and Presenting Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity, which superseded the standards originally adopted in 1977 (62 FR 58781–58790).

As a follow-up to the adoption of the 1997 standards, OMB worked with its interagency committee to develop Provisional Guidance on the Implementation of the 1997 Standards for the Collection of Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity. This guidance focused on three areas: collecting data using the 1997 standards, tabulating data collected under the 1997 standards, and building bridges to compare data collected under the 1997 standards and the earlier 1977 standards (current standards and guidance are available at www.whitehouse.gov/omb/inforeg_statpolicy).

In response to requests from agencies responsible for monitoring and enforcing civil rights laws, OMB also led an interagency group that developed more specific guidance for agencies that collect or use aggregate data on race. This guidance addresses the allocation of multiple race responses for use in civil rights monitoring and enforcement (OMB Bulletin No. 00–02, March 9, 2000, is available at www.whitehouse.gov/omb/inforeg_statpolicy). The guidance in OMB Bulletin No. 00–02 is designed so that agencies can continue to monitor compliance with laws that offer protections for those who historically have experienced discrimination, and that reporting burden is minimized for those reporting aggregate data to Federal agencies.

Most, if not all, of the national population-based surveys and censuses have now implemented the 1997 standards. OMB continues to monitor implementation of the standards for data on race and ethnicity through its information collection review process under the PRA.

Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Area Delineations

On February 28, 2013, OMB issued Bulletin No. 13–01, which established revised delineations for the Nation’s Metropolitan Statistical Areas, Micropolitan Statistical Areas, and Combined Statistical Areas. The delineations reflect the Standards for Delineating Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Areas that OMB published on June 28, 2010, in the Federal Register (75 FR 37246 - 37252) and the application of those standards to Census population and journey-to-work data. The classification includes approximately 94 percent of the U.S. population—about 85 percent in Metropolitan Statistical Areas and about 9 percent in Micropolitan Statistical Areas. The bulletin also provides guidance to Federal agencies that use the geographic delineations of these statistical areas for program administrative and fund allocation purposes (Bulletin No. 13–01 and related materials are available at www.whitehouse.gov/omb/inforeg_statpolicy.

North American Industry Classification System

The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) represents a continuing international effort by Statistics Canada; the Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía (INEGI) of Mexico; and the U.S., through OMB’s Economic Classification Policy Committee (ECPC), to foster comparability in the industrial statistics produced by the three countries. NAICS reflects, in an explicit way, the enormous changes in technology and the growth and diversification of services that have marked recent decades. In 1997, NAICS replaced the 1987 Standard Industrial Classification; it has been adopted by Federal statistical agencies that collect or publish data by industry. Like its predecessor, NAICS also is widely used by State agencies, trade associations, businesses, and other organizations. Statistics Canada, INEGI, and OMB have put in place a process to ensure that the implementation of NAICS is comparable across all three countries. NAICS is scheduled for review and, if necessary, update every five years, in years ending in 2 and 7. The NAICS revision for 2012 is completed and the 2012 NAICS Manual’s content is accessible online at http://www.census.gov/naics and is available for purchase from the National Technical Information Service.

North American Product Classification System

In recognition that a production-based industry classification system does not meet all of the varying needs of business data users, in 1999 OMB proposed an initiative to develop a comprehensive classification system for the products produced by North American Industry Classification System industries. Like NAICS, this initiative is a joint effort by Canada, Mexico, and the U.S. The long term objective of the North American Product Classification System (NAPCS) is to develop a market-oriented/demand-based system for products that is not industry-of-origin based; can be linked to the NAICS industry structure; is consistent across the three NAICS countries; and promotes improvements in the identification and classification of products across international classification systems, such as the Central Product Classification system of the United Nations. Newly developed NAPCS product definitions were tested in the 2012 Economic Census. A full implementation of the detailed NAPCS based products is planned for the 2017 Economic Census. Additional information regarding the NAPCS project is available at http://www.census.gov/napcs.

Standard Occupational Classification System

The Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) is a system for classifying all occupations in the economy, including private, public, and military occupations, in order to provide a means to compare occupational data across agencies. It is designed to reflect the current occupational structure in the U.S. and to cover all occupations in which work is performed for pay or profit. Concerns regarding the quality of the U.S. workforce continue to focus attention on occupational information and statistics. Policymakers, education and workforce development officials, business and labor leaders, researchers, jobseekers, students, and the public are concerned with skill formation and training, competitive economic pressures, and changes in technology and business practices that affect how employers structure work. Producing relevant and high quality occupational information and statistics that are needed to address these issues relies on a relevant and rational classification system for use throughout the Federal statistical system. OMB originally chartered the SOC Policy Committee (SOCPC) in 2005 to conduct the SOC revision for 2010 and then support SOC users between revisions, ensuring that the SOC remains relevant and meets the needs of individuals and organizations.

Given the multiple interdependent programs that rely on the SOC, revisions are scheduled for release the year following a North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) revision. The next revision of the SOC is scheduled for 2018, the year following the 2017 NAICS revision. The year 2018 has the additional benefit of coinciding with the beginning year of the American Community Survey five-year set of surveys that bracket the 2020 Decennial Census. The SOCPC began work on the 2018 SOC in FY 2013. As charged by OMB, the SOCPC will solicit input through the Federal Register in FY 2014, so there is ample opportunity for widespread public participation in the revision process. After the SOC revision for 2018 is complete, OMB intends to consider revisions of the SOC every 10 years thereafter. Information about the SOC, including updates on the revision process for 2018, is available at www.bls.gov/SOC/.

Interagency Groups

Interagency Council on Statistical Policy

An explicit statutory basis for OMB’s council of statistical agency heads was provided in 1995 by the Paperwork Reduction Act reauthorization (44 U.S.C. 3504(e)(8)). Known as the Interagency Council on Statistical Policy (ICSP), this group enables OMB to obtain more direct participation from the agencies in planning and coordinating Federal statistical activities. Chaired by the U.S. Chief Statistician, the members of the ICSP currently include the heads of the principal statistical agencies, as described in Chapter 1 of this report, plus the head of the statistical unit at the Environmental Protection Agency. Because the members have management responsibility for statistical programs in their respective agencies, their advice and cooperation are essential for effective implementation of OMB statistical policy decisions and for planning improvements in Federal statistical programs.

