Questions for the next BLS Commissioner

USAFacts invites the Senate to use these questions and resources as it deliberates the nomination of Brett Matsumoto for Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The Senate is considering President Trump’s nomination of Brett Matsumoto to serve as Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is the federal principal statistical agency that measures labor market activity, working conditions, price changes, and productivity across the economy. It produces some of the world’s most closely watched economic indicators, including the monthly jobs report and the Consumer Price Index. Policymakers, businesses, and the American public use these indicators to understand the state of the economy, the labor market, and inflation.


We suggest the following questions about the importance of BLS data and opportunities to modernize the statistical agency.

Data Dissemination


The Federal Reserve, Congress, and the administration all use BLS data to make highly consequential economic policy decisions. Whether informing tax and spending decisions, regulatory actions, or monetary policy, BLS data are among the most important used by government officials to make decisions for our country.

  • How do you think the BLS could better disseminate its data to support data-informed decision making?

USAFacts and the Partnership for Public Service’s Federal Data Excellence Standards highlight several steps agencies can take so Americans can get data that is easier to access, helpful to users, interoperable, and timely.

  • In what ways do you want the BLS to strengthen access to its data by the American public?

Modernizing Economic Data


While the US government’s data ecosystem is still the global gold standard, it has become technologically and methodologically outdated in many ways. Artificial intelligence (AI) is placing more demands than ever on government data.

  • What steps do you think the BLS and other data agencies should take to modernize government data to meet today’s technology and information demands?

The Current Population Survey and other government surveys have long struggled with falling survey response rates as more Americans decline to complete government questionnaires. This often leads to large revisions of preliminary estimates, undercutting confidence in government data.

  • What steps do you think the BLS and Congress should take to counter this trend and build greater trust in data?

There have been several proposals over the decades, including one by the current administration, to consolidate data from the BLS, the Census Bureau, and the Bureau of Economic Analysis.

  • What steps do you think should be taken to improve coordination and data integration across government data agencies?

AI-Ready Data


In March, the White House called on Congress to provide resources to make federal datasets “AI-ready” as part of its National Policy Framework for Artificial Intelligence. The previous administration also prioritized AI-ready government data, evidenced by guidance issued by the Department of Commerce. As USAFacts highlighted, making government data AI-ready means that Americans can ask AI platforms about today’s pressing policy issues and consistently get accurately cited, contextual government data in return.

  • Given the importance of this bipartisan issue, what steps would you take as the BLS commissioner to make the bureau's data AI-ready?

For more information on the BLS, please see our explainer on the statistical agency.

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