Government Affairs

How GPAC Represents You

Where Demography Meets Democracy

PAA and APC work together to educate policymakers about population research outcomes and support the federal agencies that focus on population—or demographic—research. These objectives are achieved through the work of the PAA/APC Government and Public Affairs Committee (GPAC), whose mission is to:

Educate federal policymakers about the importance of population research and the federal agencies that indirectly and directly support it.
Articulate views of PAA/APC members on relevant issues before the legislative and executive branches of government.
Inform PAA and APC leadership and members about relevant issues and engage their participation in advocacy. With support from the director and deputy director of Government and Public Affairs, GPAC accomplishes its mission by:
Participating in coalitions promoting the interests of the behavioral and social science research community.
Sponsoring briefings, conducting meetings, producing fact sheets, submitting testimony, and responding to federal proposals.
Reporting to PAA/APC members and leadership on the status of relevant policy issues and recommending action.

The Population Association of America (PAA)

The Population Association of America (PAA) is a non-profit, scientific, professional organization that promotes the population sciences. PAA’s 3,000-plus members—which include demographers, economists, health scientists, sociologists and statisticians— study and communicate the societal, individual, and environmental implications of population behavior and population change. Their diverse interests include adolescent health, aging, childcare, marriage and divorce, fertility, immigration and migration, minority health, morbidity and mortality, population forecasting, and retirement.

The Association of Population Centers (APC)

The Association of Population Centers is an organization of almost 40 interdisciplinary centers located at universities and research organizations whose mission is to foster collaborative demographic research and data sharing, translate basic population research for policymakers, and provide educational and training opportunities in population studies.

Get Involved

Respond to PAA Action Alerts and share views with elected officials

Participate in congressional briefings & seminars
Learn how to be an effective advocate for population research
Communicate with federal policymakers and staff in Washington, DC and in home districts

Read the Brochure

PAA/APC
Office of Government and Public Affairs

1436 Duke Street
Alexandria, VA 22314
Tel: 301.565.6710 x 1006
paaapc@popassoc.org
Twitter: @PAAGPac

Annual Visits to Washington

Each year, a delegation of select members from GPAC and invited members of PAA and APC visit key congressional members and staff as well as federal agencies including the National Institute on Aging, National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, NIH Office of Behavioral and Social Science Research, Office of Management and Budget and the National Science Foundation.

The purpose of these visits is to educate congressional staff and federal officials about the importance of funding demographic research and to discuss current issues facing the field.

Population scientists representing 10 states participated in over 40 meetings with congressional offices as part of the 2021 PAA Virtual Advocacy Day.

2019 PAA Advocacy Day participant Dr. Kyler Sherman-Wilkins with Senate staffers Laura Friedel and Desiree Mowry, Appropriations Committee and healthcare staff for Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MO)

2019 PAA Advocacy Day delegation pauses for a photo prior to a full day of meetings (more than 50!) on Capitol Hill to discuss the importance of direct and indirect federal support for population research.

GPAC Members, 2022

Vida Maralani, Chair Cornell University Ithaca, New York	William Dow University of California-Berkeley Berkeley, CA	Jennifer Karas Montez Syracuse University Syracuse, NY
Lisa Berkman Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies Cambridge, MA	Vicki Freedman University of Michigan Ann Arbor, MI	William O'Hare O'Hare Data and Demographic Services, LLC Cape Charles, VA
Jeralynn Cossman University of Texas at San Antonio San Antonio, TX	Jennifer Glick Pennsylvania State University University Park, PA	Pia Orrenius Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas Dallas, TX
Sara Curran University of Washington Seattle, WA	Lina Guzman National Research Center on Hispanic Children and Families Bethesda, MD	Narayan Sastry University of Michigan Ann Arbor, MI
Sonalde Desai University of Maryland College Park, MD	Robert Hummer University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill Chapel Hill, NC	Mary Jo Hoeksema Director, Government and Public Affairs

PAA/APC Coalitions

PAA and APC collaborate with numerous scientific and policy organizations to advocate for behavioral and social science research and the federal agencies that support it.