US data agency blames old tech and other failures for missteps

Outdated technology, inadequate funding and a failure to follow established procedures contributed to embarrassing missteps at the Bureau of Labor Statistics this year, a panel that examined the episodes said Tuesday.

Julie Su, the acting labor secretary, formed the 11-member group in September after a botched data release allowed some investors to see potentially market-moving employment data before the public. That followed two other episodes: one in February, in which an agency employee provided methodological information to finance industry “super users”; and another, in May, in which inflation data was inadvertently posted to the agency’s website half an hour before its scheduled release.

The panel was chaired by a former Labor Department official and consisted mostly of current officials from the department and other federal agencies. It also included two members of the public. Su gave the group 60 days to “identify causes of and fixes to the inaccurate release of data” and report back.

The panel found that the three episodes were “unique and unrelated,” and noted that none of them related to the quality or accuracy of the agency’s data. But it argued that even the perception that the agency was poorly run, or that favored groups had early access to information, threatened to erode public trust in government data.

“The smallest glitch can undermine months of high-quality data work in a moment,” the panel wrote in its report.

Erika McEntarfer, commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, echoed that message in a call with reporters Tuesday.

“Our efforts to provide accurate and unbiased economic statistics are undermined if we fail to provide timely and equitable access to our data,” she said. She added that the episodes “revealed vulnerabilities in our data dissemination and customer service practices,” and that the agency had taken steps to address those issues. The outside panel provided 79 recommendations. Some are extremely specific — “all staff and leadership involved in the release processes should participate in the production release call.” Others are quite general: “Identify creative ways to ignite a culture change within the bureau emphasizing the importance and criticalness of their role in public facing communications.” Many of the recommendations center on modernizing procedures for sharing information internally and with the public.

But the report cautions that not all of the necessary changes are within the agency’s control. The bureau’s technology and software “has been hampered by underfunding,” the report notes — something that could only be changed by Congress. A lack of funding was also identified as a crucial issue in a report earlier this year from the American Statistical Association, which concluded that government statistics — including but not limited to those produced by the bureau — are increasingly in jeopardy.

McEntarfer said Tuesday that the agency was working to put into effect some of the panel’s recommendations, and would work on securing funding to address others.

The panel’s report may not be the final word on the issue. Su has also asked the Labor Department’s inspector general to investigate the episodes, and at least one congressional committee has also been reviewing issues at the agency.