To:
Jackson, Ryan[jackson.ryan@epa.gov]
From: The Washington Post
Sent: Fri 9/8/2017 4:00:35 PM
Subject: Federal Insider: Panel pushes Trump, Congress for better use of confidential evidence in
policymaking
Panel pushes Trump, Congress for better use of confidential evidence in policymaking
By Joe Davidson
The U.S. Capitol (Aaron P. Bernstein/Bloomberg)
There's sweet irony in a federal blue-ribbon panel dispatching a report on the need for evidence in policymaking to a president known for prevarication.
Yet without sarcasm or irony, the Commission on Evidence-Based Policymaking sent its findings to President Trump and congressional leaders Thursday.
In their cover letter, the 15 commissioners, who unanimously adopted the
report, said the panel "envisions a future in which rigorous evidence is
created efficiently, as a routine part of government operations, and used to
(construct effecti
blic policy ... while simultaneously providing stronger
(protections for the privacy and confidentiality of the people, businesses, and
organizations from which the government collects information."
("Traditionally, increasing access to confidential data presumed significantly (increasing privacy risk," the report says. "The Commission rejects that idea."
(Commissioners did more than call for the obvious. We shouldn't need a commission to make the case for evidence in policymaking. The panel made ((nearly two dozen well-considered recommendations, tools for better use of data, in four areas -- "improving secure, private and confidential data access," "modernizing privacy protections for evidence building," ("strengthening federal evidence-building capacity" and "implementing a (National Secure Date Service."
(The data service would be housed in the Commerce Department and would
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"maintain a searchable inventory of approved projects using confidential data."
This would assist policymakers who "must have good information on which to base their decisions about improving the viability and effectiveness of government programs and policies," the report begins. "Today, too little evidence is produced to meet this need."
To get the needed information, commission members recommended revising "laws authorizing Federal data collection and use ... but only ormer strict privacy controls."
Presentation of the report at a Capitol Hill news conference was an almost
joyous e^ent for a dull but important topic. Speaker Paul D. Rywi m A'is.)
and Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), who both worked to create the
commission, joked about Sunday's football game between the Green Bay
Packers a
attle Seahawks and the infrequent nature of bipartisan
agreement before praising the commission.
Ryan called the report "phenomenal ... impressive and important work ... for an efficient and effective federal government."
Murray said that "no matter what any of us think about government in general -- and no matter what we may fork 'bout programs or investments in particular -- surely we should be able to agree that we should all do everything we can to make them work as well as possible. Not just by wishing for it, and not just letting blind ideology or partisanship guide the way or undermine policies that help people -- but by using evidence, facts, science -- making sure our policies are aligned with what we know works -- and what we know doesn't."
The call for increased use of confidential data comes as companies invade
our privacy by collecting information on our buying and recreational habits so
they can sell us more. Facebook and Google can creep too deep into our
fives. Equifax, the credit reporting agency, said Thursday that personal
information on 143 million Americans was hacked. Still fresh is the memory
of the 2015 Office of Personnel Management data breach, which resulted in
the theft of personal information, including Social Security numbers,
belonging
>re than 22 million people.
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It is interested in anonymous administrative and survey information that could be used to improve programs, if not for roadblocks. For example, census data are available "only for the narrow purpose of improving Census Bureau programs," the report said, yet that information, without names or identifying information, could be used to enhance any number of agency efforts.
The commission's emphasis on evidence is particularly welcome during a period when the nation is beset with a president renown for lies, deceptions and dissimulation mce Trump's inauguration, he was made an average of nearly five false or misleading daims a day, according to The Washington Post's Fact Checker.
The commission was created through legislation enacted last year. The members were appointed by then-President Barack Obama and the Republican and Democratic leaders of the House and Senate.
Privacy is a driving cone
roughout the report. It urges the adoption of
`modern privacy-enhancing technologie Mi confidential data used for
evidence building."
IMarc Rotenberg, president of the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC), welcomed the report, saying, "Sm m public policy requires good information."
But his email cautioned that some government "data sets, such as census
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& tosrdenal privacy. There the key is to adopt new `Privacy Enhancing Techniques' that minimize or eliminate the collection of personally identifiable information. The Commission endorsed PETs, which EPIC has long supported. But federal agencies must also demonstrate that these techniques successfully safeguard privacy.
"That is the big test ahead."
Read more [ ]:
[Equifax says data from 143 million Americans exposed in hack]
[After the latest hack attack, can feds trust Uncle Sam with their personal informat on i j
[Thieves stole taxpayer data from IRS.'Get.Tronscript' service]
[Congress hits FDIC cyber breach that `boggles the mind!
government policy, panel says
Strict privacy controls should remain, but commission says good Information is vital resource in decision-making.
would `highlight their mribility to govern effectively' A Q&A with the top Democrat on the House Oversight and
Government Reform Committee. By Joe Davidson | Columnist Read more
Sierra Club v. EPA, 1:17-cv-01906
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