Federal Statistical System

The 13 principal statistical agencies

The Federal statistical system consists of 13 principal statistical agencies each tasked with collecting, processing, analyzing, and disseminating data in their subject areas.

Seal	Agency	Department or Agency	Established	FY24 Budget (millions)A
	Census Bureau	U.S. Department of Commerce	1903	$1,503.9
	Bureau of Labor Statistics	U.S. Department of Labor	1884	$698
	National Center for Education Statistics	U.S. Department of Education	1867	$369.8
	National Agricultural Statistics Service	U.S. Department of Agriculture	1961	$211.1
	National Center for Health Statistics	U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)	1960	$187.4
	Energy Information Administration	U.S. Department of Energy	1977	$135
	Bureau of Economic Analysis	U.S. Department of Commerce	1972	$130
	Bureau of Justice Statistics	U.S. Department of Justice	1979	$42
	Economic Research Service	U.S. Department of Agriculture	1961	$92.6
	National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics	National Science Foundation	1950	$92.1
	Statistics of Income Division, Internal Revenue Service	U.S. Department of the Treasury	1862	$45.6
	Office of Research, Evaluation, and Statistics	Social Security Administration	1935	$41.3
	Bureau of Transportation Statistics	U.S. Department of Transportation	1992	$29.5

^A Source: White House, “Leveraging Federal Statistics to Strengthen Evidence-Based Decision-Making” (https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/BUDGET-2025-PER/pdf/BUDGET-2025-PER-3-7.pdf).

Coordination

The Office of the Chief Statistician is responsible for coordinating the Federal statistical system, aiming to ensure its efficiency, effectiveness, integrity, objectivity, impartiality, utility, and confidentiality of information collected for statistical purposes. Part of the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the Office of the Chief Statistician develops and maintains statistical policies and standards, promulgates regulations, identifies priorities for improving programs, assesses statistical agency budgets, and reviews and approves agencies’ plans to collect information from households, businesses, and government entities.

The Interagency Council of Statistical Policy (ICSP) advises and assists the Director of OMB in coordinating the statistical system and setting statistical policy. The Chief Statistician of the U.S. chairs the ICSP. The ICSP has 24 members, including the heads of the 13 principal statistical agencies and 11 others designated as Statistical Officials in other departments or agencies that have a statistical agency or unit.