The ICSP is a vehicle for coordinating statistical work, particularly when activities and issues cut across agencies; for exchanging information about agency programs and activities; and for providing advice and counsel to OMB on statistical matters. In the past year, agenda topics included, among others: Anticipating Sequestration and a Full-Year FY 2013 Continuing Resolution: Effects on Programs; Preparations for the FY 2014 Budget: Analytical Perspectives Chapters on Federal Statistics and Social Indicators; Economy Act Effects on Joint Funding; Statistical Uses of Administrative Records: Intersection with the Paperwork Reduction Act; Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Einstein 3A Cybersecurity Memorandum of Agreement with other Federal Agencies: Incorporating Statistical Confidentiality Provisions; Cross-cutting Statistical “Principles”; Open Data Initiative; Increasing Access to Results of Federally Funded Scientific Research; Findings from the ICSP Trust Survey; Statistical Community of Practice and Engagement (SCOPE) Recent Activities; Recasting FEDSTATS; Improving Accessibility of the Annual Report on Statistical Programs of the United States Government; Report on the Joint Program in Survey Methodology and New Training Opportunity for Senior Agency Staff; and the International Year of Statistics.

In addition, the ICSP member agencies exchanged experiences, solutions, and proposals with respect to numerous topics of mutual interest and concern, such as IT centralization and protection of statistical data confidentiality; electronic release of economic indicators; land use and land cover cross-agency “reference” definitions: web scraping as complement to or competition with official Federal statistics; research data center development; and uses of statistical data for analysis.

Federal Committee on Statistical Methodology

The Federal Committee on Statistical Methodology (FCSM), established in 1975, is dedicated to improving the quality of Federal statistics and the efficiency and effectiveness of statistical practice among Federal agencies. Members are selected by OMB and include Executive Branch statisticians, economists, and statistical program managers.

The mission of the FCSM is to:

1. inform and advise OMB and the ICSP on methodological and statistical issues that affect the quality of Federal data;
2. compile, assess, and disseminate information on statistical or survey methods and practices for Federal statistical agencies;
3. provide recommendations on issues of statistical methodology such as measurement, analysis, survey methods, survey errors, data collection methods and technologies, record linkage, disclosure limitation, and dissemination of information that affect Federal statistical programs and
   improve data quality, including timeliness, accuracy, relevance, utility, accessibility, and cost effectiveness;
4. provide a forum for statisticians in different Federal agencies to discuss issues affecting Federal statistical programs; and
5. promote and support cooperative research across agencies on issues relevant to Federal statistics.

The FCSM carries out a broad agenda of activities and currently has subcommittees examining statistical uses of administrative records, privacy issues facing Federal statistical agencies, and question evaluation methodology, as well as permanent working groups on Confidentiality and Data Access and survey nonresponse. FCSM is also forming new working groups on small area estimation and adaptive design to facilitate agency sharing of developments in these areas.

Over the longer term, the FCSM has published 39 Statistical Policy Working Papers as well as proceedings from FCSM seminars and conferences, which are available through the FCSM’s web site (http://www.fcsm.gov). In December 2012, the FCSM held its eleventh Statistical Policy Seminar on “Collaborating to Achieve Innovation and Efficiencies: Advances and Opportunities.” In November 2013, the FCSM will hold its eighth Research Conference. The FCSM’s statistical policy seminars alternate with the biennial research conferences.

Statistical Community of Practice and Engagement

Increased sharing of statistical protocols and tools for the collection, processing, analysis, integration, storage, dissemination, and visualization of statistical data will provide opportunities for improving data quality, information security, and operating efficiency through improvements in data interoperability and reductions in duplication of efforts among the principal statistical agencies. Such collaboration can ultimately increase the value of Federal statistics by reducing unnecessary differences in definitions, formats, and means of access. It can also increase information security by pooling scarce personnel skills and IT resources across the participating statistical agencies.

To demonstrate the potential of this approach, the principal statistical agencies initiated a Statistical Community of Practice and Engagement (SCOPE) that has undertaken several cooperative projects of widespread interest to the Federal statistical community. These include researching issues for statistical agencies in moving to a cloud environment; establishing a pilot virtual statistical dissemination facility in the “cloud,” assessing current practice and alternative approaches for making statistical products more accessible to the disabled in compliance with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act; developing a joint statistical community response to implementation plans for Executive Order 13526 on Controlled Unclassified Information; monitoring cybersecurity legislation for challenges to continuing the statutory protection of confidential statistical data; and identifying agency initiatives on mobile applications and Application Programming Interfaces (API) that can be shared and harmonized.

To formalize and enhance these successes, the Economic Research Service serves as the Program Management Office for SCOPE. The program management office coordinates system-wide projects on standards, practices, policies, and protocols that address the current barriers and inconsistencies across agencies. Over the longer term, SCOPE will permit the Federal statistical community to more easily identify and share best practices for Federal statistical activities, resulting in significant data quality, security, and operating efficiency and productivity gains in the statistical activities of our Nation.

Interagency Committee for the American Community Survey

The American Community Survey (ACS) is sent monthly to a small percentage of the population and collects detailed information on the characteristics of population and housing on an ongoing basis. These data previously were collected only in census years in conjunction with the decennial census. The ACS allows Federal agencies, State governments, Tribal officials, and local government customers to make decisions based on current information, rather than on data collected nine or more years ago. Census releases the estimates from the ACS program each year, based on the previous year’s data collection. ACS Estimates are available for every State, county, city, town, place, American Indian Area, Alaska Native Area, and Hawaiian Home Land, as well as for census tracts and block groups.

The content of the ACS is based on the needs and requirements of Federal agencies and is periodically reviewed to ensure that it is providing maximum utility and that the burden on the public is being minimized. To facilitate communication and collaboration among the more than 20 Federal agencies that use data from the ACS for their programs, Census and OMB jointly chair the Interagency Committee for the ACS. In addition, the Interagency Council of Statistical Policy (ICSP) formed a Subcommittee for the ACS in August 2012 with the purpose of advising the U.S. Chief Statistician from the perspective of the Federal statistical system. The subcommittee was charged with providing advice to the Director of the Census Bureau and the U.S. Chief Statistician on how the ACS can best fulfill its role in the portfolio of Federal household surveys and provides the most useful information with the least amount of burden.

Interagency Council on Agricultural and Rural Statistics

The Interagency Council on Agricultural and Rural Statistics (ICARS) is the effort of the U.S. Federal government’s statistical agencies in support of the “Global Strategy to Improve Agriculture and Rural Statistics” which was developed under the United Nations Statistical Commission. The impetus for the Global Strategy was the recognition that agriculture and rural statistics are declining across the globe at the same time as new data requirements are emerging. The ICARS was established in 2010. ICARS brings together experts from economic, demographic, environmental and agricultural agencies that maintain statistical programs and from natural resource agencies to improve the coordination and production of national statistics related to agriculture, food, natural resource and rural data.

