powers

According to the Law of the National Statistical System, the powers of the Council are the following:

Article 13

a)   To define and approve the general guidelines of official statistical activity and relevant priorities

b)   To define, on an annual basis, nationwide official statistical operations and those solely in the interest of the Autonomous Regions, upon proposal of statistical authorities

c)   To approve technical statistical coordination instruments of mandatory use in the production of official statistics, and promote the respective understanding, publication and use, with the possibility of proposing that the Government extends this imperative use to general government

d)   To approve and lay down prior registration rules applied to the statistical questionnaires of statistical authorities and to other data collection devices that may be used for statistical purposes

e)   To decide on proposals to release data subject to statistical confidenciality, pursuant the provisions of Article 6(5) and (6) 

f)    To ensure respect for the principle of statistical confidentiality on the part of entities requesting confidential information - with the possibility of carrying out audits and other supervisory initiatives in the fulfilment of its deliberations - as well as for the remaining NSS core principles set out in this law, issuing recommendations on steps to be taken

g)   To appraise the plan and budget of the statistical activity of statistical authorities and the respective progress report

h)   To issue recommendations within the scope of the definition of statistical methodologies, concepts and nomenclatures for the use of administrative records to produce official statistics and ensure their implementation

i)    To issue an opinion on proposals for the delegation of powers by Statistics Portugal to other entities, so they may produce and disseminate official statistics, for the purposes of Article 24

j)    To define official statistics associated with the provision of a public service

l)    To report to the competent statistical authorities, for investigation and the possible imposition of sanctions, facts liable to constitute breaches of regulations under the provisions of Article 26, which come to the knowledge of the Statistical Council by virtue of its functions, namely the provisions of sub-paragraph (f)

m)  To approve its rules of procedure

Article 14

The approval of draft decree-laws setting up statistical services or containing rules governing statistical activities shall necessarily be proceded by a consultation of the Statistical Council

Article 15, no 4 

Before the end of each term of office, the Statistical Council shall prepare a situation assessment report for the NSS