December 2024 Stakeholder Update
Trump names Michael Kratsios as OSTP Director
On 22 December, Trump said he would nominate technologist Michael Kratsios to be director of
OSTP and an assistant to the president for science and technology. Computer scientist Lynne Parker
was named counselor to Kratsios, a new position, and executive director of the President’s Council
of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST). Read More
November 2024 Stakeholder Update
COPAFS welcomes the National Council for Measurement in Education
COPAFS is pleased to welcome the National Council for Measurement in Education (NCME) as its
newest member! NCME joined COPAFS on December 2. Based near Philadelphia, NCME is a
community of measurement scientists and practitioners who work together to advance theory and
applications of educational measurement to benefit society. Members are …. Read More
October 2024 Stakeholder Update
Reduction in Sample Size for CPS on Pause
Thank you to all who signed onto the Friends of BLS letter urging Congress to fully fund and modernize the Current Population Survey. The letter garnered over 140 signatures from businesses and organizations which rely on CPS data. Further, there was a separate letter signed by 120 former members and staff of the Council of Economic Advisors which carried the same message…. Read More
September 2024 Stakeholder Update
2024 FCSM Conference – Registration Open!
The 2024 FCSM Research and Policy Conference will take place October 22 thru October 24 at the College Park Marriott Hotel and Conference Center. Registration is now open and the Early bird rate of $300 ends on September 30. Sponsorships for the conference are available for purchase at fcsmconf.org. COPAFS Director’s Blog, the first installment of the COPAFS Director’s Blog is now online… Read More
August 2024 Stakeholder Update
COPAFS Quarterly Meeting: September 6
The next Quarterly Meeting will be held on Friday, September 6, 2024. The agenda features
presentations from OMB, Friends of BLS, Census, and ASA. This will be a hybrid meeting, but we
hope you can join us in-person at the AERA Convening Center. Read More
July 2024 Stakeholder Update
COPAFS Director’s Blog
The first installment of the COPAFS Director’s Blog is now online. This will be a space to post thoughts about the current state of our statistical system and give a little deeper dive into certain issues. The first blog is focused on the news we learned at the June Quarterly Meeting about the proposed sample size reduction to the Current Population Survey. Read More
May 2024 Stakeholder Update
COPAFS Quarterly Meeting: June 7
The June Quarterly Meeting will be held on Friday, June 7, 2024. Per tradition, the June meeting will feature each of 13 heads of the federal statistical agencies (Full agenda). They will give updates regarding their respective agencies and engage in a panel discussion. There will also be time for questions from attendees during each session. There will be 3 sessions in total and a wrap up discussion at the end of the day. We hope you will come and join us in-person for what promises to be a special event! Read More
April 2024 Stakeholder Update
2024 FCSM Conference – Call for Abstracts
The 2024 FCSM Research and Policy Conference will take place October 22 thru October 24 at the College Park Marriott Hotel and Conference Center. Abstracts are currently being reviewed by the Planning Committee. Sponsorships for the conference are available for purchase at fcsmconf.org.
Friends of BLS FY25 Recommendation: $812 Million
The Friends of BLS recently sent their recommendation letter to the Chairs and Ranking Members of the Labor, Health and Human Services Appropriations Subcommittees on both the House and Senate Side. The letter asks for a total of $812 million for the BLS appropriation in the FY25 budget. BLS received $698 million in FY23 and again in FY24. This request seeks to get back a portion of the purchasing power BLS has lost over the past decade, due to being flat funded periodically and rising inflation. The letter goes on to detail specific programs which will benefit from the additional funding. Read More
March 2024 Stakeholder Update
2024 FCSM Conference – Call for Abstracts
The 2024 FCSM Research and Policy Conference will take place October 22 thru October 24 at the College Park Marriott Hotel and Conference Center. The call for abstracts has been released and abstracts are due April 22nd. Visit fcsmconf.org for details leading up to the conference.
Updates to SPD No. 15 – Federal Race/Ethnicity Standards
On March 28, OMB published updates to SPD No. 15: Standards for Maintaining, Collecting, and Presenting Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity. Three key revisions include: Read More
February 2024 Stakeholder Update
2024 FCSM Conference – Call for Abstracts
The 2024 FCSM Research and Policy Conference will take place October 22 thru October 24 at the College Park Marriott Hotel and Conference Center. The call for abstracts has been released and abstracts are due April 8th. Visit fcsmconf.org for details leading up to the conference.
Friends of NCHS ask for $220MM for FY25 Appropriation
Citing a myriad of statistical innovations and investments needed to strengthen NCHS, the Friends of NCHS is advocating for $220MM in the FY25 federal budget. Data-users seek a) more real-time data to inform core indicators of health and healthcare; b) more granular data on key population subgroups including those defined by age, gender, race and ethnicity, socioeconomic status, disability, and geographic area; and c) data on health and healthcare equity… Read More
January 2024 Stakeholder Update
Katherine K. Wallman (1943 – 2024)
Katherine K. Wallman, former Chief Statistician of the United States, passed away at the age of 80 on January 17th, 2024, after a short illness. Katherine was a tireless supporter of federal statistics, from her start at the National Center of Education Statistics, to serving as the first Executive Director of COPAFS from 1981 to 1992, to her time as Chief Statistician of the U.S. from 1992 to 2017, and all the work she took on while she was “retired”. Katherine had a sharp mind, deep commitment to federal statistics, and a welcoming manner which made working with her less intimidating than it should have been. Read More