Interagency Forum on Aging-Related Statistics

The Federal Interagency Forum on Aging-Related Statistics, established in 1986 by the National Institute on Aging in cooperation with the National Center for Health Statistics and Census, fosters collaboration among Federal agencies that produce or use statistical data on the older population. The Forum played a key role in improving aging-related data by encouraging cooperation and information sharing among agencies, furthering professional collaboration across disciplines, and compiling aging-related statistics in a centralized location. In 1998, the Forum was reorganized and expanded to its present membership of fifteen Federal agencies. The Forum continues to maintain its web site at agingstats.gov. There, data users can find previous versions of Older Americans: Key Indicators of Well-Being, along with other Forum reports, tables and information on Forum agencies.

In 2013, the Forum has continued to develop its findings on the socioeconomic well-being of older Americans and has launched a pilot research project to assess current measures of informal caregiving. The Forum expects to release findings related to socioeconomic well-being of older Americans in 2014. Additionally, the Forum has operationalized a four year production cycle for the Older Americans: Key Indicators of Well- Being Chartbook. The next version of the Older Americans report will be released in 2016.

Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics

The Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics, initially established in 1994, fosters coordination, collaboration, and integration of Federal data on child and family concerns and conditions. In April 1997, the Forum was formally established through Executive Order No. 13045 to develop priorities for collecting enhanced data on children and youth, improve the reporting and dissemination of information on the status of children to the policy community and the general public, and produce more complete data on children at the State and local levels. To broaden outreach efforts, the Forum maintains its web site, childstats.gov, responding to thousands of requests for data on child and family well-being that cut across the domains of its member agencies. The web site includes previous America’s Children: Key National Indicators of Well-Being reports, detailed tables (downloadable), general information about the Forum and a recent enhancement, “What’s New,” featuring other Forum agency reports and agency highlights. Additionally, the Forum created a “Speaker Series” for Federal and non-Federal stakeholders who are interested in sharing timely and relevant topics. The Research and Innovation Committee (RIC) continues to identify, inform and advise the Forum on gaps in current Federal data and indicators and ways to address them.

In May 2013, the RIC convened a day-long meeting of Federal partners and non-Federal Early Childhood (EC) experts to address long-standing EC data needs. Presenters discussed an inventory of promising EC measures, particularly those related to social emotional development, for the Forum’s future consideration. The RIC will continue this effort in 2014, building on the outcomes and recommendations from the May 2013 meeting. In July 2013, the Forum issued its full report, America’s Children: Key National Indicators of Well-Being, which incorporated updates to 41 key indicators, covering family and social environment, economic circumstances, health care, physical environment and safety, behavior, education, and health. It also included a special feature on the Kindergarten Year, measuring children’s early academic knowledge and skills, and approaches to learning. In 2014, the Forum will publish a special issue on young adults, ages 18 – 24.

Interagency Working Group on Expanded Measures of Enrollment and Attainment

Education and training beyond high school is increasingly important for securing jobs in the U.S. Opportunities to obtain such education and training are provided both within and outside of traditional postsecondary education and are offered by a wide variety of public and private providers. This education and training also results in several kinds of credentials that may have labor market value, including occupational certificates, industry-recognized certifications, and State licenses. Because of this complexity, the best way to collect data on the occupational training and credentials of out-of-school youth and adults is through individual, rather than institutional, surveys. Until recently, no Federal surveys of adults captured this range of occupational training and credentials.

In late 2009, the Council of Economic Advisers and OMB’s Statistical and Science Policy Office began an interagency collaboration with the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), and the Census Bureau to develop new survey items for Federal data collections to enumerate and describe education and training credentials. An Interagency Working Group on Certificates and Certifications was founded to oversee this work. In 2012, the group’s scope expanded to include Federal statistical measures of participation and enrollment in work-related education and training and its name changed to the Interagency Working Group on Expanded Measures of Enrollment and Attainment (GEMEnA). GEMEnA comprises senior representatives from initial member agencies, plus the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics and the Office of the Undersecretary for Postsecondary Education. NCES provides staff and budget support for the group’s survey development efforts.

GEMEnA’s multi-faceted, multi-year goal is it to apply best-practice survey development principles to develop valid national measures of the participation in and credentialing of education and training for work, and to build government-wide consensus for the adoption of these measures.

GEMEnA’s portfolio spans four main strands:

1. Develop and deploy a core set of survey items related to the prevalence and key characteristics of industry-recognized certifications and occupational licenses.
2. Develop and deploy of a core set of survey items related to the prevalence and key characteristics of subbaccalaureate educational certificates.
3. Consider new and revised measures of participation in education and training designed to prepare out-of-school youth and adults for work.
4. Support NCES in the development of a new household survey on education, training, and credentials for work.

GEMEnA has established an Expert Panel to ensure the relevance of its work for answering critical policy and research questions. The Expert Panel consists of thought leaders from the worlds of education, economics, and workforce development who use data to understand the role of human capital development in fostering and sustaining economic growth. 

For more information about GEMEnA, including current questionnaires and the pilot study report from the Adult Training and Education Survey (ATES) released in April 2013, visit www.nces.ed.gov/surveys/gemena. 

Measuring Relationships in Federal Household Surveys

Legal and societal changes have resulted in increasingly complex family configurations, living arrangements, and marital and household relationships. These changes are challenging the frameworks and tools that Federal statistical agencies have for measuring and reporting household relationships and marriage data. The analysis and discussion around these issues have highlighted the need for a further understanding of how to measure and report data on marriage and relationships in Federal surveys.

A meaningful examination of the measurement of marital and household relationships necessitates a dialogue among agencies that use these kinds of data to develop policies or monitor and administer programs as well as the statistical agencies that collect these data. For example, it is critical to consider which concepts fit the needs of the Federal agencies that use the data, what questions need to be asked to measure these concepts, and how the results should be tabulated and disseminated to be most useful.

In 2010, OMB, in consultation with the Commerce Department, established an Interagency Work Group on Measuring Relationships in Federal Household Surveys. Representatives were invited from agencies that use and produce these data. The mission of this working group is to research the complex facets of the measurement of marital and household relationships, consider the uses of the data and implications and effects for programs and for measurement, and prepare recommendations to OMB and other Federal agencies for the development and testing of questions to more accurately capture data on marriage and family relationships.

