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Institutional Framework for Economic Statistics in Decentralized System

Institutional Framework for Economic Statistics in Decentralized System. J. Steven Landefeld Director. Friends of the Chair Group on Integrated Economic Statistics, Work Group Meeting June 6-8, 2007. How Do Things Get Done in A Decentralized System?.

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Institutional Framework for Economic Statistics in Decentralized System

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  1. Institutional Framework for Economic Statistics in Decentralized System J. Steven Landefeld Director Friends of the Chair Group on Integrated Economic Statistics, Work Group Meeting June 6-8, 2007

  2. How Do Things Get Done in A Decentralized System? • The U.S. system produces a set of statistics that pretty well reflects what the U.S. public wants: • Timely data that answers the “big picture” questions, gets the answer “about right,” and doesn’t ask “too much” information from respondents

  3. How Do Things Get Done in A Decentralized System? • The system achieves this through: • Coordination of selected infrastructure issues • Strong degree of independence of major statistical agencies • Working with and listening very carefully to customers (balancing needs of all customers) • Responding to these customers by • Specializing and coordinating across agencies in research, innovation, and implementation in the development of new measures for these customers.

  4. Role of the Chief Statistician & Inter-Agency Council on Statistical Policy (ICSP) • Infrastructure • Education – JPSM • Best practices – OMB Quality and Documentation Standards • Principles for statistical agencies • Confidentiality, Independence, Professionalism • Common data dissemination – FEDSTATS • Classification systems – NAICS, NAPS, Regional • Standards and Guidelines for: Data releases, survey response rates, and accuracy

  5. Role of Chief Statistician & ICSP • Integration • Forms review – avoid duplication, minimize response burden • Cross cutting budget review • Data sharing – CIPSEA and IITSA

  6. Role of Federal Economic Statistics Advisory Committee • Review of Cross cutting BEA, BLS and Census issues • Recommendations for improvements, including: • Expansion of payroll survey • Development of time use survey • Development of financial services prices

  7. Role of Intra-Agency Coordination • BEA/BLS • PPI expansion for services, export-import prices, new non-residential construction process, and integration of BEA-BLS employment and productivity data • BEA/Census • Domestic services data expansion and assistance on international services sample frame • BEA/FRB • Stock options, pensions, LAN prices and integration of Flow of Funds and NIPAs. • BEA/FRB/Treasury • Derivatives, short-term instruments, and tax havens

  8. Professional Associations & Interest Groups • BEA/NABE • chain and hedonic indexes, more timely regional and industry data, NAICS time series • BEA/Coalition of Services Industries • expanded detail on international trade in services • BEA/NBER-CRIW • Multinational Corporations, capital stock and deprecation, prices for new goods and services, medical care, intangibles and integration • BEA/AEA • “New Economy,” “off-shoring”, corporate profits and medical care • BEA/ACCRA/AUBER • more timely, detailed, comprehensive regional data

  9. Role of BEA Advisory Committee • Blue ribbon panel of academics and business leaders • Recommendations carry weight beyond BEA • Key role in all BEA and related system-wide improvements in recent years • Integration efforts across agencies • Capitalization of R&D • Better measurement of health care expenditures

  10. Role of Other Government Agencies • Federal Reserve Board, President’s Council of Economic Advisors, Treasury, Congressional Budget Office and others • Important for filling “gaps” where there is no constituency: • Data sharing, services expansion, chain indexes, and international capital flows

  11. What works in the Decentralized System • Resulting system good at providing timely measures on issues of interest to public and private decision makers: • Rich set of monthly current indicators • Timely quarterly GDP accounts data on key issues of relevance to policymakers • Regularly updated measures to reflect changes in the economy. • “Big Picture” accuracy through innovation and the adoption chain indexes, hedonic measures, and other quantitatively important new methods.

  12. What Are the Challenges? • Challenges associated with decentralized system: • Providing consistent and well integrated data • Developing measures on issues/areas with no constituency and Federal agency management • Challenges for all systems: • Lack of well established conceptual foundation and organizational framework (true of all national accounts)

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