ASA Launches Campaign to Rebuild Public Trust in Federal Statistics

The ASA, in partnership with organizations in the statistical community, launched in late January  Count on Stats, a campaign to advance the federal statistical system and awareness of its far-reaching benefits to our government, economy, and society. “Federal data are used to inform decision-makers from Wall Street to Main Street to the halls of Congress and beyond,” said Ron Wasserstein, ASA executive director, in a  January 30 press release. “The agencies comprising the United States federal statistical system conduct essential work that is critically important to the functions of our economy, society, and democracy.”

This campaign is designed to educate and inform the public about the critically important nature of federal data, but also to counter attacks against the system. The Count on Stats initiative will consistently reaffirm the value of the important work undertaken by US federal statistical agencies. Partners of the initiative include the American Association for Public Opinion Research, American Educational Research Association, Association of Public Data Users, American Sociological Association, Bipartisan Policy Center, Council of Professional Associations on Federal Statistics (COPAFS), and National Association for Business Economics. “I am pleased to partner with the ASA in increasing the awareness of and support for high-quality federal statistics,” said Count on Stats partner John Thompson. Thompson, executive director of COPAFS and former head of the Census Bureau, continued, “The federal statistical agencies face a number of challenges, and our support is critical to their success.”

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