Warren Presses Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis on Changes to Key Economic Data Metrics, Potentially Affecting Inflation Readings
“As American families continue to struggle with high inflation caused by President Trump’s economic policies, policymakers need access to reliable data about the economy so they can make informed decisions that will impact Americans’ cost of living.”
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Ranking Member of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, sent a letter to Under Secretary of Commerce Joyce Meyer and Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) Director Vipin Arora requesting information regarding recent changes to how the Trump Administration measures inflation and produces important statistical data, including reports that some of these changes may have been made without consultation of key experts.
On June 24, the BEA announced an alteration to its methodology for calculating the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) price index — the Federal Reserve’s (the Fed) preferred inflation gauge — for categories including portfolio management, legal services, and computer software and accessories. Economists estimate the changes could push down reported inflation. The timing is significant given President Trump’s ongoing pressure on the Fed’s monetary policy decisions.
“Given that the Federal Reserve relies on PCE data to set interest rates and take other actions to execute its dual mandate of maximum employment and stable prices, changes to these metrics could have meaningful effects on American families and workers,” wrote the Ranking Member.
Commerce in June also barred federal statistical agencies from using noise infusion, a longstanding technique for protecting individuals’ privacy in local data, in favor of coarsening — a method that produces broader, less detailed estimates or no data at all. Warren highlighted concerns that this change would inhibit policymakers’ and market participants’ ability to understand the regions they serve, and that outside experts were seemingly not consulted.
“It is more important than ever that the Department and BEA publicly explain and justify their decisions to change methodologies that will affect American households,” the Ranking Member concluded, noting the changes follow a string of Trump Administration attacks on the U.S. statistical system, including the firing of BLS Commissioner Dr. Erika McEntarfer and the cancellation of a monthly jobs report during last year’s government shutdown.
Ranking Member Warren requested detailed responses from Meyer and Arora to better understand the methodological changes and how the Department of Commerce and BEA arrived at these decisions by August 20, 2026.
###
Next Article Previous Article