A: A federal statistical agency is a component of the federal government whose principal function is the compilation and analysis of data and the dissemination of information for statistical purposes.

A: Please use the links below to explore additional statistical information.

A: Please use the links below to explore international statistical resources.

A: Solicitations are posted on sam.gov. You will find them listed under Contract Opportunities.

A: Solicitations are typically posted around December 1 and can be found by navigating to sam.gov.

A: BAA awards are designed to last no more than 2 years due to the experimental nature of the work and the potential for this research to be only the first stage of a larger endeavor.

A: BAA funding awards may vary, but they will not exceed a budget of $500,000.

A: No, the BAA is its own unique funding mechanism and operates much like a cooperative agreement. Unlike a traditional contract, which can be highly prescriptive, the BAA offers considerable flexibility for the applicant to propose an innovative research plan. Institutions that are awarded a BAA research project will follow contract protocols as opposed to grant reporting mechanisms used by the National Science Foundation. Awardees will still specify deliverables but are given the flexibility to adjust the research plan if results are pointing in a new direction.

A: Past BAA solicitations may be referenced below.

A: Methodological experiments on surveys by the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics (NCSES) may focus on determining an optimal incentive amount, identifying respondents’ mode preference, evaluating usability of online instruments, and exploring the most effective contact strategies, as well as implementing adaptive design.

A: NCSES has partnered with the Coleridge Initiative’s Applied Data Analytics programs to encourage researchers to use NCSES data to explore questions about pathways to STEM education and careers and its relevance to science policy.

A: A few examples of past analysis projects include:  

A: Researchers, policymakers, and other individuals have expressed an interest in better understanding the prevalence and experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and other sexual and gender minorities—the LGBTQI+ population—in the United States. Those interested in the topic recognize the importance of objective data to inform program and policy discussions related to diversity, equity, and inclusion.   

A: NCSES is a federal principal statistical agency responsible for measuring and reporting on the condition and progress of the U.S. science and engineering (S&E) enterprise. It conducts over a dozen nationally representative data collections on various targeted populations, including those with an undergraduate or doctorate education in S&E fields and the nation’s doctorate workforce.  

As part of its responsibility to provide objective data on the S&E enterprise, NCSES is exploring the inclusion of SOGI questions on its education and workforce surveys. This exploration will shed light on the feasibility of collecting reliable data on sexual and gender minorities educated or employed in S&E fields. 

A public guide outlining NCSES's Efforts to Measure, Track, and Report Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity in the U.S. Science and Engineering Population (189 KB) is available for download. 

A: NCSES is committed to providing information that is objective and transparent, adhering to all directives and standards set forth by the Office of Management and Budget. To that end, NCSES is taking a measured approach to adding questions concerning SOGI to its surveys. The goal is to appropriately balance the agency’s mission and programmatic goals while ensuring data quality, reducing respondent burden, protecting confidentiality, and meeting data user needs.

Other important considerations in NCSES’s planning efforts for SOGI include investigating the utility, representation, and presentation of SOGI data. For example, SOGI questions may introduce (1) potential changes to survey designs and data collection techniques to accurately estimate SOGI in the population while ensuring the privacy and confidentiality of respondents, (2) implications for small sample or population counts for science and engineering education and workforce measures, and (3) potential disruptions to trend data patterns due to modifying gender reporting categories.  

Learn more about NCSES’s commitment to scientific integrity, quality, and transparency. 

A: As a principal statistical agency, NCSES follows federal Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Standards and Guidelines for Statistical Surveys to assemble reasonable evidence that questions asked on NCSES surveys demonstrate quality and utility. Other important principles that guide OMB's approval of collecting SOGI measures include minimization (i.e., collecting the minimum level of detail necessary to meet planned uses), inclusivity and sensitivity (i.e., using appropriate and respectful language), privacy, consistency (i.e., in data collections, as well as data governance across an agency), and compliance (i.e., making sure the agency has the statutory authority to collect SOGI data).

