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BUREAU OF ECONOMIC ANALYSIS AND THE OFFICE OF THE UNDERSECRETARY FOR ECONOMIC AFFAIRS

The Office of the Under Secretary for Economic Affairs is charged with conducting economic analysis, promoting business and commerce, guiding data-driven deci- sion-making and evidence-building activities, and increasing access to government data while ensuring privacy and confidentiality. The office coordinates economic analysis needs across the Department of Commerce, leads the department’s initia- tives and programs related to data, data policy, and data management, and provides policy direction and oversight for the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) and the Census Bureau. In addition to the Under Secretary for Economic Affairs, key staff roles in the office include the Chief Economist and the Chief Data Officer. The office could be an effective tool for a new Administration if it focuses its efforts on supporting the Department’s mission to ensure the conditions for eco- nomic growth and opportunity—conducting economic analysis and producing data for key departmental policy initiatives, as well as working across agencies to support broader Administration goals. As the office charged with providing policy direction and oversight for BEA and the Census Bureau, new leadership should take an early and active role within both bureaus.

BEA is a federal statistical agency under the Office of the Undersecretary for Economic Affairs. BEA’s mission is to promote a better understanding of the U.S. economy by providing timely, relevant, and accurate economic accounts data in an objective manner. BEA is responsible for producing economic indicators such as the U.S. gross domestic product (GDP), state and local GDP estimates, foreign trade and investment statistics, industry data, and consumer spending numbers. The data produced by BEA are used by government and business decision-mak- ers to understand the state of the nation’s economy. A new Administration should ensure that BEA conducts its statistical analysis in a consistent and objective manner, with the Undersecretary for Economic Affairs taking a strong interest in BEA’s operations and data products.

A new Administration should also study the feasibility of merging all statistical agencies (Census Bureau, Bureau of Economic Analysis, and the Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics, etc.) under one bureau to increase efficiency and better coordinate cross-departmental issues.

CENSUS BUREAU

The Census Bureau’s core mission is to execute the executive branch’s constitu- tional mandate to conduct a census every 10 years, but its activities have steadily grown and shifted to include the economic census, American Communities Survey, and further functions outside of its core mission. An incoming conservative Administration should focus on three areas: day-to- day management, the decennial census, and other programs. Each of these will

need to be addressed at every stage of the transition and policy implementation process and will require that both committed political appointees and like-minded career employees are in immediately put in place to execute a conservative agenda. These will need to be placed both in the Census Bureau and in key department-level managerial positions, such as those in the CFO/ASA’s office. Day-to-Day Management

Financial management, information technology, and human resources. The new Administration must immediately conduct a review to identify ways to better control costs and reverse recent failures of investments intended to upgrade the financial management, information technology, and human resources systems of the Census Bureau. Leveraging technology. The Census Bureau should focus on continuing to incorporate technology into its day-to-day operations, as well as the execution of its surveys, to reduce costs and provide more accurate and timely data to the American public.

Prioritizing cybersecurity and protection of confidential information. Because much of the data collected by the Census Bureau include personal and confidential information, a focus on protecting data and implementing proper data protocols is necessary to ensure compliance with the legal requirements of Title 13. Decennial Census l Fully vet existing planning and budgeting from Day One. Planning and budgets for the 2030 decennial census will be finalized in fall 2025, including many decisions on how to use, develop, and administer the count. An incoming Administration should immediately audit the lifecycle cost estimate (LCCE) for the 2030 census and conduct a new LCCE if necessary. This will ensure that budget requests are accurate and up-to-date and

Command and control. Strong political leadership is needed to increase efficiency and align the Census Bureau’s mission with conservative principles. Personnel is key to ensuring that a new Administration can guide preparations for the 2030 census and oversee the continued operation of the Bureau’s many surveys. To move bureaucracy on key priorities, appointed staff should be in place at the Bureau as early as feasible after a new President takes office. This will require the Office of Personnel Management to allocate additional political appointee positions to the Census Bureau.

allow the new Administration to understand the decennial process in greater detail.

