The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) Panel on Estimates of Poverty for Small Geographic Areas (Panel) was convened by the Committee on National Statistics and has been charged with the task of reviewing the methodology used to develop state- and county-specific estimates of children in poverty. These estimates are used by the Department of Education for the disbursement of over $8 billion in Title I funds for education programs for disadvantaged children. Consequently, the scientific rigor of the estimation process and the quality of the input data are of principal concern to the government.

The Bureau of the Census staff (David Waddington, Alexander Strand, Joe Dalaker, and others) and a NAS consultant (Robert Santos of the National Opinion Research Center) have collaborated to conduct an investigation and produce this report, which has four objectives:

1) document the process used in assessing child poverty estimates for Puerto Rico;

2) provide a brief overview of the methodology used in the 1996 Puerto Rican Family Income Survey (PRFIS);

3) provide our assessment of the methodology used in the PRFIS, noting both strengths and limitations; and

4) document our recommendations for improving the PRFIS.