NCSES also actively engages across the federal statistical system and other federal partners, including the Federal Committee on Statistical Methodology’s working group on measuring SOGI to collectively address issues surrounding the collection and availability of SOGI data on federal surveys.  

Finally, NCSES conducts a wide array of research projects to explore SOGI data collection efforts and data use (see research activity highlighted below).  

A: NCSES conducts and collaborates on several SOGI-related exploratory projects to help inform data collection and data use. These efforts are important to ensure the validity, reliability, utility, and confidentiality of the data prior to survey implementation and to inform program development and public policy. Below is a snapshot of current or planned research in this area.  

a) Improving SOGI Data Collection and Use Across STEM Industries Research Areas

This project, conducted in collaboration with the National Institutes of Health, aims to explore the current state of measuring SOGI in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) industries. The project also aims to explore SOGI data availability for graduate students and postdocs at U.S. academic institutions, to inform the NCSES Survey of Graduate Students and Postdoctorates in Science and Engineering.  

b) Asking about Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity in the Spanish-Speaking Community

This project, conducted in collaboration with the Census Bureau, aims to explore the effectiveness of Spanish translation of SOGI questions on federal surveys to ensure that accurate statistics are derived.  

c) Amazon's Mechanical Turk (MTurk) for experimentation with the NCSES National Survey of College Graduates  

This project included survey methodological experiments to explore whether different ways of asking about sexual identity and gender identity in the college-educated population affected estimates and response distributions.  

d) Bridge Panels for the NCSES National Survey of College Graduates and the NCSES National Training, Education, and Workforce Survey  

The goal of these bridge panels is to introduce SOGI questions into existing NCSES surveys (National Survey of College Graduates and National Training, Education, and Workforce Survey) in a non-production setting to understand the prevalence of sexual and gender minorities in the college-educated population and workforce. Official estimates will not be derived from this task. This work will help to identify gaps or anomalies in these data collections, including nonresponse, missing data, and respondent breakoffs.

e) Cognitive Interviews for the NCSES Survey of Earned Doctorates  

The goal of these interviews is to assess question wording options, question comprehension, and sensitivities to collecting SOGI information from doctorate recipients and potentially releasing the information to academic institutions. The project also aims to understand how temporary visa holders interpret and answer SOGI questions.

f) Sexual Harassment and Discrimination in the Science and Engineering Enterprise

The goal of this project is to create detailed implementation plans for measuring the incidence and impact of sexual harassment in the STEM workforce and educational system, including sexual and gender minorities in STEM fields and occupations. 

A: As a principal statistical agency, NCSES adheres to federal laws, directives, and standards to use the information it collects for statistical purposes only, to protect respondent privacy, and to maximize data quality. The confidentiality laws that NCSES strictly follows include the National Science Foundation Act of 1950, the Privacy Act of 1974, and the 2018 reauthorization of the Confidential Information Protection and Statistical Efficiency Act, among others.  

NCSES regularly employs methods and conducts research to ensure avoidance of intentional or unintentional disclosure of person-level sensitive or confidential information. This includes, but is not limited to, information such as sexual orientation and gender identity or other unique identifiers that could be used to target a respondent’s identity or livelihood.

NCSES is committed to building and sustaining trust among the public and data providers by protecting respondent privacy and minimizing disclosure of personally identifying or other sensitive information. Following the National Academy of Science’s report, Principles and Practices for a Federal Statistical Agency, fostering trust among the public and data providers is a key principle that NCSES adheres to as a statistical agency. This practice ultimately leads to greater data quality.  

A: On 15 June 2022 President Biden issued Executive Order 14075 (Executive Order on Advancing Equality for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, and Intersex Individuals). Section 11 (“Promoting Inclusive and Responsible Federal Data Collection Practices”) established a subcommittee on SOGI data within the federal Interagency Working Group on Equitable Data. The subcommittee is charged with developing and releasing a Federal Evidence Agenda on LGBTQI+ Equity, which will inform the development of SOGI Data Action Plans across federal agencies. The executive order also directs the Chief Statistician of the United States to issue recommendations for agencies on the best practices for the collection of SOGI data on federal statistical surveys.