Review the partnership program. This program, designed to promote responsiveness to the census by employing trusted voices in various communities, deserves careful scrutiny. A new Administration should work to actively engage with conservative groups and voices to promote response to the decennial census. Promoting response to the decennial census will ensure that the most accurate counts are conducted, leading to a more accurate apportionment of congressional representation and allocation of federal funds. In 2020, lack of conservative participation was one factor in an undercount in some areas of the country, affecting representation of certain states.

Remove duplicative functions to increase efficiency. As part of the above review, ensure the decennial operational plan eliminates current duplication among ongoing census operations (annual surveys, etc.) and decennial operations in information technology, human resources, etc. This overlap has been estimated to waste billions of dollars in the years leading up to each decennial census. l

Add a citizenship question. Despite finding that the Trump Administration’s addition of the citizenship question to the 2020 decennial census violated the Administrative Procedures Act, the Supreme Court held that the Secretary of Commerce does have broad authority to add a citizenship question to the decennial census. Any successful conservative Administration must include a citizenship question in the census. Asking a citizenship question is considered best practice even by the United Nations. By law, the Census Bureau must deliver the decennial census subjects/ topics to Congress three years before Census Day (in this case, by April 1, 2027). Questions must be presented to Congress two years before Census Day (April 1, 2028).

Review forthcoming changes to race and ethnicity questions. The current Administration has announced its intent to change data collection methods regarding race and ethnicity by combining the two questions on the decennial questionnaire and increasing the number of available options. A new conservative Administration should take control of this process and thoroughly review any changes. There are concerns among conservatives that the data under Biden Administration proposals could be skewed to bolster progressive political agendas. Government data should be

unbiased and trusted—and an incoming conservative Administration should ensure that is the case. This work must be coordinated with the Office of Management and Budget, which governs federal data collection standards via its statistical directives. l Reevaluate all decennial census questions. Determine how best to optimize use of the decennial census to determine whether current or additional questions provide added value in coordination with other departments that utilize the information. Overly intrusive questions or less crucial data should either be moved to another survey or removed from Census programs entirely.

Other Census Programs

The Economic Census. This is the official five-year measurement of American business and the economy. The first Economic Census in a new Administration will take place in 2027 and have a major effect on federal spending and policy determinations. This survey collects business data that are a key input for ongoing government statistics such as BEA’s GDP reports. As with the decennial census and ACS, it should be carefully examined to ensure the Economic Census is not overly intrusive. Additionally, the Census Bureau should work with other federal agencies to determine when data collection can be supplemented by industry and other federal business indicators.

Pulse surveys. During the government’s early response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Census Bureau began experimental pulse surveys. These were designed to obtain data closer to real-time than typical census surveys. These data could be a useful tool to the Department of Commerce and other partners across government and provide a model for improving data collection techniques or reducing the overall footprint of the Census Bureau.

The American Communities Survey. After the decennial census, the next biggest statistical survey conducted by the Census Bureau is the American Communities Survey (ACS). As with the decennial census, each question should be carefully reviewed to ensure the data are useful and that the questions are not overly intrusive. There should be collaboration with other departments that use the information collected on these surveys (e.g., the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, etc.) to determine how to optimize the use and collection of particular information.

Supplemental Poverty Measure. The Census Bureau should review the Supplemental Poverty Measure (SPM) to consider whether it provides an accurate measure for use by the Council of Economic Advisers and others. The findings from this review should also be taken into consideration when constructing the Current Survey and other supplemental surveys, so that the SPM can be better tracked on a trend basis and support better policy decisions over time. This information would be particularly helpful in determining how to combat homelessness in conjunction with Department of Health and Human Services programs.

Abolish the National Advisory Committee and reevaluate all other committees. The Census Bureau National Advisory Committee on Racial, Ethnic, and Other Populations (NAC) was established by the Obama Administration in 2012 and rechartered by the Biden Administration in 2022. The committee is a hotbed for left-wing activists intent upon injecting racial and social-justice theory into the governing philosophy of the Census Bureau. The NAC should immediately be abolished by the incoming Administration. The NAC charter gives the Secretary of Commerce the authority to terminate the committee. Since the Secretary of Commerce established the NAC in 2012 under the FACA, the Secretary is authorized to terminate the NAC. The new Administration should also reevaluate and potentially abolish all non-statutory standing committees within the Census Bureau, including the Census Scientific Advisory Committee.