The interagency work group is examining the current practices of the Federal agencies for collecting, editing, and reporting data on relationships and marriage, with special focus on statistical surveys that are widely used. The Census Bureau has also conducted a number of focus groups and cognitive interviews around the country to begin to identify alternative wording and ways of asking questions on relationships. The work group is preparing a report that summarizes current measures used by Federal agencies, the programmatic uses for relationship information, and the results of research on questions to measure household relationships. The report will include considerations for further testing and implementation.

Collaborative Activities and Initiatives

Statistical agencies also participate in a number of collaborative activities which, although not formalized as an interagency group, are initiated to benefit more than a single statistical agency.

Statistical Uses of Administrative Data

Leaders within and outside the Federal statistical system recognize the vast, largely untapped, potential of many datasets held by program, administrative, or regulatory agencies. Such data are often precisely those that are difficult to collect accurately and affordably, or with acceptable respondent burden, via sample surveys. Their use can increase the quality, coverage, or analytical texture of statistical data series. Their use can also assist statistical agencies to inform Federal policy and program officials and the public about complex policy questions and the interactions and effects of Federal programs. The statistical system’s ability to inform societal and public policy matters in an environment of rising survey costs and constrained Federal budgets hinges to a large degree on its ability to access and use such data to a much greater degree than before.

For the past six years, the FCSM’s interagency subcommittee has worked to identify opportunities for using administrative data and to address barriers to their use. First, the group documented a series of barriers—statistical agency access, inadequate agency infrastructure, underdeveloped methods to measure and ensure data quality, and researcher access to data—that until now have limited statistical use of administrative records. The group then developed some tools to help standardize data sharing agreements, address confusion about how to meet public notice and informed consent requirements, and a document and evaluate the quality of administrative datasets for statistical purposes. It also began to develop a documentation and evaluation tool for use with linked datasets. It continues to identify opportunities to collaborate across statistical agencies to address common methodological challenges in using administrative data for statistical purposes. Yet those efforts alone will not be sufficient to fully address the identified barriers.

To complement these efforts, the ICSP encouraged system-wide pilot projects to advance the statistical uses of administrative data, designed to further demonstrate the benefits of such use and to address identified barriers. Findings from the pilot projects, coupled with other impetus including a review by the Government Accountability Office, caused the ICSP to conclude that it was time to address systemic barriers through legal and policy solutions. The Committee continued to work with OMB to identify specific legal and policy solutions to pursue. During the past year, this effort has evolved as its relationship to two Administration focal areas has become clearer. The two areas are the Open Government initiative to increase the interoperability and accessibility of Federal datasets, including administrative data, and the emphasis on building and using evidence to build a more efficient and effective 21st century government. Both emphasize creating new statistical information by harnessing administrative data as a cost-effective way to drive improvement and innovation in the public and private sectors. As a result, the efforts of the FCSM and the ICSP to inform OMB’s statistical policy and technical guidance will benefit an even larger portfolio of activities.

Evidence-Building for the 2020 Decennial Census

The decennial census provides the foundation for many statistical programs throughout the Federal government. In addition to providing population counts and characteristics at geographic levels ranging from a neighborhood block to the Nation, the decennial census data are used as the sampling frame for major demographic surveys sponsored by a host of Federal agencies and also serve as the benchmark for Federal and private household surveys. Fiscal Year 2014 is the third year of the 2020 Decennial Census research and testing phase. The purpose of Research and Test phase is two-fold: first, provide the evidence needed to make operational design decisions for the 2020 Decennial Census; and, second, build the processes needed to manage effectively the remainder of the Census lifecycle. In FY 2014, the Census Bureau (Census) will build upon the results of research and tests conducted in the previous two years, as well as leverage results from other programs at Census, such as the American Community Survey. This includes continuing the work on methods to optimize self-response, re-engineer and streamline field operations, re-engineer and streamline the IT infrastructure, reduce field workloads for non-response and address canvassing operations, and improve productions rates. In FY 2014, Census will execute three field tests. The first test will examine the feasibility of using data already provided to the government and an adaptive contact strategy tailored to each household to re-engineer the census takers’ workload in the field. The second test will have a two-pronged scope. First, the test will assess ways to optimize self-response. In addition, building on the early FY 2014 test, it will explore further ways to improve productivity related to collecting data from non-respondents (thereby decreasing overall costs for the 2020 Decennial Census), reducing in-person contacts with non-respondents, tailoring contact strategies to households, and using data already provided to the government about non-responding households. The third field test will address listing methodologies, indicators of coverage error and Master Address File quality. These tests are critical components of the research agenda as field enumeration workload is the primary census cost driver. Finally, Census will continue to implement critical plans for ensuring integrated and effective management of the 2020 Decennial Census, such as program management and systems engineering processes that align with enterprise guidelines.

Enhancing Internationally Comparable Measures of Disability

The Washington Group on Disability Statistics (WG), with leadership from NCHS and established by the United Nations Statistical Commission, is a cooperative effort among national statistical offices of developed and developing countries, international statistical organizations, and international organizations representing persons with disabilities. The purpose of the WG is to develop internationally comparable disability measures for censuses and national surveys. Other goals of the group include: improving the collection and interpretation of information on disability, enhancing comparability with other national and international data collections, and providing more detailed information necessary to fully understand the complexities of disability.

The Joint United Nations Economic Commission for Europe/World Health Organization/Eurostat Task Force on Measuring Health Status (also known as the Budapest Initiative) was organized in 2005 under the Work Programme of the Conference on European Statisticians. Its main purpose is the development of an internationally accepted standard set of questions for assessing general health status in the context of interview surveys. NCHS also provides leadership in this collaboration.

The sets of questions from both the WG and Budapest Initiative have undergone multiple rounds of cognitive and field tests in Africa, South America, North America, and Asia. To date, approximately twenty countries have indicated they intend to use the short set of six questions in the current round of national censuses. In the U.S., a disability module similar to that developed by the WG has been incorporated into the American Community Survey (ACS). The ACS questions were also added to the Current Population Survey and the National Crime Victimization Survey in 2008 and have been included in the National Health Interview Survey since 2009.

Following the completion and adoption of the WG short set of questions, work began on the development of an extended set of questions on functioning for use as a component of population surveys, as a supplement to surveys, or as the core of a disability survey. The extended set of questions incorporates additional functional domains and added detail regarding functioning with and without assistive technology/assistance. With the backing of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP), the extended set of disability questions on functioning was cognitively and field tested in six Southeast Asian countries. This extended set of disability questions was finalized prior to, and presented at, the 11th meeting of the WG held in Bermuda in November 2011. Subsequently, it was presented to Eurostat for inclusion on the European Health Interview Survey.