NCSES conducts research to help inform the potential addition of SOGI-related questions to its national surveys. Additionally, NCSES actively collaborates with other federal statistical agencies through the Federal Committee on Statistical Methodology’s SOGI working group to explore best practices of measuring SOGI in the context of federal information collections.  

The Census Bureau, a federal statistical agency and partner to NCSES, implemented SOGI questions in one phase (wave of data collection) of its Household Pulse Survey (HPS). In 2021, the Census Bureau released data from those experimental questions.  

Other federal partners, such as the National Institutes of Health, through sponsorship of a National Academies consensus panel report, continue to explore measurement of SOGI to ensure high-quality information and best practices for collecting this information in research and non-research surveys.  

The National Science Foundation, NCSES’s parent agency, funds research across its many Directorates’ portfolios and programs that explore questions around gender equity in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) fields, academia, information systems, and other related sectors.  

A: NCSES remains open to stakeholder input and partnerships that further advance the knowledge base and potential implementation of SOGI questions on its surveys of the U.S. science and engineering enterprise.

Interested parties can e-mail their questions or comments to NCSES at ncsesinfo@nsf.gov.  
For information on research grants from the National Science Foundation that explore this topic more widely, please e-mail info@nsf.gov.  

A: No, the SAP does not take the place of a FOIA request. When Congress passed the Evidence Act of 2018, one of its goals was to make it easier to apply for access to the confidential data assets collected by the government’s 16 principal statistical agencies, with the goal of informing better policymaking. According to the statute, anyone who applies for access to restricted-use data using the SAP, therefore, must demonstrate that the project will contribute to evidence building in some way. FOIA requests, on the other hand, can be made to any federal agency and for any document, without specifying a reason.

A: All 16 principal statistical agencies participate in the SAP. For questions about specific programs, datasets, or data files, applicants are asked to use the contact information included in the metadata about the asset. The owning agency or unit is the most knowledgeable about its data sources. Information about data assets that are not part of the SAP archive can be found at Data.gov, the official catalog for publicly available data from all federal agencies, or by visiting the agency’s home page.

A: The SAP is required by law to include an appeals process that could potentially reverse an adverse determination. The appeals process resides within the agency that owns the data. Appeals are evaluated by three senior officials appointed by the agency and are expected take no longer than 8 weeks.

A: Reviewing whether an applicant should be granted access to confidential data through the SAP is an important part of each agency’s risk management decision process. Applicants must demonstrate that the data will be used for an exclusively statistical purpose and in a manner that complies with statutory limitations governing the data’s use. In addition, the applicant must be able to satisfy the physical and logistical requirements for access (e.g., a computing environment that can handle the purposed volume of data) and show that the project can be executed within a given timeframe. Statistical agencies and units retain the final authority to grant an applicant access to their data. Most require completion of data use, data stewardship, and confidentiality training before granting approval.

A: ResearchDataGov is an online portal for discovery of restricted data in the federal statistical system and houses the SAP. It contains detailed descriptions of data assets for all 16 principal statistic agencies. Users can search for data by topic, agency, and keywords. Questions related to the data should be directed to the owning agency, using the contact information on the page that describes the data.

A: Individuals with approvals in place to use restricted-use data assets (“agents”) will not be required to submit an application with the SAP. However, they will need to submit applications via the SAP for any new projects that involve the use of restricted-use data.

A: ResearchDataGov, where the SAP is housed, is the official portal for discovery of confidential data assets in the federal statistical system (FSS). It currently contains a data inventory and agency content pages for restricted-use data available from the 16 principal statistical agencies and units that make up the FSS. Data.gov, on the other hand, is the official catalog for publicly available data from all federal agencies, including the FSS. Data.gov is managed by the U.S. General Services Administration. Both websites were established by the Evidence Act of 2018, Data.gov in Title II and ResearchDataGov in Title III.

