Dallas–Fort Worth Federal Statistical Research Data Center
The Dallas–Fort Worth (DFW) Federal Statistical Research Data Center (FSRDC) allows approved researchers to access, link and analyze confidential microdata from the U.S. Census Bureau as well as several other statistical agencies in a secure environment.
The FSRDC is based in the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas and is funded and overseen by a consortium of universities, the DFW Hospital Council and the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas.
The Census Bureau offers the opportunity for approved researchers to access restricted-use microdata in the RDC. The general data categories the RDC offers are:
Consists of the Economic Censuses, Business Register data, trade data and many other surveys at both the establishment and firm level. Proposals requesting economic data that contains federal tax information will need to go through an additional review process conducted by the IRS.
Consists of the American Community Survey, the Current Population Survey, the Decennial Censuses, the Survey of Income and Program Participation and many other individual and household level surveys.
Survey Questionnaires:
- American Community Survey (ACS)
- American Housing Survey (AHS)
- Current Population Survey (CPS) – Annual Social and Economic (ASEC) Supplement (March)
- Decennial Census
- National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS)
- Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP)
Longitudinal Employer-Household Dynamics (LEHD)
The LEHD Program provides detailed and comprehensive microdata connecting workers and employers to their interaction within the U.S. economy. The working paper describing the LEHD infrastructure is also available.
Researchers requesting access to AHRQ data should follow the NCHS proposal process. Descriptions of the AHRQ data accessible in the RDC are available.
Information on the BEA restricted data access program is available on their website. An informational video about the program is also available.
Information on the BLS restricted data access program and how to apply for BLS data is available on their website.
A quick description of the NCHS RDC program, along with a breakdown of how NCHS projects operate in the environment of a Census RDC, are available on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website. Also provided is the CDC application process for accessing NCHS data in the RDC.
Researchers interested in performing statistical analysis using restricted-use Census Bureau microdata must first complete a project proposal. The proposal will be submitted to the Census Bureau and an extensive review process that evaluates the project’s benefit to the Census Bureau, scientific merit, need for non-public data, feasibility and potential risk of disclosure will take place.
Please use the available resources from the Standard Application Process (SAP) portal to discover relevant information that would pertain to your project. The entire proposal development process can be found in the guidelines.
Send us a couple of paragraphs describing your research topic and the potential datasets you are interested in using. Also, feel free to suggest a time that would work best for a video call.
Using the Research Proposal Guidelines, the researcher will draft all of the items needed for a proposal with the help and guidance of the RDC administrator.
Once the proposal document items are in a good spot, the researcher will submit the application through the SAP portal.
This clearance will take around 2–3 months. Non-U.S. citizens should expect an additional month for clearance. The security clearance process can start as soon as a proposal receives approval from Census. If requesting data from the IRS, this security clearance will run in tandem with IRS review.
Users who are affiliated with a consortium institution do not pay any out-of-pocket project fees, apart from fees assessed by some agency or administrative data providers (see FSRDC network fees). For example, the Census Bureau does not charge users a data access fee.
The fees for users who are not affiliated with a consortium institution are project based. The fees vary depending on several factors, including whether the DFW FSRDC is a primary or secondary site and whether the user has consortium-affiliated co-authors. Limited visitation privileges are negotiable. Please contact the executive director if you wish to enquire about the DFW FSRDC user fees.
Pia Orrenius
Anthony Murphy
Sukumaran Nair
Daniel Millimet
Inga Musselman
Michael Tiefelsdorf
Kate Miller
Jianling Li
Steven Cobbs
Jennifer Miff
Theresa Mendoza
Georgia Kosmopoulou
Lubomir Litov
Suzanne Reinman
John P. Schoeneman
| May 21–22, 2025 | The DFW FSRDC Administrator, Samuel Bondurant, and the Consortium Board Chair, Michael Tiefelsdorf, attended the Annual Texas Demographic Conference hosted in Dallas. |
| Fall 2024 | The Census Bureau will allow the addition of data containing FTI to be accessible through the Virtual RDC program. Read more information about the updated eligibility requirements. |
| March 28, 2024 | Anthony Murphy and Michael Tiefelsdorf voted unanimously as the new Executive Director and Consortium Board Chairman, respectively, for the DFW FSRDC. |
| Summer 2022 | The Census Bureau announced the beginning of the Virtual Research Data Center allowing for researchers with approved projects to access the data remotely. |
| December 6, 2021 | The DFW FSRDC consortium unanimously voted to add the University of Oklahoma as a new member. |
| March 24, 2021 | The FSRDC Presentation Series began hosting RDC projects from across the system. |
| March 5–9, 2021 | The Criminal Justice Administrative Records System (CJARS) hosted an introduction seminar to their new data platform for integrated criminal justice research. |
| June 2020 | The U.S. Census Bureau, in collaboration with five other federal agencies, released the Household Pulse Survey and Small Business Pulse Survey.
These surveys are designed to track changes during the COVID-19 pandemic. Data are at the state, metro area and two-digit NAICS level. The Small Business Pulse Survey is available at the micro level within the RDC. Nearly 100,000 small businesses responded to the survey. Proposals involving this data are available. |
| March 11, 2020 | Outreach presentation at the University of Texas at Dallas |
| February 26, 2020 | Outreach presentation at the University of Texas at Arlington |
| May 1, 2019 | Longitudinal Employer-Household Dynamics (LEHD) Program presentation |
| February 19, 2019 | Metadata from the HUD’s Moving to Opportunity and Family Options Study research programs are available to the public. |
| December 5, 2018 | Grand Opening Ceremony: Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas press release |
- Knowledge Transfer at the Census Bureau, Barbara Downs
- Census Bureau Business Microdata, Randy Becker
- Restricted Demographic and Health Data, Mark Fossett
- RDC Proposal Development, Samuel Bondurant
Highlights Census research, publications, data releases and other accomplishments, including news on the FSRDC program.
All projects are required to submit at least one working paper to this series. Note: the series also includes working papers from internal Census projects as well as working papers from CES Economists.
For doctoral candidates who are actively engaged in dissertation research in economics, sociology, demography or a related field using Census Bureau microdata at an RDC.
A virtual presentation series showcasing currently active or completed RDC projects. See past presentations
Researchers awarded for using the IRIS UMETRICS dataset to address questions about the social and economic returns to investments in research.
This past course taught by Census Bureau economists provided a general overview of the different economic and demographic datasets available within the RDC research environment.
Hosted by the Data Research, Access and Governance Network at the UWE Bristol, July 5–9, 2021, to discuss the question, “What do we know about good practices in microdata access?.”