Disability questions for children and youth have been developed in close cooperation with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). Cognitive testing of these questions began in September 2012 in Mumbai, India and similar testing followed in USA (winter/spring 2012/13); Belmopan, Belize (January, 2013); Muscat, Oman (April, 2013); and Podgoricia, Montenegro (July, 2013). Preliminary results from India were presented at the 12th meeting of the WG, held in October, 2012. Cognitive testing of the module on child functioning and disability will be followed by field testing. UNICEF and the WG have also embarked on the development of a survey module that would address facilitators and barriers to school participation for children with disability – a first step at measuring the impact of the environmental on activities and participation.

The WG has been active in supporting individual countries that intend to operationalize the short set of questions on their census. To that end, training has been held in Amman, Jordan and Bogotá, Colombia to assist in preparations for inclusion of the questions on their census.

Work also continues on the development of extended set of questions to measure environmental barriers / facilitators to participation in the general population.

All papers and products of the Washington Group are available at http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/washington_group.htm. Papers and products of the Budapest Initiative are available at www.unece.org/stats/documents/2005.11.health.htm.

Improving Data Systems on Health and Health Care

Increasingly complex public health and health policy issues require more sophisticated statistical systems. To remain effective, data systems must meet the challenge of maintaining current operations while retooling to meet new data needs and utilize more fully new technology and methods. Collectively, these mechanisms gather information that people can provide in interviews; information that people do not know or cannot describe adequately, but that can be obtained through examinations and medical records; and information on the circumstances of significant health events that can be obtained through birth and death records and the compilation of data on medical encounters. NCHS is pursuing a number of efforts to maintain and improve the core capacity of ongoing data systems.

To address data needs in an environment of increasing costs, NCHS has begun a long-range effort to redesign the health surveys as well as the health care and vital statistics programs. NCHS is in the process of integrating the data collected from two hospital surveys into one survey called the National Hospital Care Survey (NHCS), which will have two components: inpatient and ambulatory. NCHS began recruiting a new nationally representative sample of hospitals for this survey in 2011. During the first two years, the survey will replace the National Hospital Discharge Survey, and hospitals will provide data on inpatients. In 2013, the sampled hospitals for the NHCS will be asked to provide data on visits to their emergency and outpatient departments, and ambulatory surgery locations. A new sample of freestanding ambulatory surgery centers will also be recruited and inducted in 2013, thus integrating the National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Surveys into the NHCS.

In 2012, NCHS launched its new integrated strategy for obtaining and providing nationally representative statistical information about the supply and use of paid, regulated Long Term Care (LTC) providers in the U.S.—the National Study of Long-Term Care Providers (NSLTCP). NSLTCP will replace the periodic National Nursing Home Survey and National Home and Hospice Care Survey, and the one-time National Survey of Residential Care Facilities. NSLTCP is intended to enable efficient monitoring of the dynamic, diverse, and evolving industry of paid, regulated LTC and to help address the nation’s information needs to inform future LTC policy. NSLTCP survey data for adult day services centers and other residential care communities and administrative data for nursing homes, home health agencies and hospices will be used to develop an overview report every other year on the supply and use of paid, regulated LTC in the U.S. Information will be included in the report about providers and about users (i.e., residents, patients, participants). The first survey is scheduled to be implemented in late 2012 and the first report is scheduled to be produced in late 2013.

Current efforts to preserve continuity in critical data on births and deaths come at a time of significant opportunity for longer term gains in the underlying vital registration systems that State agencies and partners use to obtain these data. Work continues on the development of minimum standards for birth certificates and their issuance in compliance with the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004, Section 7211. This act requires development of Federal regulations to improve the security and integrity of birth records’ processing. Implementation of the revisions will lead States to work with hospitals and funeral homes to build electronic vital registration systems, with secure Internet transmissions to State authorities and ultimately Federal partners. The systems developed to implement these regulations can be an important source of more timely information on births and deaths. Work is also underway to make significant improvements in the timeliness and quality of vital statistics data including expansion of electronic registration of vital events, quality review at data entry, faster processing, and more timely publication of key indicators.

New Standards for Data Collection in Health Studies

Section 4302 of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) strengthens Federal data collection efforts by requiring that all health surveys sponsored by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) include standardized information on race, ethnicity, sex, primary language and disability status. The law also provides HHS the opportunity to collect additional demographic data to further improve understanding of health care disparities. Harmonizing data standards is intended to improve identification of the significant health differences that often exist between and within racial and ethnic groups.

HHS recently adopted standards population health surveys sponsored by HHS, where respondents either self-report information or a knowledgeable person responds for all members of a household.  The new data standards on race, ethnicity, sex, primary language and disability status for data collection, available at http://minorityhealth.hhs.gov/templates/content.aspx?ID=9227&lvl=2&lvlID=208 were published on Oct. 31, 2011. HHS has begun implementation of these new data standards in all new surveys and at the time of major revisions to current surveys. Implementation guidance is available at http://aspe.hhs.gov/datacncl/standards/ACA/4302/index.shtml.

The process of developing these standards included examining current Federal data collection standards, the adequacy of prior testing, and the quality of the data produced in prior surveys; consultations with the Census Bureau and OMB’s Statistical and Science Policy Office regarding best practices; and review of an Institute of Medicine Report. Specifically, the following criteria were used:

1. Standards would be evidence-based and demonstrated to have worked well in practice for national survey data collection.
2. Standards would represent a minimum data standard, with agencies permitted to collect as much additional detail as desired, provided that the additional detail could be aggregated back to the minimum standard.
3. Standards required by OMB would serve as the starting point for any data standard.
4. Standards would apply to HHS-sponsored population surveys in which person-level data is collected via either self-report or from a respondent who serves as a knowledgeable household representative.

Only those demographic categories for race, ethnicity, sex, primary language, and disability status with adequate sample sizes to provide statistically reliable data should be reported. Information on the validity and reliability of the data should be included, whenever possible, to enable the readers to judge the credibility of the findings.

Supplemental Poverty Measure

Poverty is a critical indicator of how widely prosperity is shared in our economy and is a key benchmark for targeting resources toward the disadvantaged. The U.S. poverty measure was developed in the 1960’s and has not been substantially changed since then. As such, it is based on outdated assumptions and does not take into account the availability of many economic resources. In particular, the official measure does not include many government transfer programs, and hence cannot be used to evaluate the impact of anti-poverty programs. It has been widely criticized for decades. In light of this, OMB requested that the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and the Census Bureau (Census) develop a Supplemental Poverty Measure (SPM) that will offer a complementary perspective on the distribution of economic deprivation provided by the official measure. The President’s Budget for FY 2014 requests funding to support this development.

