How U.S. Integrated Data Systems Are Funded and Staffed
Governments collect and hold a great deal of data about their residents. Understanding the way that data is used has never been more critical, particularly in the United States where the misuse of government data has made recent headlines. At the same time, many organisations across the country are using these data responsibly to improve lives.
Integrated data systems (IDS) enable government agencies, universities, and community-based organisations to link and analyse administrative data in ways that help them better understand the needs of residents. These systems operate under strict protocols designed to protect privacy and ensure that the benefits of data use outweigh potential risks. However, relatively little is known about how IDS are developed, funded, and staffed.
The International Journal of Population Data Science (IJPDS) recently published A landscape overview of integrated data systems funding and staffing models across the U.S. (2026), a study of how integrated data systems operate, providing critical insights for future efforts to efficiently, effectively, and ethically share and use public sector data.
This research was conducted by Actionable Intelligence for Social Policy (AISP), an initiative based at the University of Pennsylvania School of Social Policy and Practice that supports IDS across the U.S. Since 2008, AISP has identified, surveyed, and convened IDS that routinely link individual level data to improve policies and programs.
The study combined survey data collected in 2023 and 2025 with interview data from 2024 to better understand how these systems are funded, staffed, and develop over time. The survey data provided a longitudinal perspective, while interviews offered deeper insight into current conditions, how budgeting and staffing have evolved, and how systems plan to develop in the future.
The researchers found that while there are many paths to develop an IDS, successful systems share several common characteristics. Personnel is typically the largest expense, rather than technology. Although IDS are often perceived as primarily technical, the study highlights that people and relationships are central to their success.
Funding models also vary widely. Most systems rely on a combination of government funding —at the local, state, and/or federal levels — alongside philanthropic support, and fees for services. The authors note that there is no single model for success; instead the “origin story” of an IDS often explains why it is funded and staffed in the way that it is.
As governments increasingly seek to strengthen their data capacity, understanding how public sector data systems develop and operate is becoming more important. AISP has been surveying integrated data systems in the U.S. since 2008 and the landscape has grown exponentially during that time.
Lead author Amy Hawn Nelson explains, “This work explores variation in how governments across the country are developing shared data systems to improve the lives of people while protecting their information from misuse. Our hope is that this examination of successfully operating integrated data systems can provide an important foundation for new groups embarking upon this critical work.”
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Dr Amy Hawn Nelson, Actionable Intelligence for Social Policy (AISP), University of Pennsylvania, USA