Perspective on OMB Statistical Policy 

Directives

Kerrie Leslie, Senior Statistician

Office of Management and Budget

1
U.S. Federal Statistical System

See: StatsPolicy.Gov 2

Decentralized:

• Chief Statistician of the United 

States (CSOTUS)

• 16 Recognized Statistical 

Agencies and Units

• ~ 100 Other Statistical 

Programs

• 24 Statistical Officials

• Interagency Council on 

Statistical Policy (ICSP)

• Federal Committee on 

Statistical Methodology 

(FCSM)
Chief Statistician of the United States

3

• Provides leadership, 

coordination, and oversight

• Issues Statistical Policy 

Directives and guidance, 

including statistical 

standards and classification

• Chairs ICSP

• Engages with the 

international statistical 

community

See: StatsPolicy.Gov
Select OMB Regulations and Policies

• Statistical Policy Directives: 

• No. 1: Fundamental Responsibilities of Federal Statistical 

Agencies and Recognized Statistical Units

• No. 2: Standards and Guidelines for Statistical Surveys

• No. 2 Addendum: Standards and Guidelines for Cognitive 

Interviews

• Regulations: 

• “Trust” – Fundamental Responsibilities of Statistical Agencies 

and Units

4
OMB Statistical Policy Directive No. 1

• Issued 2014

• Fundamental 

Responsibilities:

1. Relevant and Timely

2. Credible and Accurate 

3. Objective

4. Confidentiality & 

Exclusive Statistical Use

5
OMB Statistical Policy Directive No. 2

• Issued 2006

• 20 statistical standards

• Applicable to censuses and 

surveys

• to ensure consistency among 

and within statistical activities 

conducted across the Federal 

Government

• “Standards for Federal 

statistical programs serve both 

the interests of the public and 

the needs of the government.” 

6
OMB Statistical Policy Directive No. 2

• Addendum issued 2016

• 7 standards for cognitive 

interviews

• Cognitive interview studies 

investigate how survey 

questions perform when 

asked of respondents

7
Trust Regulation

• Required by Evidence Act

• Notice of Proposed 

Rulemaking (NPRM) - August 

2023

• Final regulation forthcoming

• Aligns with Directive No. 1

• 4 fundamental responsibilities

• Requirements for other agencies 

to enable, support, facilitate

• Additional provisions

SUPPORT FROM OTHER AGENCIES

Relevant 

& Timely

Credible 

& Accurate

Objective Confidentiality 

& Exclusive 

Statistical Use

Trust

Learn more at Session G-4 

today at 3:30 at Vessey 1!
Alignment with Other Guidance 

• CNSTAT, Principles and Practices for a Federal 

Statistical Agency

• Eurostat, European Statistics Code of Practice

• UN, Fundamental Principles of Official Statistics

• OECD, Principles and Practices for International 

Statistics
Ex: OMB Directive No. 1 <> UN FPOS

OMB Dir. No. 1 & Trust Reg:

• Relevant and Timely - Statistical 

information should be timely & 

relevant to meet needs of 

policymakers and the public

• Credible and Accurate -

Statistical methods should be 

clear and open to scrutiny

UN FPOS:

• Relevance – Provide data and 

stewardship services to guide 

users to information they need

• Use of Sound Methods – Use 

sound methods and tools, 

maintaining statistical integrity

• Transparency – Work in a 

transparent manner, providing 

details on quality of the data and 

methods used
Ex: OMB Directive No. 1 <> UN FPOS

OMB Dir. No. 1 & Trust Reg:

• Objective - Statistics should be 

produced without bias or undue 

influence

• Confidential - Sensitive and 

confidential data should be 

protected and used only for 

statistical purposes

UN FPOS:

• Professional Independence –

Maintain professional 

independence, while also 

collaborating for a better data 

ecosystem

• Privacy and Confidentiality –

Maintain the trust of citizens, by 

fulfilling the mandate of 

privacy and confidentiality
ASA Ethical Guidelines

• 8 Guidelines focus on individuals & relevant to 

organizations

• Appendix outlines the responsibilities of organizations, 

including some directed for supervisors/leadership

12
Alignment with Other Guidance 

• ASA Ethical Guidelines 

• Audiences slightly different: 

• OMB – U.S. Federal government statistical agencies and units, 

including leadership and staff

• ASA – all statistical practitioners

• Park and Tractenberg (2023) note much alignment, some 

tensions, and some gaps
Alignment with Other Guidance 

• ASA Ethical Guidelines 

• Focusing today on tensions/gaps with Directive No. 1 & Trust 

Regulation

• Consideration: stat agencies and units sit within political 

structure – not independent – so... 

• How to balance different responsibilities appropriately?

• How to promote sufficient alignment with technical guidance? 

• When to develop policies or promulgate regulations?
Alignment with Other Guidance 

• ASA Ethical Guidelines 

• Relevance & Timeliness:

• Balance needs of policy officials (they have the data they need to 

inform decisions) with support of stat practitioners doing their work with 

rigor

• Confidentiality & Exclusive Statistical Use

• Balance providing useful data (by region/demographic 

characteristic/etc.) without disclosing the individual/business

• In world of more data available, how to manage risk of re-identification
Thank You!

Kerrie Leslie

Office of the Chief Statistician of the United States

Office of Management and Budget

-------------------------------------------------------------------

(e) kerrie.l.leslie@omb.eop.gov

(w) CSOTUS | FSS | FCSM

Questions?