U.S. Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Gary Peters (D-MI) are urging the federal government to release economic data before the Federal Reserve’s December meeting.
Saying the Trump Administration was using the U.S. Government Shutdown as an excuse to delay releasing economic data about the U.S. economy, the senators said the administration needs to not only release data that was withheld during the 43-day shutdown, but to resume normally scheduled data releases as soon as possible.
“In recent weeks, the Trump Administration has failed to release September jobs data. Then, on November 12, 2025, the White House announced it would not release October’s jobs data or CPI numbers – a decision made while most agency staff with data expertise remained on furlough, unable to evaluate existing datasets or identify gaps…. The Administration has blamed these delays and cancellations on the government shutdown,” the senators wrote. “Instead, it appears that the Trump Administration may be intentionally restricting the release of data. According to former Trump-appointed BLS Commissioner Bill Beach, for example, the September jobs data was ‘likely written in final draft’ before the government shutdown. Yet the Administration refused to release this data.”
No releasing the information could be damaging to any action the Fed may take, they said.
“This data is critical for American businesses and policymakers, including the Federal Reserve (Fed), which will rely on this data as it considers interest rate cuts on December 9 and 10, 2025. Any failure by the Trump Administration to release delayed data could have disastrous consequences for our economy as Americans struggle to afford groceries, housing, and daily living expenses,” they wrote. “The Administration must release as much economic data as possible before the Fed’s meeting and resume normally scheduled data releases as soon as possible. Furthermore, it must clarify to the public which data were and were not collected during the shutdown, as well as provide a detailed explanation for any decision made to discontinue collection, halt processing, or cancel completely any data that was delayed due to the government shutdown.”
The Senators asked the Administration to address the economic data delays no later than Dec. 1.