A professional who conducts studies, prepares reports, and advises public and private sector administrators on feasibility, cost-effectiveness, and regulatory conformance of proposals for special projects or ongoing programs in such fields as transportation, conservation, or health care. Responsibilities include:

• Consults with administrators or planning councils to discuss overall intent of programs or projects, and determines broad guidelines for studies, utilizing knowledge of subject area, research techniques, and regulatory limitations.
• Reviews and evaluates materials provided with proposals, such as environmental impact statements, construction specifications, or budget or staffing estimates, to determine additional data requirements.
• Conducts field investigations, economic or public opinion surveys, demographic studies, or other research to gather required information.
• Organizes data from all sources, using statistical methods to ensure validity of materials.
• Evaluates information to determine feasibility of proposals or to identify factors requiring amendment.
• Develops alternate plans for program or project, incorporating recommendations, for review of officials.
• Maintains collection of socioeconomic, environmental, and regulatory data related to agency functions, for use by planning and administrative personnel in government and private sectors.
• Reviews plans and proposals submitted by other governmental planning commissions or private organizations to assist in formulation of overall plans for region.