Using administrative records to assess earnings reporting error in the survey of income and program participation

This paper analyzes income misreporting propensities and magnitudes using the 1992 SIPP longitudinal file matched to Social Security Summary Earnings Records. Specifically, we focus on wage and salary and self-employment earnings. Our findings suggest that the 1992 SIPP accurately estimates the net number of earnings recipients, but tends to underestimate the amounts received. The misreporting pattern reveals that respondents on the lowest end of the income distribution tend to overreport earnings, while those at the higher end of the earnings distribution are more likely to underreport earnings. Additionally, it is shown that demographic characteristics can be used in a predictive model of misreporting, but they explain a larger fraction of the variation in overreporting than underreporting.