Attachment Q - Response Rates in the CE

U .S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics

2 Massachusetts Ave. N.E.

Washington, D.C. 20212

August 10, 2017

MEMORANDUM FOR: DAVID C. SWANSON, Supervisory Mathematical Statistician

Branch of Consumer Expenditure Surveys

Division of Price Statistical Methods

Office of Prices and Living Conditions

FROM: SHARON L. KRIEGER, Mathematical Statistician

Branch of Consumer Expenditure Surveys

Division of Price Statistical Methods

Office of Prices and Living Conditions

SUBJECT: 2016 Response Rates for the Interview and Diary Surveys

The response rate for eligible Consumer Units (CUs) in the 2016 Interview survey is 63.0% as shown below. The table also shows response rates from 2012 thru 2015 as a comparison.

Interview Survey

Collection Year	CUs Designated for the Survey	Type B or C Nonresponses	Total Eligible CUs	Type A Nonresponses	Interviews	Response Rate for Eligible CUs
2012	47,756	8,921	38,835	11,842	26,993	69.5%
2013	47,524	8,382	39,142	13,034	26,108	66.7%
2014	47,529	8,526	39,003	13,095	25,908	66.4%
2015	44,295	7,603	36,692	13,118	23,574	64.2%
2016	48,253	7,878	40,375	14,934	25,441	63.0%

The counts for 2012 thru 2014 are for interviews 2 through 5, which excludes the bounding interviews. The bounding interview was discontinued at the beginning of 2015 so no bounding interviews are in 2015 or later years.¹ Also, there was a sample design change in 2015. The Interview survey counts for 2015 are for the “2010-based” sample design. There were no cases in January 2015 in that sample design, which is the reason the number of CUs designated for the survey dropped from 47,529 in 2014 to 44,295 in 2015.

The response rate for eligible Consumer Units (CUs) in the 2016 Diary survey is 56.7% as shown below. The table also shows response rates from 2012 thru 2015 as a comparison.

Diary Survey

Collection Year	CUs Designated for the Survey	Type B or C Nonresponses	Total Eligible CUs	Type A Nonresponses	Interviews	Response Rate for Eligible CUs
2012	25,356	5,058	20,298	6,537	13,761	67.8%
2013	25,362	5,066	20,296	7,961	12,335	60.8%
2014	25,606	5,130	20,476	7,170	13,306	65.0%
2015	24,961	4,444	20,517	8,676	11,841	57.7%
2016	24,666	4,275	20,391	8,839	11,552	56.7%

Type B or C nonresponses are housing units that are vacant, nonexistent, or ineligible for interview. Type A nonresponses are housing units which the interviewers were unable to contact or the respondents refused to participate in the survey. The response rates stated above are based only on the eligible housing units (i.e., the designated sample less type B and C nonresponses).

OPLC/SMD/Krieger/slk/08102017/A17026

cc: J. Brattland

A. Cobet

S. Curtin

L. Erhard

T. Garner

S. Henderson

S. King

B. Nix

B. Passero

S. Reyes-Morales

A. Safir

B. Steinberg

1 The bounding interview, which recorded recent major expenditures for comparison with subsequent purchases, was determined to be unnecessary, and was dropped at the beginning of 2015 to save money and reduce respondent burden and collection costs.