DOGE’s impact on the reliability of future U.S. statistics
Lowered participation in surveys and trust in the government have heavily impacted the U.S. Census Bureau. The Trump administration’s handling of data has sparked investigations of privacy violations, which has only impacted the public's trust in government surveys more. Faculty Associate Katharine Abraham states that “[she expects] the problems we already have with collecting information from marginalized communities would get worse if fears about the government having access to anything that people tell a statistical agency get worse.” Abraham points out that the Trump administration has not specified protocols for protecting sensitive data from unauthorized users, and that she is concerned that DOGE’s efforts will lead to backlash that changes laws that severely restrict how government records can be used. “That could become a barrier to [the statistical agencies] being able to use the data, which I think would be unfortunate,” says Abraham.