Guest blog by Robert Groves, Director, U.S. Census Bureau.
Major economic statistics tell us fundamental facts about the state of the economy – where we have been and how we are doing. They allow citizens, businesses, and governments to assess how things are going. Examples of such statistics include Gross Domestic Product (GDP), produced by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA); U.S. international trade in goods and services, produced by the U.S. Census Bureau; and the consumer and producer price indexes, produced by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). While each example statistic is issued by only one statistical agency, some – such as GDP - hit the statistical “trifecta” because they are built from data from all three agencies.
Keeping those statistics up-to-date and relevant to an ever-changing economy is central to the credibility of statistical organizations such as the Census Bureau, BEA, and BLS. It is also a significant challenge for the agencies. We use many tactics and strategies to make sure our data are current and relevant. Getting good advice from experts in relevant fields, through advisory committees, is one of those strategies. Hearing about both the strengths and weaknesses of our data in an open and public setting is essential to improving our data and maintaining their credibility.
I am excited that we get advice from the Federal Economic Statistics Advisory Committee (FESAC). FESAC advises the heads of the Census Bureau and BEA – both in the Department of Commerce – as well as the Department of Labor’s BLS. FESAC’s mission -- to recommend research to address important technical problems -- aims at improving exactly complex economic statistics relying on data from not just one, but two or three of these agencies.