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Senate Bill Seeks Small Census Bureau Increase for FY2017
On April 21, the Senate Appropriations Committee approved the fiscal year (FY) 2017 Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies (CJS) Appropriations Bill. This bill serves as the vehicle for annual appropriations for the National Science Foundation (NSF), Census Bureau, National Institute of Justice (NIJ), Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), and countless other federal departments and agencies. The next step for the CJS bill is consideration on the Senate floor, which has not yet been scheduled.
The bill would provide NSF with a total budget of $7.5 billion in FY 2017, flat with the FY2016 enacted level. Most notably the Senate bill does not include language singling out social science (or any other scientific disciplines) for cuts or preferential treatment, as we saw last year in the House bill. However, there is language calling on NSF to include criteria in its merit review process considering a project’s potential for advancing U.S. “national security and economic interests.” Further, NIJ and BJS would be held flat for another year at $36 million and $41 million, respectively. Finally, the Census Bureau would receive an increase, but not the amount requested by the Administration for the continued ramp up to the 2020 Decennial Census.
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Governors Use Data To Drive Effective Decision Making
The National Governors Association (NGA) announced that six states?Arizona, Maryland, Michigan, North Carolina, Rhode Island and Virginia?will participate in a learning lab on improving the use of data in policymaking. Increasingly, governors are using data to drive more informed decision making and govern more effectively. States are using a variety of strategies to harness that data and evidence to deliver results to the people of their states.
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Germany?s Data Law for Gov Stats Would Harm Research
The German parliament is considering legislation that would require the government to delete certain statistical data it collects about firms after 10 years, a change that would deal a severe blow to important economic research that depends on longitudinal data. In addition to threatening to derail important research, this proposal demonstrates how poorly some policymakers understand the government?s critical role in producing high-value data sets.
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DE to Seek Legal Classification for Blockchain Shares
Delaware is looking to use blockchain technology in a bid to streamline the cost and paperwork burden of registering new companies in the state. In partnership with smart contract-focused startup Symbiont and New York law firm Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, the planned system would move the process of registering companies, tracking share movements, and managing shareholder communications into a digital environment.
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New & Updated Data Sources
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PolicyMap Releases Website, Incorporates as LLC
PolicyMap recently released their new website. You?ll find:
More information on our products and how customers are using our data and mapping tools.
- Quick tutorials at your fingertips.
- A revamped blog (where we separate out the deep data content from our news).
- Simpler ways to sign up ? either to trial, subscribe or get to the always free Public Edition.
- Increased security (we moved the entire site to SSL/HTTPS).
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Visualization of the Week
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Mapping Transit for 287 American Cities
Urban sustainability nonprofit Center for Neighborhood Technology (CNT) has created AllTransit, a collection of interactive maps built with public transit data from 805 transit agencies in 287 cities throughout the United States. The maps provide neighborhood level insight into the availability, accessibility, cost, and variety of public transportation options, and combines this information with data from the Census Bureau, the Low-income Housing Tax Credit Program, and the Department of Agriculture to create metrics of how a particular city?s public transportation infrastructure influences quality-of-life factors including employment opportunities, public health, and equity. CNT created AllTransit to provide policymakers, advocacy groups, and businesses with easy-to-interpret assessments of transit performance.
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Notable Data Publications
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GOVERNMENT
NONPROFITS & FOUNDATIONS
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Did you work on a great report that you want your colleagues to know about? Just email us and we?ll include it here.
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APDU maintains a list of open calls for comment on proposed federal data collections. We periodically alert APDU members to newly added calls for comment. Over the last several weeks, calls for comment on the following proposed data collections were published in the Federal Register (with due date):
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Department of Labor
- American Time Use Survey-Eating and Health Supplement (June 1, 2016)
- Consumer Expenditure Surveys: Quarterly Interview and Diary (June 1, 2016)
U.S. Geological Survey
- The National Map: Topographic Data Grants Program (June 28, 2016)
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Please remember to submit your job postings for the May 2016 Job Board to Brendan Buff!
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Not an APDU Member? Become one today! Check out our membership benefits.
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