Principles and Practices for a Federal Statistical Agency Fifth Edition (2013) / Chapter Skim
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Part I: Principles and Practices for a Federal Statistical Agency
Part I: Principles and Practices for a Federal Statistical Agency
Pages 9-24
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From page 9... ...
Part I: Principles and Practices for a Federal Statistical Agency Definition of a Federal Statistical Agency Establishment of a Federal Statistical Agency Principles for a Federal Statistical Agency • Relevance to Policy Issues • Credibility Among Data Users • Trust Among Data Providers • I ndependence from Political and Other Undue External Influence Practices for a Federal Statistical Agency • A Clearly Defined and Well-Accepted Mission • Necessary Authority to Protect Independence • Continual Development of More Useful Data • O penness About Sources and Limitations of the Data Provided • Wide Dissemination of Data • Cooperation with Data Users • Respect for the Privacy and Autonomy of Data Providers • Protection of the Confidentiality of Data Providers' Information • C ommitment to Quality and Professional Standards of Practice • An Active Research Program • Professional Advancement of Staff • A Strong Internal and External Evaluation Program • Coordination and Collaboration with Other Statistical Agencies 9
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From page 10... ...
It includes methodological research to improve the quality and usefulness of data. It also includes substantive analysis -- for example, developing indicators from one or more data series, developing models to produce estimates, making projections, interpreting data, and explaining differences among statistics obtained by different methods, such as surveys and administrative records.
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Federal statistical agencies are established to be a credible source of relevant, accurate, and timely statistics in one or more subject areas that are available to the public and policy makers. "Relevant statistics" are statistics that measure things that matter to policy making, program implementation, monitoring, and evaluation, and public understanding.
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system nor compare it with other models for organizing government statistics. It discusses the critical importance of ensuring that federal statistical agencies coordinate and collaborate with each other and with other agencies on a range of activities, describes the coordinating role of the U.S.
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Such respect results not only from an agency's production of data that merit acceptance as relevant, accurate, timely, and free from political and other undue external influence, but also from many aspects of an agency's policies and practices. Key among these are wide dissemination of data on an equal basis to all users; openness about the sources and processes used to produce data and the limitations of the data; commitment to quality and professional practice; a strong internal and external evaluation program to assess and improve an agency's data systems; a willingness to understand and strive to meet user needs, even though users may not clearly articulate their needs; and a posture of respect and trust in the users of an agency's data.
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Principle 4: Independence from Political and Other Undue External Influence A federal statistical agency must be independent from political and other undue external influence in developing, producing, and disseminating statistics. To fulfill its mission to provide objective, useful, accurate, and timely information, a statistical agency must not only be distinct from those parts of a department that carry out administrative, regulatory, law enforcement, or policy-making activities, but it also must have a widely acknowledged position of independence from political and other undue external influences and the necessary authority to protect independence.3 It must be able to execute its mission without being subject to pressures to advance a political agenda.
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From page 15... ...
With this prerequisite, effective operation involves a wide range of practices: necessary authority to protect independence, continual development of more useful data, openness about sources and limitations of the data provided, wide dissemination with ample documentation of data, cooperation with data users, respect for privacy and autonomy of data providers, protection of confidentiality of providers' information, commitment to quality and professional standards of practice, an active research program, professional advancement of staff, a strong internal and external evaluation program, and coordination and collaboration with other statistical agencies. Practice 1: A Clearly Defined and Well-Accepted Mission An agency's mission should include responsibility for all elements of its programs for providing statistical information -- determining sources of data, measurement methods, efficient methods of data collection and processing, and appropriate methods of analysis -- and ensuring the public availability not only of the data, but also of documentation and explanation of the methods used to obtain and process the data and their quality.
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, or policies and practices that are communicated by agency leadership to political appointees.4 An agency's independence is enhanced by adhering to fixed schedules that are announced in advance for the public release of important statistical indicators to prevent even the appearance of manipulation of release dates for political purposes.5 Independence is also fostered by an agency's maintaining a clear distinction between statistical information and policy interpretations of such information by executive branch officials and having dissemination policies that foster regular, frequent release of statistical findings and any data limitations to the public through the traditional media, the Internet, and other appropriate means. To bolster public credibility with regard to an agency's independence, an agency's website should include a clear description of the procedures it follows to protect against undue external influence in such matters as data dissemination.
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For example, an Internet source might provide the basis for timely information, which is later revised on the basis of data from a survey or administrative records, or it might provide the basis for an additional indicator that is not otherwise readily available. Care must always be taken to evaluate a source of data before deciding to use it, perhaps initially on an experimental basis, and to fully explain the source and its limitations.
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Practice 4: Openness About Sources and Limitations of the Data Provided A statistical agency should be open about the strengths and limitations of its data, taking as much care to understand and explain how its statistics may fall short of accuracy as it does to produce accurate data. Data releases from a statistical program should be accompanied by a full description of the purpose of the program; the methods and assumptions used for data collection, processing, and reporting; what is known and not known about the quality and relevance of the data; sufficient information for estimating variability in the data; appropriate methods for analysis that take account of variability and other sources of error; and the results of research on the methods and data.
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• For research and other statistical purposes, an agency should provide access to relevant information that is not publicly available through restricted access modes that protect confidentiality. Such modes include protected research data centers, remote monitored online access systems, and licensing of datasets to individual researchers.
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Reaching out to policy makers and other key data users when new data sources or methods are in a developmental stage can help in identifying and responding to users' concerns and earning their acceptance of the resulting data products. Practice 7: Respect for the Privacy and Autonomy of Data Providers To maintain a relationship of respect and trust with survey participants and other data providers, a statistical agency should respect their privacy and minimize the burden imposed on them.
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Practice 9: Commitment to Quality and Professional Standards of Practice A statistical agency should: • keep abreast of and use modern statistical theory and sound statistical practice in all technical work; • document concepts, definitions, data collection methodologies, and measures of uncertainty and discuss possible sources of error in reports and other data releases to the public; • develop strong staff expertise in the disciplines relevant to its mission, in the theory and practice of statistics, and in data collection, processing, analysis, and dissemination techniques; • develop an understanding of the validity and accuracy of its data and convey the resulting measures of quality to users in ways that are comprehensible to nonexperts; • maintain quality assurance programs to improve data quality and to improve the processes of compiling, editing, and analyzing data; and • develop a strong and continuous relationship with appropriate professional organizations in the fields of statistics and relevant subject-matter areas.
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Practice 11: Professional Advancement of Staff A statistical agency should recruit, develop, and support professional staff who are committed to the highest standards of quality work, professional practice, and professional ethics. To develop and maintain a high- caliber staff, a statistical agency must recruit qualified people with relevant skills for efficient and effective operations, including analysts in fields relevant to its mission (e.g., demographers, economists)
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Such standards are the foundation of an agency's credibility as a source of relevant, accurate, and timely information obtained through fair treatment of data providers and data users. Practice 12: A Strong Internal and External Evaluation Program Statistical agencies should have regular, ongoing programs of evaluation for major statistical programs and program components and for their overall portfolio of programs.
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Such collaborative activities as integrating data compiled by different statistical agencies, standardizing concepts and measures, sharing data among agencies, and identifying ways to reduce unneeded duplication invariably require effort to overcome differences in agency missions and operations. Yet with constrained budgets and increasing demand for more relevant, accurate, and timely statistical information, the importance of proactive collaboration and coordination among statistical agencies cannot be overstated.
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