.....As I have consistently argued, new data, evidence, and statistics need to be created outside of government. There are so many good people working in the federal government, but the bureaucracy can’t be as agile in hiring and paying the right people, in upgrading its computing infrastructure, and in getting approvals and funding. For fast-moving areas such as AI, private and nonprofit sectors outside of government need to take the lead on innovation and let the government benefit by later incorporating what is learned into the data series they produce. A new and independent entity must be established.

It is increasingly clear that this should be a new Center for Data and Evidence that is outside the federal government. The Center should be designed to ensure that the results are modern, flexible, and driven by demand. It should be responsive to the incentives that are lacking within the current federal data system so that it can respond to new needs. That means that the new Center should be independently funded and non-partisan, charged with securely hosting data and supporting programs and research with bottom-up, demand-driven tools and insights for businesses, workers, and governments.

Many successful institutions have set precedents. Take, for example, the highly respected Urban Institute and MDRC. Each institution was established with joint funding from a government agency and philanthropic foundation to do independent research and analysis. While the funding structure might be similar, the design of the Center would reflect our new reality.....

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