Steven Landefeld (202) 606-9600 
Rosemary Marcuss (202) 606-9602

In an effort to accurately measure the "new millennium American economy," an economy driven by silicon chips, cyberspace, and services, the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Economic Analysis is requesting an appropriation of $49.4 million for fiscal year 2000, which includes $4.5 million for new measurement programs.

The increase in BEA’s budget would be used to improve measures of the exploding volume of investment in computer software, measures of expenditures on cellular phones, Internet services, and other high-tech goods and services, and measures of rapidly growing and changing sectors of the economy, such as financial services.

Adding to the measurement challenges created by developing technologies are equally important challenges created by structural changes to the economy that are caused by corporate downsizing and the devolution of some functions from the Federal government to state and local governments. In addition, the global nature of the new millennium economy requires more imaginative high-tech approaches to data gathering, as well as more international cooperation.

Individuals, businesses, and governments cannot operate effectively in tomorrow’s economy without accurate information, BEA’s Director Steven Landefeld said. He added, "We cannot afford to use rusty iron-age statistics to measure the new millennium American economy. To get the right information to those who need it, we need additional resources."