Categorizing Nonresponse in Phase III of the 2006 Agricultural Resource Management Survey in Washington State

摘要

The National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) surveys farmers and ranchers in the fifty states and Puerto Rico in order to estimate crops and livestock, assess production practices, and identify economic trends. One of NASS' annual surveys is the Agricultural Resource Management Survey (ARMS). ARMS collects data on chemical usage, production practices, and the financials / economics of agricultural operations. ARMS is composed of three phases. Of the three, Phase III is the only one with response rates generally lower than 80 percent, the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) threshold for assessing the impact of nonresponse bias. The low response rate for this phase increases the probability of biased results. To understand and thereby improve their ARMS III response rate, NASS' Washington Field Office and NASS' Research and Development Division, conducted a study assessing the reasons for nonresponse. The results of this study are summarized in this report.