The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self-perpetuating society of distinguished scholars engaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the furtherance of science and technology and to their use for the general welfare. Upon the authority of the charter granted to it by the Congress in 1863, the Academy has a mandate that requires it to advise the federal government on scientific and technical matters. Dr. Bruce M. Alberts is president of the National Academy of Sciences.

The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964, under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences, as a parallel organization of outstanding engineers. It is autonomous in its administration and in the selection of its members, sharing with the National Academy of Sciences the responsibility for advising the federal government. The National Academy of Engineering also sponsors engineering programs aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and recognizes the superior achievements of engineers. Dr. Robert M. White is president of the National Academy of Engineering.

The Institute of Medicine was established in 1970 by the National Academy of Sciences to secure the services of eminent members of appropriate professions in the examination of policy matters pertaining to the health of the public. The Institute acts under the responsibility given to the National Academy of Sciences by its congressional charter to be an adviser to the federal government and, upon its own initiative, to identify issues of medical care, research, and education. Dr. Kenneth I. Shine is president of the Institute of Medicine.

The National Research Council was organized by the National Academy of Sciences in 1916 to associate the broad community of science and technology with the Academy's purposes of furthering knowledge and advising the federal government. Functioning in accordance with general policies determined by the Academy, the Council has become the principal operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering in providing services to the government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. The Council is administered jointly by both Academies and the Institute of Medicine. Dr. Bruce M. Alberts and Dr. Robert M. White are chairman and vice chairman, respectively, of the National Research Council.

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Founded in 1923, the Social Science Research Council is an autonomous, nongovernmental, not-for-profit organization composed of social scientists from all over the world. The Council's primary purpose is to advance the quality, value, and effectiveness of social science research. It seeks to encourage scholars in separate disciplines—e.g., anthropologists, psychologists, sociologists, statisticians, and others—to work together on important topical, conceptual, and methodological issues that can benefit from interdisciplinary collaboration. Natural scientists, geographers, linguists, and scholars in the humanities also participate in many of the Council's activities. The Council's work is carried out through a wide variety of workshops and conferences, fellowships and grants, summer training institutes, research consortia, scholarly exchanges, and publications.

The Panel on Confidentiality and Data Access is grateful to the many organizations and individuals who contributed to its work.

Support for the study was provided by the National Science Foundation, the Bureau of the Census of the U.S. Department of Commerce, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor, the Internal Revenue Service Statistics of Income Division of the U.S. Department of Treasury, the National Institute on Aging of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the National Center for Education Statistics of the U.S. Department of Education, and, through their general contributions to the work of the Committee on National Statistics, several other federal agencies. We also thank the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration of the U.S. Department of Tansportation for granting time, through the Intergovernmental Personnel Act, for Virginia A. de Wolf to serve as the panel's study director.

We thank the many federal government officials who gave generously of their time to attend panel meetings, provide documentation necessary for the panel's work, and answer our many questions: they provided an invaluable sense of the structure and needs of the federal statistical system. We also appreciate the help of researchers, privacy advocates, and others who provided

useful insights into nongovernment perspectives on data confidentiality and accessibility issues.

We are grateful to the Committee on National Statistics (CNSTAT) and the Social Science Research Council (SSRC) for their efforts in developing and collaborating on this study. Without the guidance and encouragement of CNSTAT director Miron Straf, SSRC president David Featherman, and former SSRC staff associate Robert Pearson, the work of this panel would not have been possible. We also thank David Szanton and Wlodzimierz Okrasa, who ably maintained SSRC's active role in the study after the departure of Robert Pearson.

We thank the participants and chairs of two workshops that preceded the panel's formation for their contribution to our work. We thank Richard Suzman and other staff of the National Institute on Aging, as well as staff of the Census Bureau and the National Center for Health Statistics for their support of the Workshop on the Longitudinal Retirement History, held in September 1987. We thank Charles Dickens, former head of the Surveys and Analysis Section, and other staff of the National Science Foundation for their support of the Workshop on Confidentiality of and Access to Doctorate Records, held in November 1988. We also thank the U.S. Department of Education, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Institutes of Health of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Department of Energy, the Office of Scientific and Engineering Personnel of the National Research Council, and their staffs for their cooperation in making possible the Workshop on Confidentiality of and Access to Doctorate Records. Both of the workshops identified important issues for the panel.

We also thank the participants and chair of the Workshop on Confidentiality of and Access to National Center for Education Statistics Data, and we thank the National Center for Education Statistics for its support of the workshop. We thank the participants of the Conference on Disclosure Limitation Approaches and Data Access. Both of these panel sponsored activities outlined issues for the panel's consideration.

Jean Shirhall helped to strengthen the presentation of our report through her skillful editing; we thank her for her efforts. We are indebted to Eugenia Grohman, associate director for reports, Commission on Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education, for her role in guiding our report through the review and publication process.

We especially thank the panel's staff. They not only functioned

as a harmonious team in drawing out the best in the panel members, but also contributed individually in noteworthy ways. Virginia A. de Wolf, study director, was especially helpful in contributing her organizational talents and energies to the conference, meetings, and workshop that the panel sponsored. Thomas B. Jabine, consultant, contributed his expository skill, experience with statistical agencies, and uncommon wisdom. Robert H. Mugge, consultant, helped with the analysis of background materials submitted by statistical agencies and prepared a useful background paper on informed consent and notification statements used by federal statistical agencies. Michele L. Conrad, senior project assistant, the panel's communication center, ensured that the project functioned both efficiently and effectively.

Finally, I thank the panel members, who gave generously of their time and wisdom to the deliberations of the panel and the production of this report. It has been rewarding to work with such a distinguished group of people.

George T. Duncan, Chair

Panel on Confidentiality and Data Access