[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 35 (Monday, February 23, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8403-8404]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2026-03497]
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Notices
Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains documents other than rules
or proposed rules that are applicable to the public. Notices of hearings
and investigations, committee meetings, agency decisions and rulings,
delegations of authority, filing of petitions and applications and agency
statements of organization and functions are examples of documents
appearing in this section.
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Federal Register / Vol. 91, No. 35 / Monday, February 23, 2026 /
Notices
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
[Docket No: ERS-2026-0001]
Request for Information on Opportunities, Challenges, and
Emerging Areas in Statistical Data, Analysis, and Research at the U.S.
Department of Agriculture
AGENCY: Economic Research Service, National Agricultural Statistical
Service, and Office of the Chief of Economist, U.S. Department of
Agriculture.
ACTION: Request for information.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) requests information
on opportunities, challenges, and emerging areas in statistical data,
analysis, and research produced by the Economic Research Service (ERS),
the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), and the Office of
the Chief Economist's World Agricultural Outlook Board (OCE-WAOB). This
information will help inform USDA as we consider future program
direction, new initiatives, and potential funding opportunities.
DATES: All comments must be received on or before April 9, 2026.
ADDRESSES: USDA invites the submission of the requested information
through one of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal (preferred method): Go to
http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for
submitting comments.
Mail: Send written comments to Economic Research Service,
1400 Independence Avenue SW, Mail Stop 1800, Washington, DC 20250-1800,
Attention: Nisha Murray.
All items submitted by mail or electronic mail must include the
Agency name and docket number ERS-2026-0001. All comments submitted in
response to this request for information will be included in the record
and will be made available to the public. Please be advised that the
substance of the comments and the identity of the individuals or
entities submitting the comments will be subject to public disclosure.
All responses will become part of the public record and will not be
held confidential. USDA will make the comments publicly available via
http://www.regulations.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Michele Esch, ERS Chief of Staff
([email protected]; 301-367-9891), LaKeya Jones Smith, NASS Chief
of Staff ([email protected]; 202-720-2707), or Meghan Radtke, OCE
Operations Manager ([email protected]).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
USDA's mission to provide accurate, timely, and relevant economic
and statistical information is carried out primarily through the
Economic Research Service (ERS), the National Agricultural Statistics
Service (NASS), and the Office of the Chief Economist's World
Agricultural Outlook Board (OCE-WAOB). ERS and NASS are designated by
OMB as Recognized Statistical Agencies and Units, responsible for
producing relevant, timely, credible, accurate, and objective
statistical data under established quality and transparency standards.
NASS reports include monthly crop production, July cattle, Quarterly
Hogs and Pigs, and more.\1\ ERS produces reports and briefings by
subject matter experts that provide context for informing policy
discussions. OCE-WAOB oversees the U.S. Department of Agriculture's
production of the World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates
(WASDE) report.
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\1\ The federal statistical system (FSS) is a decentralized
institution comprising more than 100 agencies, organizational units,
and programs across the U.S. government that engage in statistical
activities. Sixteen recognized statistical agencies and units
(RSAUs) represent the largest proportion of the system. The RSAUs
are entities whose principal missions are conducting activities
related to the collection, compilation, processing, analysis, and
dissemination of data for statistical purposes. 44 U.S. Code Sec.
3563.
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Together, these agencies produce a broad portfolio of products
ranging from high-frequency crop and livestock statistics, market
intelligence assessing supply and demand for major agricultural
commodities, situation and outlook reports, and farm income forecasts
to data products, interactive dashboards, and data visualizations.
These resources are widely used by farmers and ranchers,
agribusinesses, researchers, industry organizations, local and federal
agencies, and international partners. The scale and diversity of these
products vary in scope, geographic resolution, delivery method, and
frequency as USDA works to balance informational needs within budgetary
and technical constraints. To help inform our decision-making, we seek
information on how well we are meeting the needs of users.
For details on the current roles and responsibilities of these
agencies and office, refer to their respective websites ERS https://ers.usda.gov/, NASS https://www.nass.usda.gov/, and OCE-WAOB https://www.usda.gov/about-usda/general-information/staff-offices/office-chief-economist/world-agricultural-outlook-board. Specific information on
USDA's statistical products, data, and analysis for which specific
feedback is requested can be found on the following sites:
NASS Guide to Products and Services: https://www.nass.usda.gov/Publications/2025-Guide-to-Products-and-Services.pdf
including methodology and quality measures: https://www.nass.usda.gov/Publications/Methodology_and_Data_Quality/index.php.
ERS Products:
[cir] Data Products and Methodology: https://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products.
[cir] Research Reports: https://www.ers.usda.gov/publications?series=research-reports.
[cir] Outlook Reports: https://www.ers.usda.gov/publications?series=outlook-reports.
OCE-WAOB: World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates
(WASDE): https://www.usda.gov/about-usda/general-information/staff-offices/office-chief-economist/commodity-markets/wasde-report including
methodology documentation: https://www.usda.gov/oce/commodity-markets/wasde/faqs.