A: Although the SAP facilitates applying for access to federal confidential data assets, it in no way relaxes the privacy protections governing restricted-use data. In fact, protecting the trust of information providers was an important goal of Title III of the Evidence Act, and the law includes several provisions to ensure that individually identifiable information would remain confidential.

A: Data access is determined by the owning or distributing agency and is limited to physical or virtual data enclaves. The specific access modality for each data asset can be found in the data inventory on ResearchDataGov. When your application is approved, the authorizing agency will guide you through the process of gaining access.

A: Many agencies that collect confidential information under the Privacy Act also release “de-identified” data under their own statutory authorities. These public-use files are easily accessible and widely available; many can be downloaded from department websites. Data.gov is another good source of public data files.  The catalog provides access to data, tools, and resources to conduct research, develop web and mobile applications, and design data visualizations for more than 300,000 federal data sets.

A: Both the SAP and the NSDS are part of a transformational federal effort to streamline secure researcher access to government data sets for authorized uses. The SAP provides an important gateway to the federal government’s extensive and growing catalog of restricted data assets available for evidence building, established as part of implementing the 2018 Evidence Act. The NSDS is currently a demonstration project established in the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 to enhance secure data access and linking across the whole of the federal government. Although the exact relationship between the SAP and the NSDS has not yet been defined, the goal is to advance both efforts to enable a seamless customer experience. 

A: The SAP is an application process and not a secure data enclave like the FSRDCs. However, those seeking access to federal data through a secure data enclave like an FSRDC will apply for such access via the SAP, especially if the request is for data held by a federal statistical agency. Individuals with approvals in place to access restricted-use data assets (“agents”) will not be required to submit a new application via the SAP for projects that have already been approved. However, they will need to submit applications via the SAP for any new projects that involve the use of restricted-use data. 

A: Both the SAP and the ADC are efforts to expand evidence building capability in a privacy-protective manner, a key goal of the Evidence Act, but they each fulfill a different need. The ADC is a partnership that brings together public and private data and research organizations to develop solutions that help build evidence—for example, the challenge of engaging more Americans in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) workforce. The SAP allows applicants to apply for access to many data assets, including those that may be used by the ADC.

A: In coordination with the Chief Statistician of the United States, all 16 federal statistical agencies and units are currently working together on multiple fronts to improve data access, modernize data privacy protections, and strengthen evidence-building capacity. The SAP is one part of this overall effort. For the first time, applicants can apply—in one place—for restricted federal data. The SAP portal also houses a metadata catalog of restricted data assets available from statistical agencies and units, where applicants can browse the nation’s inventory of restricted-use data without leaving the site.

A: Currently, there are no fees to use the SAP, either for data discovery or to apply for access to restricted-use data. Fees may be required by individual agencies for data access.

A: Each NCSES survey form has an Office of Management and Budget (OMB) number with an expiration date that represents federal approval and authorization for the agency to collect the information from you. Some NCSES surveys are conducted by the Census Bureau and some are conducted under contract with private survey research organizations to collect the information on our behalf.  Although the contracting organizations are not official government agencies, we require and verify strict security and confidentiality protections are in place by our contractors to collect and store NCSES survey data. In addition, we include NCSES staff contacts for any questions or concerns you may have regarding the survey when contacted by the Census Bureau or our contractor organizations.

A: NCSES is required by law to keep your responses confidential and can use your information only for statistical purposes. In response to those confidentiality protections, the information you provide when completing the survey is used only in aggregate form to produce and publish NCSES statistical reports. For more information on the steps that NCSES takes to protect survey data, please see the Implementation Guidance for the Confidential Information Protection and Statistical Efficiency Act of 2002 (CIPSEA).