How would you assign a date constant in SAS?

In SAS, assigning a date constant requires the use of a specific format to ensure that SAS recognizes the value as a date. The correct method to assign a date constant is by using the notation that includes the date in quotes followed by a 'd'.

Option C uses this notation correctly with '14FEB2009'd. The quotation marks denote that the input is a string, and the suffix 'd' indicates that this string should be interpreted as a date constant in SAS. By doing this, SAS converts the string representation of the date into an internal date value that can be used for date calculations, comparisons, and other date-related functions.

The other options do not follow this correct syntax for date constants. For example, while option A presents a date format, it lacks any indicators for SAS to recognize the variable as a date. Option B assigns a string to 'evaldate' but does not recognize it as a date. Option D uses the correct notation for date constants; however, the variable name 'datevar' in option D is not directly related to the chosen answer, emphasizing that the correct choice must utilize the appropriate format with 'd'.

Thus, option C is the only choice that fulfills SAS requirements for assigning a date constant effectively