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Abstract:
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The Federal Statistical Research Data Centers (FSRDCs) are positioned to play an important role in facilitating access to non-public data with enormous potential value for evidence-based policymaking. With twenty years of experience in which thousands of researchers have accessed and analyzed survey and administrative data from multiple statistical agencies, the FSRDC network has developed bridges between the research and statistical communities to support the production of the necessary evidence-base. The challenge for transparency and reproducibility has been the physical, social, and legal barriers that have created a shroud of mystery around research using restricted data. With leadership from the Office of the Chief Statistician, the Michigan FSRDC, and ICPSR, we have launched a pilot project to expand access to these data beyond the thirty physical research data centers located around the country. This pilot will leverage the social capital and legal infrastructure of the existing RDCs to safely and efficiently democratize access by providing secure, virtual access to FSRDC data from participating statistical agencies. We will present the first results of the pilot.
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