Assessing Consumer Expenditure Surveys data quality through the lens of data use

The Consumer Expenditure Surveys (CE) program of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) sponsors nationwide household weekly diary and monthly interview surveys each year for the purpose of producing nationally representative estimates of expenditures, income, and demographics.1 The surveys’ main objective is to measure the spending patterns of consumers living in the United States. The surveys are the only federal government data collection efforts that provide information on the complete range of consumers’ expenditures, as well as their income and demographic characteristics. Similar to other large scale federal survey programs, the BLS CE program aggregates the survey data for a primary purpose, which is to provide estimates critical to the Consumer Price Index (CPI), a Principal Federal Economic Indicator.