2014 Policy Seminar
Official Statistics in a Changing Society – Making Choices and Balancing Tradeoffs
Held December 15 - 16, 2014
Washington Convention Center
To view presentations, select and click the presentation titles.
Keynote Speech
Enrico Giovannini
Professor of Economic Statistics, University of Rome
Session 1: Hard Choices: Techniques And Tradeoffs When Surveying Hard-To-Reach (H2R) Populations
(Organizers: Nancy Bates, Census; Gordon Willis, NIH; Barry Graubard, NCI; Jennifer Madans, NCHS)
Chair: John Thompson, Director, U.S. Bureau of the Census
Roger Tourangeau, Vice President, WESTAT
Irene Glasser, Anthropology Department, Brown University
Sandra H. Berry, Senior Director Survey Research Group, RAND
Discussant: Frank Vitrano, Chief, Office of Survey and Census Analytics, U.S. Census Bureau
Session 2: Measuring and Communicating the Value of Federal Statistics
(Organizers: Jeri Mulrow, NCSES; John Eltinge, BLS; Kitty Smith, COPAFS)
Chair: Brian Moyer, Director, Bureau of Economic Analysis
The Use of Federal Statistics in Policy-Laden Contexts
Bruce Spencer, Professor of Statistics, Northwestern University
The Value of Government Data in Fostering Innovation, Creating Jobs, and Driving Better Decisions
Mark Doms, Undersecretary of Commerce for Economic Affairs, Department of Commerce
John Wihbey, Harvard University, Kennedy School of Government, Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy
The Roles and Value of Federal Statistics in Federal Legislative Affairs
Susan Offutt, Chief Economist, Government Accountability Office
Discussant: Constance Citro, Director, Committee on National Statistics, National Academy of Science/National Research Council
Session 3: Collection of Nationally Representative Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Data: Policy Needs and Implementation Challenges
(Organizers: Jonaki Bose, SAMHSA; Nancy Bates, Census)
Chair: Charles Rothwell, Director, National Center for Health Statistics
LGBT Data Priorities at the Department of Health and Human Services
Susan Queen, Director, Division of Data Policy, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, Health and Human Services
Allen Beck, Bureau of Justice Statistics
Asking About Sexual Orientation in the National Health Interview Survey: Lessons Learned and Initial Results
Jim Dahlhamer, National Center for Health Statistics
Discussant: Gary Gates, Williams Distinguished Scholar, University of California, Los Angeles
Session 4: The Changing Role of the Statistical Agency: Serving the Department and Associated Challenges
(Organizers: William Sabol, BJS; Rolf Schmitt, BTS; Jeri Mulrow, NCSES; Shelly Martinez, OMB)
Chair: Patricia Hu, Director, Bureau of Transportation Statistics
Panelists:
Jack Buckley, Senior Vice President for Research, The College Board
Katharine Abraham, Professor of Economics and Survey Methodology, University of Maryland
James Lynch, Chair and Professor, Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice, University of Maryland
Tom Mesenbourg, retired U.S. Bureau of the Census
Session 5: Improving Question Evaluation for Federal Surveys: Recommendations from an FCSM Subcommittee
(Organizers: Jennifer Madans, NCHS; Brian Harris-Kojetin, OMB)
Chair: Manuel de la Puente, Associate Commissioner for Research, Evaluation and Statistics, Social Security Administration
Jennifer Edgar, Director, Behavioral Science Research Center, Bureau of Labor Statistics
Diane K. Willimack, Methodology Director for Measurement and Response Improvement in Economic Programs, U.S. Census Bureau
Kristen Miller, National Center for Health Statistics
Discussant: Jennifer Madans, Associate Director for Science, National Center for Health Statistics
Session 6: “Virtual Data Access” for Statistical and Research Purposes
(Organizer: Chris Chapman, BLS)
