White House’s final ‘Trust Regulation’ aims to bolster confidence in federal statistics

A final rule announced by the White House on Thursday will further codify and clarify responsibilities for U.S. agencies when it comes to accurate and trusted federal statistics.

Specifically, the regulation will outline how federal statistical agencies should carry out responsibilities to produce information that’s relevant and timely, credible and accurate, objective, and protects the trust of respondents and those providing the information by ensuring confidentiality of responses. 

That final rule, also known as the “Trust Regulation,” was posted for public inspection Thursday and will officially be published in the Federal Register on Friday.

“Federal statistics are produced as a public good, whose value is rooted in public trust,” Chief Statistician of the U.S. Karin Orvis said in a statement shared by the White House. “Maintaining and bolstering public trust in our Nation’s statistics is absolutely critical.”

The regulation stems from the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018, known as the Evidence Act, which first outlined the four responsibilities in the new rule. In her statement, Orvis called the rule “a major milestone” for implementation of that law. 

“The responsibilities described in this regulation are not new and are consistent with longstanding OMB, Federal government, and international policy. Yet effectively implementing them in the form of standards and practices requires clear rules,” Orvis said.

OMB first issued a proposed version of the rule in August 2023 for public comment. According to the public inspection document, the final rule is mostly unchanged from that proposal and makes slight changes for clarity.

The rule mainly outlines requirements for the 16 recognized statistical agencies and units, or RSAUs, within the federal government, but it also provides direction to other federal agencies to help support them. RSAUs include the Census Bureau, National Center for Health Statistics, Bureau of Labor Statistics, and National Animal Health Monitoring System.

While OMB noted in the public inspection document that it expects most of the RSAUs are implementing the requirements, it also said it expects that the current landscape has wide variation.

Orvis said that although the regulation marks a “significant day for the Federal Statistical System” and U.S. statistics broadly, the work isn’t over.

“We must continue to make sure our Nation’s Federal Statistical System produces accurate, objective, high-quality, and trustworthy information and that our Federal statistics remain relevant in meeting the information needs of the American people, data users, and policymakers,” Orvis said.

The final rule goes into effect 60 days after the official publication in the Federal Register. Then, by Dec. 10, 2026, each RSAU also must revise their own rules or policies that pose barriers to the responsibilities and the parent agency inspector general must conduct a compliance review, among other things.