In FY 2014, BLS plans to begin development of questions to add to the Consumer Expenditure (CE) Interview Survey in FY 2016 to support the supplemental poverty measure. Additional questions may be added on topics such as participation in school breakfast or lunch programs, or receipt of subsidies for utilities.  Also in FY 2014, the CE program plans to provide preliminary supplemental poverty thresholds to Census in early August which would support the simultaneous release of the SPM with the September release of the official Census income and poverty report.  By FY 2017, with continued improvement to the survey and its processing systems, BLS could provide Census with improved thresholds that reflect results from the additional set of questions. 

Census uses the poverty thresholds developed by BLS and the National Academy of Sciences’ (NAS) 1995 recommendations for family resources as the basis for a definition of income that is much broader than the current official measure. However, several of the components of such an improved measure are not currently collected by Census in the Current Population Survey’s Annual Social and Economic Supplement (CPS ASEC) or the American Community Survey (ACS) and, therefore, must be modeled.

In FY 2014, Census plans to expand its research and production capacities in coordination with BLS to complement the official poverty measures with annual supplemental measures of poverty based on data from the CPS ASEC (and eventually the ACS) that follow the NAS recommendations. Specifically, Census would:

1. develop the survey questions needed to produce the supplemental poverty measure including questions on mortgages and property value, childcare expenses, child support expenses, and out-of-pocket medical expenses;
2. evaluate, improve, and expand its modeling and estimation techniques to produce the necessary additional resource components on a timely basis;
3. develop a staff who would evaluate and update these measures and work with stakeholders to ensure that these measures continue to reflect best practices and take full advantage of the information available to the Census; and
4. consider expanding the measure to use data from additional surveys, particularly the ACS, so States, Tribal governments, and localities can take advantage of this supplemental poverty measure.

Collaborative Research on Survey Methodology

The National Science Foundation’s Division of Social and Economic Sciences, in collaboration with a consortium of Federal statistical agencies, continues to fund basic research on survey measurement issues, data collection procedures, and statistical issues related to survey design. These activities have substantial potential to benefit the Federal statistical system as it prepares to meet future challenges in gathering relevant and reliable data.

Although proposals submitted for this competition can address any aspect of survey or statistical methodology, priority is given to basic research proposals that have broad implications for the field in general and the greatest potential for creating fundamental knowledge of value for the Federal statistical system. Because methodological problems often require knowledge and expertise from multiple disciplines, this funding opportunity encourages collaborations among the relevant sciences, including the social, behavioral, economic, statistical, and computer sciences. Since its inception in FY 1999, the program has funded over 50 research projects.

Updating Samples for Demographic Surveys Across Agencies

Following each decennial census, the Demographic Surveys Sample Redesign program provides new, updated, and coordinated samples for major ongoing household surveys. In close collaboration with other Federal statistical agencies, the Census Bureau (Census) selects new samples to reflect shifts in the location and characteristics of people based on the most recent information about the population.

Recently, Census began to shift the next sample redesign toward using continually updated Master Address File and American Community Survey data to select household survey samples, rather than relying on the once-a-decade availability of decennial census data. In FY 2014, the Demographic Surveys Sample Redesign program will select updated samples. The Current Population Survey (BLS) and the Survey of Income and Program Participation (Census) will begin interviewing using the new sample the same year. The Current Expenditure Surveys (BLS) and the American Housing Survey (HUD) will begin interviewing in FY 2015 with updated samples, with the National Health Interview Survey (NCHS) following in FY 2016. Because of the availability of more frequently updated data, the Demographic Surveys Sample Redesign program can then transition to a more flexible program that will more effectively meet the information needs of the Federal government.

Annual Current Population Survey Supplement

The Current Population Survey (CPS) is a monthly household survey that the Census Bureau (Census) conducts for BLS; it provides a comprehensive body of information on the employment and unemployment experience of the Nation’s population, classified by age, sex, race, Hispanic origin, and a variety of other characteristics. The CPS is a primary source of data on employment status, characteristics of the labor force, and emerging trends and changes in the employment and unemployment status among various groups of workers. The current collection allows BLS to produce high quality estimates; however, BLS has no permanent funding for CPS supplements, and BLS is not able to explore topical labor market issues, such as contingent work, without support for supplements. Funding from other agencies and their particular data needs have driven the questionnaire content of CPS supplements, and as a result, the demand for data on labor force trends is not being met fully.

BLS is proposing to meet this demand by funding a CPS supplement, beginning with a Contingent Work Supplement (CWS) in FY 2015, and every other year thereafter. The CWS would provide important information on contingent work and alternative work arrangements. During years without a CWS supplement, BLS would conduct a supplement on another topic relevant to its mission, such as work schedules, job training, and Internet job search. For example, a Work Schedules Supplement (WSS) would provide additional information on workplace flexibility and work-family balance by capturing data on the availability of flexible work schedules, shift work, work at home, and other related topics to allow analysts to study flexible working arrangements by occupation, age, gender, and race. These work schedule data also would help analysts study the possible impact of flexible work arrangements on earnings. With this initiative, BLS would have resources to develop new supplements on emerging topics such as entrepreneurship. This information would allow data users and decision-makers to develop a more fundamental understanding of developments in the labor market.

In FY 2014, BLS will work with Census to update specifications for the CWS and WSS.

Improving Foreign Trade Statistics

Official U.S. import and export statistics record the physical movement of merchandise between the U.S. and foreign countries. Foreign trade statistics are used to develop the merchandise trade figures in balance of payments accounts, to appraise and analyze major movements and trends (commodity and geographic) in international trade, to plan and evaluate such programs as export expansion and agricultural development and assistance programs, and to measure the impact of tariff and trade concessions under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade and the Generalized System of Preferences. Foreign trade data are also used extensively as the statistical base to implement and analyze operations under various other international agreements, such as the North American Free Trade Agreement.

Over the last few years, the Foreign Trade Division (FTD) of the Census Bureau has implemented improvements to the programs that process transaction level foreign trade data. These enhancements now allow FTD to process thousands of corrections per year that were previously received too late to be incorporated and thus never published. With the release of the June 2013 U.S. International Trade in Goods and Services - Annual Revision, the FTD modified an outmoded revision policy by providing three years of revised detail data for the first time. With this change, new data products are available to both the public and private sectors, leading to more comprehensive economic analyses.

