The Federal Reserve Board announced the start of the Survey of Consumer Finances, a statistical study of household finances. The survey is intended to provide policymakers with insight into the economic condition of a broad cross section of Americans. The current version of this survey has been undertaken every three years since 1983 and is undertaken for the board by NORC, a social science research organization at the University of Chicago.
The data collected is meant to provide a representative picture of what Americans own (from houses and cars to stocks and bonds), how much they borrow, and how they bank. Past study results have contributed to policymaking during the Great Recession, changes in the use of credit, the use of tax-preferred retirement savings accounts, and a range of other issues. The design of the 2022 survey will include adjustments to improve the coverage of minority households in the survey.
Participants in the study are chosen at random from 119 areas, including metropolitan and rural areas across the United States, using a scientific sampling procedure. A representative of NORC contacts each potential participant to explain the study and request time for an interview.
All identifying information is kept confidential and is destroyed following the completion of the survey. NORC is forbidden from disclosing any personal or identifying information to anyone at the Federal Reserve or anywhere else.
In a letter from Federal Reserve Chairman Pro Tempore Jerome Powell, which will be sent to the approximately 13,000 households urging their participation in the survey, Powell explains that this year’s survey along with the data from the 2019 survey will provide the federal government with an image of the effects that the COVID-19 pandemic have had on the financial wellbeing and experiences of American households.