Banning "Statistical Noise": Understanding DAO 216-26 and Its Consequences

The Census Quality Reinforcement (CQR) Task, APDU, and the American Statistical Association invite you to join an upcoming webinar, Banning "Statistical Noise": Understanding DAO 216-26 and Its Consequences, on July 13, from 12:00–1:30 PM ET.

Last month, the Department of Commerce issued a new policy restricting the privacy protection or "disclosure avoidance" methods used by the Census Bureau and the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA). The policy bars the use of "noise infusion" methods, one of the main privacy protection techniques that statistical agencies such as the Census Bureau have used for decades. This directive will make it more difficult for statistical agencies to safeguard the privacy and confidentiality of the sensitive data they hold on each and every person, household, business in the United States. The developments raise critical questions about the implications for detailed federal statistics that are essential for policy making, advocacy, research, and decision-making.

The webinar will include:

• An overview of recent developments and the current state of play.
• A non-technical overview of disclosure avoidance and noise infusion methods
• Perspectives from several affected user groups and use cases, including demographic data, economic data, tribal data, and more.
• Moderated Q&A and discussion of outstanding questions.
• Closing reflections and opportunities to stay engaged as developments continue.

This webinar is brought to you by the Census Quality Reinforcement Task Force, Association of Public Data Users, and American Statistical Association.