Household surveys, one of the main innovations in social science research of the last century, are threatened by declining accuracy due to reduced cooperation of respondents. While many indicators of survey quality have steadily declined in recent decades, the literature has largely emphasized rising nonresponse rates rather than other potentially more important dimensions to the […]
Continue ReadingThe US Department of Commerce has long been in the business of data collection, processing and dissemination that touches almost every facet of American life. A natural evolutionary step for the Department is to ensure that the analytical and technologist public is able to maximally benefit from open data, whether it is to strengthen the economy or to better study and understand society. To that end, the Commerce Data Service (CDS), a new data-centric startup team within the Office of the Secretary, has launched the Commerce Usability Project.
Continue ReadingThe Livability Index is a groundbreaking tool of the AARP Public Policy Institute (PPI) that scores every neighborhood and community in the United States for the services and amenities that affect people’s lives the most. Shannon Guzman, Policy Research Senior Analyst from PPI will discuss the Livability Index and give a brief overview of AARP’s work in livable communities, the development of the tool and give a demo of the new tool.
Continue ReadingThe FSCPP recently completed a survey of state demographers regarding their population projections. In this webinar the officers of the FSCPP will present information about state projections including why they are needed, the geographic areas covered, methods and inputs used, types of data that are produced, and how the projections are distributed. The webinar will include case studies of challenges and uses of state population projections, and will conclude with a demonstration of ways state population projection data and supporting information can be accessed.
Continue ReadingThe Census Transportation Planning Products (CTPP) program is an umbrella program of data products, custom tabulations, training, technical assistance, and research for the transportation community. This presentation covers a bit of history, a bit of data nuance and the current direction of the CTPP.
Continue ReadingIn commemoration of World Statistics Day, Mark Elbert of the Energy Information Administration (EIA) and Jay Meisenheimer of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) will talk about the exciting and innovative ways their agencies are making their data available to the public to make it more accessible, insightful, and appealing.
Continue ReadingThe Digital Accountability and Transparency Act of 2014 (DATA Act) promises to transform the U.S. government’s finances by replacing disconnected documents with standardized and searchable data. Learn how the DATA Act is creating a new era in spending transparency for the United States – if some significant challenges are overcome.
Continue ReadingThe Pew Charitable Trusts’ fiscal federalism initiative has pulled together several data sources to produce a 50-state analysis of federal spending, filling in the significant data gap left when the U.S. Census Bureau discontinued the Consolidated Federal Funds Report in 2012. This webinar will draw on the new report to show how both the total amount and mix of federal spending on salaries, contracts, grants and benefits payments to individuals vary widely from state to state.
Continue ReadingThe Census Bureau is planning to announce the preliminary 2020 Census design decision in September 2015. This presentation will cover the four key design areas – reengineering address canvassing, optimizing self response, utilizing administrative records, and reengineering field operations. The presentation will outline the related design options and/or components and the questions that need to […]
Continue ReadingJoin us for a discussion oft he new DATA Act, heralded as the nation’s first open data law.
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