Survey of Financial Security 2012 - expenses

Question

I have a patron who is interested in using the Survey of Financial Security to run a multi-year analysis (1999, 2005, 2012). However, she needs to use the expense variables, and while these are present in 1999 and 2005, the derived variables aren’t present in the 2012 PUMF and I’ve been unable to find if they were even asked in 2012. I’m referring to the questions that in the 2005 PUMF were used to create ECFEXCHR (child-related expenses), ECFEXHMR (home related expenses), and ECFEXVHR (vehicle related expenses.

Was the entire block of questions used to create these variables dropped in 2012, or are they still on the master file?

Also, I’ve found references to a Survey of Financial Security 1983, which someone seems to have had a PUMF of at one point (Princeton seems to have). Is this available anywhere?

Answer

Subject matter has confirmed that -

1- The section on expenses is no longer on the 2012 Survey of Financial Security; and nor will it be available for the 2016 SFS, even on the Master File.

2- Concerning references to a Survey of Financial Security 1983, which someone seems to have had a PUMF of at one point (Princeton seems to have).

There is a PUMF for 1983/1984 Survey of Consumer Finance(SCF), asset and debt survey(not Survey of Financial Security) available on the EFT:

Unfortunately there seem to be little supporting documentation.