The Nation’s Data at a Crossroads

Report by the American Statistical Association: “Since January 2025, Executive Branch initiatives have resulted in cut or frozen contracts for statistical services and significant decreases in statistical staff through layoffs and aggressively incentivizing employees to leave federal service. Loss of staff means the loss of priceless institutional knowledge and hinders statistical agencies’ ability to fulfill their legal obligations. Some agencies—such as the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), reduced to only three staff in March—have been hit especially hard, while other agencies have suffered varying degrees of damage from broader budget cuts and hiring freezes. As a result, agencies have cut data products and programs and are weakened in their ability to collect and maintain reliable data going forward. A possible instance of likely improper political influence according to Politico occurred when the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) held up the release of a report from the Economic Research Service (ERS) based on concerns it forecasted an increase in the agricultural trade deficit. Additionally, it is not clear what the future implications are of replacing the career civil service Chief Statistician of the United States on July 11 with a political appointee. Many have advocated for higher visibility of the chief statistician position within the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB), but this change was done without any consultation with the user community, which has raised questions…(More)”.