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6 Redesigning the Residential Energy Consumption Survey
Pages 73-86

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From page 73...
... . Although the RECS is methodologically a more straightforward survey than the Commercial Buildings Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS)
From page 74...
... was able to release the data from the 2009 RECS much faster than in previous years, in part by releasing a preliminary public-use microdata file -- with a limited number of variables -- in October 2011. Rotating Panel Design for the RECS Just as with the CBECS, a rotating sample design would be a suitable option for addressing data users' need for quicker and more frequent access to data from the RECS.
From page 75...
... The panel understands the importance of square footage data in statistical models, but it remains unconvinced that it would not be feasible to collect adequate information from the respondents. The CBECS already relies on self-reported data on square footage, and with thorough testing it should be possible to develop a series of questions that can produce reliable information on square footage through a web survey as well.
From page 76...
... . o The respondent-estimated square footage is more than twice or less than half of calculated square footage.
From page 77...
... The items that most often need imputing include respondent-estimated square footage, measured square footage, the age of the home, and household income. While the editing procedures developed by EIA undoubtedly enhance the quality of the data, revisions to the RECS editing procedures will have to sacrifice some of these rules and simplify the overall process, to facilitate faster processing of the data.
From page 78...
... Insufficient sample sizes also hinder the ability of researchers to conduct multivariate analysis, making it difficult, for example, to evaluate changes resulting from the adoption of new technologies and energy efficiency measures. Recommendation RECS-5: As part of its efforts to address the needs of data users, EIA should make it a priority to identify opportunities for increasing the sample size in order to enable the release of more of the RECS data that are currently being collected.
From page 79...
... • nformation about the efficiency ratings of end use equipment (for I example, energy efficiency ratio, seasonal energy efficiency ratio, annual fuel utilization efficiency ratings)
From page 80...
... As mentioned previously, EIA's consumption survey portfolio has not included a transportation survey since the 1990s, when the Residential Transportation Energy Consumption Survey was discontinued. In 2009, a small section of transportation-related questions was added to the RECS; the decision to do so was based in part on the argument that household vehicles are a part of household energy consumption.
From page 81...
... A number of researchers would be interested in whole building energy consumption and additional details about these buildings, such as the number of floors above ground, the number of units, the percent of the building devoted to common space, whether there are central or in-unit laundry facilities, the configuration of utility meters, whether the tenant or owner pays for the utilities, and whether the rent paid is "affordable" or "marketrate." Collecting this type of information would be particularly challenging in the case of buildings that are part residential and part commercial. EIA will have to decide if and how to collect the commercial component of the consumption in these types of buildings and perhaps develop a modeling approach to partition the residential and commercial components.
From page 82...
... Recommendation RECS-11: To accommodate data user needs for more detailed information, EIA should evaluate the possibility of ad ministering a short-form and a long-form RECS questionnaire. REVISIONS TO THE RECS SAMPLE DESIGN AND DATA COLLECTION PROCEDURES In this section, we discuss additional potential changes to update the RECS, including revisions focused on increasing the efficiency of the data collection, and making the survey more useful to researchers and policy makers.
From page 83...
... file, which contains all delivery point addresses serviced by the postal service, with the exception of general delivery. Although researchers do not have direct access to the USPS delivery sequence file, for the sake of simplicity we will refer to lists based on this file as DSF.
From page 84...
... Data from Energy Suppliers EIA should evaluate whether working more closely with energy suppliers to obtain RECS data would be feasible to increase data collection efficiency and reduce the burden on respondents in the RECS sample. Specifically, collecting energy consumption and cost data from energy suppliers prior to the housing unit interview should be explored.
From page 85...
... This, combined with the use of the word "standard" and the placement of the answer option first on the list could lead to overreporting of these types of devices. The survey research literature indicates that respondents attribute more meaning to the range and ordering of answer options provided than researchers would prefer (Schwarz, 1996)
From page 86...
... EIA should also work with the data collection contractor to schedule periodic interviewer debriefings in order to obtain feedback about the fieldwork. Recommendation RECS-17: Interviewer debriefings should become an integral part of the RECS data collection process in order to iden tify problems with the questionnaires and procedures and to serve as a source of ideas for increased efficiencies.


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