50 Years of the Committee on National Statistics: Impacts and Vision for the Future

• Activity Number: 407 - 50 Years of the Committee on National Statistics: Impacts and Vision for the Future
• Type: Invited
• Date/Time: Wednesday, August 10, 2022 : 10:30 AM to 12:20 PM
• Sponsor: Government Statistics Section
• Author(s): Brian Harris-Kojetin* and Constance Citro* and Robert Groves* and Emilda Rivers* and Cynthia Clark*
• Companies: National Academies of Science and National Academy of Sciences and Georgetown University and National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics and National Agricultural Statistics Service (retired)
• Keywords: Federal statistics; innovation; surveys; alternative data sources; administrative records

Abstract

The Committee on National Statistics (CNSTAT) was established in 1972 at the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to provide an independent review of federal statistical activities. The mission of CNSTAT is to provide advice to the federal government and the nation grounded in the current best scientific knowledge and practice that will lead to improved statistical methods and information upon which to base public policy. CNSTAT seeks to advance the quality of statistical information, contribute to the statistical policies and coordinating activities of the federal government, and help provide a forward-looking vision for the federal statistical system and national statistics more broadly in service of the public good. This session will highlight major contributions of CNSTAT during the past 50 years. It will also offer a vision for CNSTAT and for national statistics going forward when innovation is required to meet the challenges of providing timely, accurate data on pandemics, climate change, inequality, and other critical issues for the nation.