Trump nominee to head BLS supports statistical agency’s independence, integrity

WASHINGTON, June 10 (Reuters) – Brett Matsumoto, an economist nominated by President Donald Trump to be the Bureau of Labor Statistics commissioner, on Wednesday said he was committed to the agency’s integrity and independence, adding that he believes strongly in its mission to produce high-quality and “objective” data on the U.S. economy.

Matsumoto, who is on leave from the economic data agency to work at the White House’s Council of Economic Advisers, made his remarks at the start of his confirmation hearing before the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee.

Trump nominated Matsumoto early this year to run the agency that produces several of the most critical scorecards on the health of the U.S. economy after firing the previous commissioner, Erika McEntarfer, last August following the release of a monthly employment report that included historically large revisions to previously reported figures on job creation.

(Reporting by David Lawder in Washington and Dan Burns in New York; Editing by Paul Simao)