DOGE layoffs may have compromised the accuracy of government data

In the early days of President Donald Trump’s second term in office, federal websites went dark and data disappeared as the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency set its sights on streamlining the government.

The Consumer Price Index is more than just the most widely used inflation gauge and a measurement of Americans’ purchasing power. Its robust data plays a key role in the US economy’s trajectory as well as monthly mortgage payments, Social Security checks, financial aid packages, business contracts, pay negotiations and curiosity salves for those who wonder what Kevin McCallister’s $19.83 grocery bill in “Home Alone” might cost today. However, this gold standard piece of economic data has become a little less precise recently: The Bureau of Labor Statistics posted a notice on Wednesday stating that it stopped collecting data in three not-so-small cities (Lincoln, Nebraska; Buffalo, New York; and Provo, Utah) and increased “imputations” for certain items (a statistical technique that, when boiled down to very rough terms, essentially means more educated guesses). The BLS notice states that the collection reductions “may increase the volatility of subnational or item-specific indexes” and are expected to have “minimal impact” on the overall index. The Trump administration’s drastic cutbacks of government spending and the federal workforce have economists, researchers and statisticians sounding the alarm that the reliability and accuracy of economic data could become a casualty to those efforts. “The BLS’s need to infer more data points due to personnel and funding constraints is deeply concerning,” Gregory Daco, EY-Parthenon’s chief economist, told CNN. “It raises legitimate questions about the reliability and timeliness of critical economic indicators.”