Beginning with the U.S. International Trade in Goods and Services (FT-900) release for January 2014, the FTD plans to begin publishing seasonally adjusted trade value by geographic area. The FTD currently publishes tables in the FT-900 release that include trade value by country, but none are adjusted for seasonality. The implementation of geographic seasonal adjustments will improve the relevance and usefulness of published trade statistics by providing data users with an ability to assess underlying patterns in time series value data for selected countries and world areas.

With ongoing progress toward implementation of the International Trade Data System (ITDS), the FTD plans to realize additional improvements in foreign trade statistics in the near future. The implementation of the Automated Export Manifest for all modes of transportation will be linked to the Automated Export System. The ability to check responses and provide instant feedback to the data supplier provided by electronic filing will enhance the accuracy of the foreign trade information accepted by the system as well as improve the quality of transportation statistics. Additional electronic filing of remaining import entry summaries will also reduce the costs associated with entering and correcting information reported on paper forms.

 

 

APPENDIX A. Principal Statistical Agency Staffing Levels

This report historically has focused on the budgetary resources Federal agencies devote to statistical activities. To add some perspective, this appendix provides information on the staffing levels of the principal statistical agencies.

Staffs engaged in statistical activities span a range of professional backgrounds. In addition to statisticians and mathematical statisticians, professionals such as economists and research scientists also engage in significant statistical work. For each agency listed below, we note the total number of staff or appointments, as well as the number of full-time permanent staff, the number of other than full-time permanent staff, and the combined number of statisticians and mathematical statisticians, economists, and research scientists.

The staffing list below is not exhaustive those regularly engaged in statistical activities. For example, some principal statistical agencies employ other subject matter experts, such as psychologists and educational specialists, in this capacity. Rather, the occupations listed here are those most common across principal statistical agencies.

Principal Statistical Agency	FY 2012	FY 2013	FY 2014
Bureau of Economic Analysis
Total	507	507	517
Full-time permanent	490	490	500
Other than full-time permanent	17	17	17
Statisticians	12	12	12
Economists	271	265	275
Research Scientists	0	0	0
Bureau of Justice Statistics
Total	53	43	46
Full-time permanent	51	42	45
Other than full-time permanent	2	1	1
Statisticians	33	26	30
Economists	0	0	0
Research Scientists	0	0	0
Bureau of Labor Statistics
Total	2,461	2,412	2,617
Full-time permanent	2,044	1,970	2,170
Other than full-time permanent	417	442	447
Statisticians	143	143	147
Economists	1,192	1,182	1,294
Research Scientists	9	6	8
Bureau of Transportation Statistics
Total	69	70	70
Full-time permanent	68	69	69
Other than full-time permanent	1	1	1
Statisticians	15	15	15
Economists	0	0	0
Research Scientists	3	4	4
Census Bureau
Total	13,285	14,533	13,823
Full-time permanent	6,017	7,040	6,505
Other than full-time permanent	7,268	7,493	7,318
Statisticians	2,213	2,270	2,197
Economists	76	64	87
Research Scientists	0	0	0
Economic Research Service
Total	375	386	386
Full-time permanent	359	375	375
Other than full-time permanent	16	11	11
Statisticians	1	1	1
Economists	221	208	208
Research Scientists	10	8	8
Energy Information Administration
Total	355	366	374
Full-time permanent	343	358	366
Other than full-time permanent	12	8	8
Statisticians	78	75	77
Economists	71	77	78
Research Scientists	58	59	60
National Agriculture Statistics Service
Total	1,242	1,571	1,380
Full-time permanent	1,052	1,210	1,190
Other than full-time permanent	190	361	190
Statisticians	736	736	736
Economists	0	0	0
Research Scientists	2	1	1
National Center for Education Statistics
Total	108	100	116
Full-time permanent	87	89	102
Other than full-time permanent	21	11	14
Statisticians	70	74	76
Economists	1	1	1
Research Scientists	0	0	0
National Center for Health Statistics
Total	508	530	550
Full-time permanent	449	490	495
Other than full-time permanent	55	81	81
Statisticians	145	160	164
Economist	1	3	5
Research Scientists	87	94	97
National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics
Total	47	49	49
Full-time permanent	45	43	48
Other than full-time permanent	2	1	1
Statisticians	23	22	25
Economists	5	6	6
Research Scientists	9	7	9
Office of Research, Evaluation, and Statistics
Total	86	80	73
Full-time permanent	83	78	72
Other than full-time permanent	3	2	1
Statisticians	8	6	3
Economists	19	20	19
Research Scientists	15	19	19
Statistics of Income
Total	161	140	138
Full-time permanent	154	135	133
Other than full-time permanent	7	5	5
Statisticians	30	30	30
Economists	45	43	41
Research Scientists	0	0	0

 

APPENDIX B. Statistical Program Topic Coverage by Department

Department	Health & Safety		Social & Demographic					Natural Resources, Energy & Environment			Economic
	Health	Safety	Crime and Justice	Current Demographic	Education	Periodic Demographic	Transportation	Energy and Minerals	Environment	Soil, Forest, Fish, Wildlife, and Public Lands	Agriculture	Current Economic	Income	Labor	National Accounts	Periodic Economic
USDA				2						2	6			1
DOC				1		1			1	2		5			1	1
DOD	1			1			1					1
ED	1				10
DOE	1							1
HHS	37			2
DHS		2	1	2								1
HUD												3
DOI								3	1	5
DOJ			6
DOL		3												5
State	1
DOT							10
Treasury													1
VA	1			5
Other Agencies1	1	1	1	6	3				2			2		1
TOTAL	43	6	8	19	13	1	11	4	4	9	6	12	1	7	1	1
1 See Table 1 for list of agencies and programs that fall under Other Agencies.

