U.S. Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Raphael Warnock (D-GA) are raising concerns about what they call the Trump Administration’s escalating efforts to dismantle the nation’s independent economic data infrastructure.
In a letter to Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, the senators cited a series of recent actions by the Trump Administration that threaten the independence and reliability of key economic statistics. They cite the dismantling of multiple advisory committees at the Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA).
These committees—made up of unpaid, nonpartisan economists and data experts—have historically played a crucial role in ensuring the quality of critical data like jobs, wage growth, inflation, and GDP.
“We write today to request information about how the Federal Reserve (the Fed) plans to protect the integrity of the data it relies on for critical economic decisions, amid disturbing reports that the Trump Administration has dismissed several key economic advisers and data experts at the Departments of Labor and Commerce (DOL, Commerce),” the senators wrote to Powell. “The Federal Reserve relies on data from these agencies to set interest rates and take other actions to execute its dual mandate of maximum employment and stable prices.
The lawmakers are also seeking answers about how the Federal Reserve plans to safeguard the accuracy and integrity of the data it uses to set interest rates and manage inflation and employment. Specially, they want to know whether the Fed has protocols to vet data from outside agencies, how the dismantling of advisory committees could impact the Fed’s ability to meet its dual mandate of stable prices and maximum employment, and how the Fed has historically used data shaped by the now-disbanded advisory groups.
“One thing we all agree on is the importance of accurate and high-quality economic data. Without it, policymakers would lack a necessary tool to improve the economy for American consumers, workers, and businesses,” Warren and Warnock wrote.