Questions
USDA is issuing this request for information (RFI) to ensure USDA's
economic and statistical products continue to meet the evolving needs
of users. Respondents are encouraged to identify their field (e.g.,
research, agricultural industry, farm operator) and
[[Page 8404]]
area of interest (e.g., statistics, data, forecasting, commodity
markets), and provide relevant information regarding the USDA economic
and statistical programs. Respondents need not reply to all questions
listed. Please ensure that you identify your answers as responses to a
specific question(s).
Data Products and Data Sets
The following questions relate to official agricultural statistics
produced through data collected from surveys, censuses, and other
sources published by ERS and NASS.
1. Which NASS or ERS data (e.g., releases, reports, datasets) are
most valuable to your work, and why?
2. What gaps exist in the agricultural data produced?
3. What new topic areas should USDA prioritize for data products?
4. How often should data and information be released or updated
(e.g., annually, quarterly)?
5. What geographic granularity (e.g., national, state, county) for
data best supports your work?
6. Are there NASS or ERS data products, data sets, and other
relevant information that are duplicative, outdated, or underutilized?
What improvements, changes or consolidations could be made (e.g., more
timely, different data collection methods)?
7. Do you use non-USDA data to supplement data elements or
variables of interest that are missing from NASS or ERS products? If
yes, please specify which data sets you supplement and why. Do you use
non-USDA data as a proxy for data elements that are missing from NASS
or ERS products? If yes, please specify why you are using non-USDA data
in conjunction with USDA data.
8. How could ERS and OCE-WAOB improve transparency about data
sources, assumptions, or models used in data products?
Economic Research, Outlook, and Forecasts
The following questions relate to the economic research and outlook
reports produced by ERS and the WASDE coordinated by OCE-WAOB.
9. Which ERS or OCE-WAOB research or analytical products (e.g.,
farm income, situation and outlook reports, ERS research reports,
WASDE) are most valuable to your work, and how do you use them?
10. What emerging policy or economic issues should be addressed in
ERS or OCE-WAOB economic analysis, outlook, and forecasts?
11. When using ERS or OCE-WAOB forecasts or research, are you more
likely to use raw data files, written analysis, or both? If you use one
product type more than another, why?
12. How can ERS and OCE-WAOB better tailor the content to your
needs?
13. How could ERS and OCE-WAOB improve transparency of the data
sources, assumptions, methodology, or models used in economic
forecasts?
Access, Tools, and Outreach
The following questions apply to all the products developed by ERS,
NASS, and OCE-WAOB.
14. How do you currently access ERS, NASS, or OCE-WAOB data (e.g.,
Quick Stats, website, Application Programming Interfaces)? What
challenges do you face when accessing data or research? What
improvements would you suggest?
15. What tools or formats would improve usability of ERS, NASS, and
OCE-WAOB products (e.g., dashboards, machine-readable files,
visualizations, downloadable tables)?
16. Are there groups (e.g., beginning farmers, small businesses)
that face challenges using ERS, NASS, and OCE-WAOB data and analytical
products? How can we improve access?
17. USDA produces a number of products associated with outlook and
research output intended to increase the digestibility or access to
statistical and research products. How useful are these associated
products? These include NASS' QuickStats tool for accessing data, ERS
products like the ERS Farm Income and Wealth Statistics, Agricultural
Resource Management Survey (ARMS) data dissemination tool, Amber Waves
or Charts of Note, WASDE data visualization, or other documents? What
formats or presentation styles work best for your intended purpose?
18. How do you assess the credibility and relevance of ERS, NASS,
and OCE-WAOB data and analytical products compared to other providers
(e.g., land-grant or private universities, commercial vendors)?
19. Are there other data or analytical products or reports produced
by other parts of USDA that you consider highly valuable, duplicative,
or redundant? Are there any improvements that you would suggest to
these data or analytical products or reports produced by other parts of
USDA?
20. What is the best way for ERS, NASS, and OCE-WAOB to receive
ongoing feedback on its data and analysis? Are there groups or forums
we should engage with more regularly?
Responses to this RFI are voluntary. Each individual or institution
is requested to submit only one response. Responses should include the
name of the person(s) or organization(s) filing the response. Please
identify your answers by referring to a specific question number within
the response. In order to best serve consumers of ERS, NASS, or OCE-
WAOB data, please be sure to specify which program you would wish to
provide feedback on and when discussing data, please be sure to
indicate which data set you are referring to. This information is
critical to improving the quality of information and data produced by
these programs.
Responses to this RFI may be posted without change online. No
proprietary information, copyrighted information, or personally
identifiable information (PII) should be submitted in response to this
RFI.
This RFI is issued solely for information and planning purposes and
does not constitute a solicitation. There will be no response to
individual submissions. Please note that the United States Government
will not pay for response preparation, or for the use of any
information contained in a response. If submitting a response by mail,
please allow sufficient time for mail processing.
Scott H. Hutchins,
Under Secretary, Research, Education, and Economics Mission Area.
Justin R. Benavidez,
Chief Economist, Office of the Chief Economist.
[FR Doc. 2026-03497 Filed 2-20-26; 8:45 am]
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