 

 

APPENDIX C. Glossary of Department and Agency Abbreviations

Acronym	Full Name	Department
ACE	Army Corps of Engineers	Defense
ACF	Administration for Children and Families	HHS
ACL	Administration for Community Living	HHS
AHRQ	Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality	HHS
ARS	Agricultural Research Service	USDA
ATSDR	Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry	HHS
BBG	Broadcasting Board of Governors	Other
BEA	Bureau of Economic Analysis	Commerce
BJS	Bureau of Justice Statistics	Justice
BLM	Bureau of Land Management	Interior
BLS	Bureau of Labor Statistics	Labor
BOEM	Bureau of Ocean Energy Management	Interior
BoP	Bureau of Prisons	Justice
BoR	Bureau of Reclamation	Interior
BTS	Bureau of Transportation Statistics	Transportation
BVA	Board of Veterans’ Appeals	VA
CBP	Bureau of Customs and Border Protection	DHS
CDC	Centers for Disease Control and Prevention	HHS
Census	Census Bureau	Commerce
CG	Coast Guard	DHS
CIS	Citizenship and Immigration Services	DHS
CMS	Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services	HHS
Corps	Army Corps of Engineers	Defense
CPSC	Consumer Product Safety Commission	Other
DEA	Drug Enforcement Administration	Justice
DMDC	Defense Manpower Data Center	Defense
DOC	Department of Commerce	Not applicable
DOD	Department of Defense	Not applicable
DOE	Department of Energy	Not applicable
DOI	Department of Interior	Not applicable
DOJ	Department of Justice	Not applicable
DOL	Department of Labor	Not applicable
DOT	Department of Transportation	Not applicable
ED	Department of Education	Not applicable
EEOC	Equal Employment Opportunity Commission	Other
EIA	Energy Information Administration	Energy
EOP	Executive Office of the President	Not applicable
EPA	Environmental Protection Agency	Other
ERS	Economic Research Service	USDA
ESA	Economics and Statistics Administration	Commerce
ETA	Employment and Training Administration	Labor
FAA	Federal Aviation Administration	Transportation
FAS	Foreign Agricultural Service	USDA
FBI	Federal Bureau of Investigation	Justice
FEMA	Federal Emergency Management Agency	DHS
FHWA	Federal Highway Administration	Transportation
FMCSA	Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration	Transportation
FNS	Food and Nutrition Service	USDA
FRA	Federal Railroad Administration	Transportation
FS	Forest Service	USDA
FSA	Federal Student Aid	Education
FTA	Federal Transit Administration	Transportation
FWS	Fish and Wildlife Service	Interior
GS	Geological Survey	Interior
HHS	Department of Health and Human Services	Not applicable
Housing	Office of the Assistant Secretary for Housing	HUD
HRSA	Health Resources and Services Administration	HHS
HSS	Office of Health, Safety and Security	Energy
HUD	Department of Housing and Urban Development	Not applicable
IES	Institute of Education Sciences	Education
IHS	Indian Health Service	HHS
IMLS	Institute of Museum and Library Services	Other
IRS	Internal Revenue Service	Treasury
ITA	International Trade Administration	Commerce
MARAD	Maritime Administration	Transportation
MSHA	Mine Safety and Health Administration	Labor
NASA	National Aeronautics and Space Administration	Other
NASS	National Agricultural Statistics Service	USDA
NCA	National Cemetery Administration	VA
NCBDDD	National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities	HHS
NCCAM	National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine	HHS
NCCDPHP	National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion	HHS
NCEE	National Center for Education Evaluation	Education
NCEH	National Center for Environmental Health	HHS
NCES	National Center for Education Statistics	Education
NCEZID	National Center for Emerging Zoonotic and Infectious Diseases	HHS
NCHHSTP	National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, Sexually Transmitted Disease, and Tuberculosis Prevention	HHS
NCHS	National Center for Health Statistics	HHS
NCI	National Cancer Institute	HHS
NCIPC	National Center for Injury Prevention and Control	HHS
NCIRD	National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases	HHS
NCSES	National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics	Other
NCVAS	National Center for Veterans Analysis and Statistics	VA
NEI	National Eye Institute	HHS
NESDIS	National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service	Commerce
NHGRI	National Human Genome Research Institute	HHS
NHLBI	National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute	HHS
NHTSA	National Highway Traffic Safety Administration	Transportation
NIA	National Institute on Aging	HHS
NIAAA	National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism	HHS
NIAID	National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases	HHS
NIBIB	National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering	HHS
NICHD	National Institute of Child Health and Human Development	HHS
NIDA	National Institute on Drug Abuse	HHS
NIDCD	National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders	HHS
NIDCR	National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research	HHS
NIDDK	National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases	HHS
NIEHS	National Institute on Environmental Health Sciences	HHS
NIH	National Institutes of Health	HHS
NIJ	National Institute of Justice	Justice
NIMH	National Institute of Mental Health	HHS
NIOSH	National Institute of Occupational Safety	HHS
NIST	National Institute of Standards and Technology	Commerce
NMFS	National Marine Fisheries Service	Commerce
NOAA	National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration	Commerce
NPS	National Park Service	Interior
NRCS	Natural Resources Conservation Service	USDA
NSF	National Science Foundation	Other
OASPE	Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation	HHS
OCR	Office for Civil Rights	Education
OD	Office of the Director, NIH	HHS
OESE	Office of Elementary and Secondary Education	Education
OFCCP	Office of Federal Contract Compliance	Labor
OGAC	Office of the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator	State
OII	Office of Innovation and Improvement	Education
OIS	Office of Immigration Statistics	DHS
OJJDP	Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention	Justice
OMB	Office of Management and Budget	EOP
ONDCP	Office of National Drug Control Policy	EOP
ONRR	Office of Natural Resources Revenue	Interior
OPA	Office of Population Affairs	HHS
OPDR	Office of Program Development and Research, SSA	Other
OPE	Office of Postsecondary Education	Education
OPEPD	Office of Planning, Evaluation, and Policy Development	Education
OPP	Office of Policy and Planning	VA
ORES	Office of Research, Evaluation, and Statistics, SSA	Other
ORP	Office of Retirement Policy, SSA	Other
OSERS	Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services	Education
OSHA	Occupational Safety and Health Administration	Labor
OST	Office of the Secretary of Transportation	Transportation
OVAE	Office of Vocational and Adult Education	Education
PD&R	Office of the Assistant Secretary for Policy Development and Research	HUD
PHMSA	Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration	Transportation
PHSS	Public Health Scientific Services	HHS
PIH	Office of Public and Indian Housing	HUD
PTO	Patent and Trademark Office	Commerce
RMA	Risk Management Agency	USDA
SAMHSA	Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration	HHS
SBA	Small Business Administration	Other
SOI	Statistics of Income Division	Treasury
SSA	Social Security Administration	Other
TMA	TRICARE Management Activity	DHS
USAID	U.S. Agency for International Development	Other
USDA	U.S. Department of Agriculture	Not applicable
VA	Department of Veterans Affairs	Not applicable
VBA	Veterans Benefits Administration	VA
VHA	Veterans Health Administration	VA
WAOB	World Agricultural Outlook Board	USDA
WHD	Wage and Hour Division	Labor