Financial Information Repository (FIR) Audience Definition Research

FIR Public Portal Research Project: Audience Definition Quantitative Study

Questionnaire DRAFT 12/16/13

Goal: Develop estimates of differing levels of interest in government financial information. Determine if there are identifiable segments of the population that should be targeted in subsequent research based on their higher level of interest and/or need.

Introduction

Thank you for responding to this survey about information and sources of data.

1. In which state do you reside? ________ [DISPLAY LIST OF STATES]; BALANCE TO CENSUS REGIONS

2. What is your age? ___________ ; BALANCE TO CENSUS TARGETS

   1. Under 18 [TERMINATE]

   2. Prefer not to say

3. Are you…

   1. Male

   2. Female

   3. Prefer not to say

4. Are you of Hispanic or Latino origin (ethnically)?

   1. Yes

   2. No

   3. Prefer not to say

5. What is your race? Select all that apply.

   1. White or Caucasian

   2. Black or African American

   3. Asian

   4. Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander

   5. American Indian or Alaska Native

   6. Some other race, Specify: ____________________________________

   7. Prefer not to answer

6. The U.S. government generates many different kinds of publicly accessible information including information about the population, health, science, and our economy. Which of the following types of information from the federal government do you use or look at? Select all that apply.

RANDOMIZE	Frequently	Occasionally	Never
Census data
Employment figures
Agricultural statistics
Bureau of Labor Statistics
Center for Disease Control databases
Immigration statistics
Government payments, debt, collections, and accounting
Other (specify)			XXXXXXXX
Other (specify)			XXXXXXXX

7. And which of these same sources would you use more frequently if it was easier to access it? Select all that apply.

RANDOMIZE IN SAME ORDER AS PREVIOUS QUESTION

1. Census data

2. Employment figures

3. Agricultural statistics

4. Bureau of Labor Statistics

5. Center for Disease Control databases

6. Immigration statistics

7. Government payments, debt, collections and accounting

8. Other (specify: ____)

9. None of the above [EXCLUSIVE]

10. Don’t know

8. (ASK IF DO NOT USE AND WOULD NOT USE GOVERNMENT PAYMENTS, DEBTS, COLLECTIONS AND ACCOUNTING INFORMATION) Thinking specifically about federal government data on the money it collects and how it is spent. Which statement comes closest to describing how you think about and use any of this information?

   1. I don’t pay attention to information from the federal government about money collected or spent  SKIP TO Q15

   2. Sometimes I’m interested in information I hear or read about in the media, but I do not take the time to look up a specific piece of government information about money collected or spent  SKIP TO Q15

   3. I occasionally have a reason to look for a specific piece of information from the government about money collected or spent

   4. I have a fairly frequent interest in looking up some kinds of government information about money collected or spent

   5. I am a regular user of at least one kind of federal information about money collected or spent

   6. Don’t know

9. (ASK IF USE OR WOULD USE GOVERNMENT PAYMENTS, DEBTS, COLLECTIONS AND ACCOUNTINGINFORMATION) You indicated that you use or are interested in government payments, collections, debt or other kinds of financial transactions. Which of these statements best describes your use or interest? Please select one.

1. I’m not quite sure how I might use government payments, collections and other financial information

2. I don’t know exactly, but I like the idea that I can access government payments, collections and other financial information if I need to

3. I’m interested in being able to look up some kinds of government payments, collections and other financial information

4. I already am a regular user of at least one kind of federal payments, collections or other financial information

5. Don’t know

10. (IF WOULD USE (B, C, OR D IN PREVIOUS QUESTION)) Which of these are reasons why you do or would use this information? Select all that apply.

    1. Academic analysis

    2. Business purposes

    3. Advocacy of an issue

    4. Journalism

    5. Show other people something important

    6. Personal interest

    7. Something else (specify: ___________)

    8. Don’t know

11. (IF WOULD USE (B, C, or D Q9)) How do you typically get information now about government payments, collections and other financial transactions? Select all that apply.

    1. Government reports

    2. Federal budget reports

    3. Congressional reports

    4. Media

    5. Government websites and either view or download

    6. Other websites and either view or download

    7. Freedom of information requests

    8. Some other method (specify: ___________)

    9. None

    10. Don’t know

12. If information about government payments, collections and other financial transactions was made more accessible, easier to analyze and customize through a website, what kinds of information would you be interested in?

Select all that apply.

1. Government payments sorted by types of expenditures

2. Government payments sorted by agencies (such as Social Security, Medicare, etc.)

3. Government payments sorted by geographic areas (such as by state)

4. Government collections sorted by source

5. Overdue debts by type of debt (such as student loans, farm loans, etc.)

6. Contract awards and payments

7. Accounting information

8. All of these

9. None of these

10. Don’t know

13. Still thinking about government payments, collections and other financial information, are you more interested in…

Please select one.

1. Seeing existing reports that are already prepared on a website

2. Being able to create customized reports on a website

3. Downloading datasets from a website

4. Not sure

14. (IF WOULD LIKE TO BE ABLE TO CUSTOMIZE) What would you like to be able to do? Select all that apply.

1. Make comparisons to data from other sources

2. Do historical analyses

3. Isolate information for a specific geographic area, like a state

4. Isolate information related to a specific activity, like student loans

5. Do other kinds of statistical or comparative analyses

6. All of the above

7. None of the above

8. Not sure

15. (ASK ALL) Which of these statements comes closest to how you feel about how much information the federal government should share about the financial transactions of the government.

    1. The government already shares too much financial information with the public

    2. The government needs to limit the amount of detail contained in information it shares

    3. Government reporting is about right

    4. The government should be more open and make it easier for the public to see financial information

    5. The government should do much more to make it easy for people to see and use financial information

    6. No opinion

Demographics

16. What is your employment status?

    1. Employed full-time

    2. Self-employed

    3. Employed part-time

    4. Student

    5. Full-time homemaker

    6. Not employed but looking for work

    7. Not employed and not looking for work

    8. Retired

    9. Prefer not to say

17. (IF EMPLOYED FULL, SELF OR PART-TIME) What type of business or organization best describes your employer?

    1. Government (federal, state, or local)

    2. Financial services

    3. Legal or law enforcement

    4. Education

    5. Healthcare or social services

    6. Office (managerial, technical, clerical, other professional)

    7. Physical labor (including construction, manufacturing, agriculture, cleaning and childcare)

    8. Retail or sales

    9. Restaurant or food service

    10. Military

    11. Other, specify: __________________

    12. Don’t know

    13. Prefer not to say

18. (IF GOVERNMENT, FINANCIAL, LEGAL, EDUCATION, HEALTHCARE, OFFICE) Which of the following best describes your specific job title?

    1. Accountant

    2. Economist

    3. Academic Researcher

    4. Professor, Assistant Professor, etc.

    5. Teacher or Instructor

    6. Financial Analyst

    7. Business Analyst

    8. Computer Scientist or Engineer

    9. Attorney or Lawyer

    10. Social Scientist or Researcher

    11. Other, specify: __________________

    12. Don’t know

    13. Prefer not to say

19. What was the highest level of education you completed?

    1. Less than high school

    2. Graduated high school

    3. Some college (no degree)/Associate degree (Technical or vocational)

    4. Bachelor degree

    5. Graduate or professional degree

    6. Prefer not to answer