What is a global statement in SAS?

A global statement in SAS is characterized by its ability to be placed outside of data steps and PROC steps, allowing for broader execution across your entire SAS program. This means that global statements can be defined at any point in the program and will remain in effect until they are explicitly changed or until the end of the SAS session.

These statements often include options and settings that apply to the entire session, such as the TITLE, FOOTNOTE, OPTIONS, and LIBNAME statements. Since they don’t rely on the context of a specific data or procedure step, they ensure that certain parameters are maintained consistently throughout the processing of SAS code.

In contrast, statements that can only be used within a step are typically limited to the specific context of either a DATA step or a PROC step and cannot influence the global environment. Similarly, variable definition statements are local, defining values only within the scope of a specific DATA step. Being limited to PROC steps means the statements are encapsulated within that particular procedure's execution context and do not extend their effects beyond it. Hence, the defining feature of global statements is their capacity for global applicability across an entire SAS session, making option C the correct answer.