Chair: Mary Bohman, Administrator, Economic Research Service
Panelists:
Andrew E. Shatto, Director, Office of Enterprise Management, Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services
CMS Program Data (1.2 MB, pdf) 
Jonaki Bose, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
Discussant: Barbara Downs, Lead Research Data Center Administrator, U.S. Bureau of the Census
Session 7: Integrating Administrative Data: Routinizing Our Success and Exploring New Frontiers
(Organizers: Shelly Martinez, OMB; Grace Medley, SAMHSA; John Eltinge, BLS; Kitty Smith, COPAFS)
Chair: Adam Sieminski, Administrator, Energy Information Administration
Shelly Wilkie Martinez, Senior Statistician, Office of Management and Budget
Connecting Administrative and Survey Data Across Education
Ross Santy, Associate Commissioner for Administrative Data, National Center for Education Statistics
Amy O’Hara, Chief, Center for Administrative Records Research and Applications, U.S. Census Bureau
Using BLS Administrative Data – Accomplishments and Prospects: Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages
Rick Clayton, Chief, Division of Administrative Statistics and Labor Turnover, Bureau of Labor Statistics
Session 8: A New Era in Transparency and Reproducibility of Research
(Organizers: Gordon Willis, NIH; Nancy Bates, Census; Chris Chapman, NCES; John Eltinge, BLS)
Chair: John Gawalt, Director, National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, National Science Foundation
Carol House, Senior Program Officer, Committee on National Statistics
Timothy Triplett, Senior Survey Methodologist, The Urban Institute
Charles Manski, Board of Trustees Professor of Economics, Northwestern University
Discussant: Nancy Lutz, Program Director, Division of Social and Economic Sciences, National Science Foundation
Session 9: Implementing Adaptive Designs in Federal Surveys: Lessons Learned (So Far)
(Organizers: Nat Schenker, NCHS; Brian Harris-Kojetin, OMB; Marilyn Seastrom, NCES)
Chair: Peggy G. Carr, Acting Commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics
Tom Mule, Special Assistant to the Chief, Decennial Statistical Studies Division, U.S. Census Bureau
Chris Chapman, Associate Commissioner, Sample Surveys Division, National Center for Education Statistics
Discussants:
Brian Harris-Kojetin, Senior Statistician, Office of Management and Budget
Session 10: Different Approaches for Engaging Academic Experts in Statistical Agency Research
(Organizers: Jeri Mulrow, NCSES; Jonaki Bose, SAMHSA; Stephen H. Cohen, retired NCSES; Brian Harris-Kojetin, OMB)
Chair: Barry Johnson, Acting Director, Statistics of Income Division, Internal Revenue Service
Panelists:
Marilyn Seastrom, Chief Statistician and Director of the Statistical Standards and Data Confidentiality Staff, National Center for Education Statistics
Andy White, Senior Research Statistician, National Center for Education Statistics
NCES Academic Partners (189 KB, pdf) 
Barry Johnson, Acting Director, Statistics of Income Division, IRS
Session 11: Understanding Respondent Burden
(Organizers: Arthur Kennickell, FRB; Debbie Griffin, retired U.S. Census Bureau)
Chair: William Sabol, Acting Director, Bureau of Justice Statistics
Scott Fricker (presenting) and John Dixon, Bureau of Labor Statistics
Gary Chappell and David Raglin (presenting), U.S. Census Bureau
Jesse Bricker, Kevin Moore (presenting) and Richard Windle, Federal Reserve Board
Polly Phipps, Bureau of Labor Statistics
Discussant: Tim Olson, Respondent Advocate, U.S. Bureau of the Census
Session 12: Expanding Leadership and Substantive Skills of Statistical Agency Personnel
(Organizers: Arthur Kennickell, FRB; John Eltinge, BLS; Marilyn Seastrom, NCES)
Chair: Barry Nussbaum, Chief Statistician, Environmental Protection Agency
Panelists:
Sally Morton, Health Policy Institute, University of Pittsburgh