Confidentiality and Data Quality Protocols for BSAI Crab Economic Data A Discussion and Pro.pdfVIP

Confidentiality and Data Quality Protocols for BSAI Crab Economic Data: A Discussion and Proposal by The Economics and Social Sciences Research Program Alaska Fisheries Science Center Seattle, WA Based on public testimony and a recommendation from the Advisory Panel at the December 2006 meeting, the Council passed a motion directing staff to develop protocols concerning data collected under the BSAI crab rationalization Economic Data Reporting (EDR) program. The protocols are to apply to two general areas, 1) maintaining data confidentiality and 2) assessing the quality of the data to ensure accuracy. To maintain confidentiality, the Council directed staff to develop protocols for Council review specifying aggregation requirements to avoid revealing proprietary data of fishery participants. This reiterates directions given in the February, 2003 Council Motion on Crab Rationalization: The agencies will develop a protocol for the use of the data, including controls on access to the data, rules for aggregation of data for release to the public, penalties for release of confidential data, and penalties for unauthorized use. The December motion concerning data quality identified several areas of interest to the Council. First, the Council recommended that staff develop descriptions of data, their quality, deficiencies, and variability. These descriptions, in turn, would be used to draft protocols specifying appropriate scope of use for the data. In addition, descriptions would be used to determine appropriate revisions to the EDR questionnaires. This discussion paper outlines the confidentiality and data quality issues to be resolved and the process that AFSC staff, in collaboration with Council and Region staff, will undertake to develop both sets of protocols to ensure that indu