Hawaiʻi's data analysts say it's important to understand the state's dependence on national statistics amid growing concerns about the integrity of federal data.
President Donald Trump's abrupt firing of the head of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics after the release of a lukewarm jobs report has some experts worried that partisan policy goals could cloud impartial federal data.
According to the latest numbers, employers added just 73,000 jobs in July. The report also included revised data for May and June showing that job gains were significantly lower than initially estimated for each month.
In response, Trump claimed on social media that the numbers were "rigged," and announced he would be firing the commissioner of Labor Statistics, Erika McEntarfer.
The Hawaiʻi Data Collaborative's executive director Nick Redding said he doesn't have any misgivings about the quality of data coming out of the Bureau of Labor Statistics at this time.
But he added that it was important to take note of Trump's reaction to data that didn't align with his economic messaging.
"It was a signal that there is a feedback loop now between the data that comes out that's supposed to be politically neutral, and whether or not that's well-received at certain levels," he said.
The Hawaiʻi Data Collaborative recently conducted a study to ascertain Hawaiʻi’s dependency on statistical information from the federal government.
They analyzed a copy of the Hawaiʻi Data Book from 2023, which is the state’s official collection of yearly statistics on population, industry, and more.
A little more than half of the tables in the data book relied either wholly or in part on federal data.
The data book depends most heavily on data from the U.S. Census Bureau, followed by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis and the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The collaborative's study notes that other key reports, like United Way's report on ALICE households in Hawaiʻi, are composed entirely of federal data.
ALICE stands for Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed, and refers to households that are above the poverty level but still struggle to afford basic necessities.
"When the ALICE numbers started to become available, it was really important for Hawaiʻi, because it put a number to what many understood to be a challenge," Redding said.
Redding believes it is important to understand the state's dependence on federal data resources in case they become politicized or simply cease to exist.
He said that staff reductions at federal agencies like the U.S. Department of Education could affect statisticians.
More than 2,000 DOE federal workers have either been fired, voluntarily resigned, or retired early.
"The goal of eliminating the Department [of Education] seems to be underway, and within that department is some really good educational data and tracking nationally of that data," Redding said. "Are we still going to be able… to plug into that?"
The Hawaiʻi Data Collaborative's study asserts that "for now, federal data is good data."
But Redding said it may be time to invest in producing more data at the state and local level.
"The more we can transform and streamline and modernize local government data capabilities, the more we might be able to offset and fill gaps that emerge," he said.
