Nancy Potok

Federal Statistician Nancy Potok will retire from her leadership job at the Office of Management and Budget after a busy year coordinating the rollout of the Trump administration’s policies on data-driven decision-making.

Nearly a year after President Donald Trump signed the bill into law, agencies still have only a murky idea of what data they can share, and with whom.

Former Commission on Evidence-Based Policymaking members say it’s time for Congress to reconsider recommendations that never got off the ground.

How is the U.S. federal government leveraging data as a strategic asset? How is the federal government building the infrastructure for evidence-based policymaking? What does the future hold for the federal data and statistical communities? Join host Michael Keegan as he explores these questions and more with Nancy Potok, Chief Statistician of the U.S. within the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).

In order for agencies to get a better understanding of what’s expected from them under the Evidence Act, OMB soon expects to release guidance.

The new law requires agencies to appoint a chief evaluation officer, whose job will involve asking key questions about the effectiveness of agency programs, and finding ways to measure their effectiveness.

Some agencies are linking data to performance management in order to make more informed, evidence-based decisions about spending on their programs.

Evidence-based policymaking isn’t necessarily to let others look over the shoulders of federal programs, but rather to help those programs succeed.

New data, technology create an avenue for public and agencies to grow closer together

The people-counting agency has learned from some big mistakes. Now, Chief Operating Officer Nancy Potok shares some lessons with Federal News Radio.