Stata read-in for CPS ASEC Bridge data file?

[Asha Saavoss]

Hi! Apparently, the Census has released a modified version of the Current Population Survey (CPS) Annual Social and Economic Supplement (ASEC) file. This file is called the "Bridge Data File." It uses some updated questions and imputation methods which produce some very different results than the regular file. It can be downloaded here.

NBER and IPUMS both provide Stata read-in programs for the CPS, but they don't seem to have them for the Bridge Data File. Census doesn't provide Stata read-in files. It's also difficult to write one, because the codebook is in a non-machine readable PDF.

Does anyone know if any Stata read-in statements are available anywhere? Would anyone who has written a read-in program be willing to share their code?

Thanks!

[Phil Bromiley]

You didn't get a quick answer. I didn't see a bridge reader when I googled it. The two suggests no one has distributed one yet. If you know any Stata users who are heavy users of these data, you might ask if they've written such a procedure.

If not, this is an opportunity for you to write the definitive procedure for reading the data!