Org Chart Available

SECTION 1. PURPOSE.

.01   This Order prescribes the authority, functions, and organization of the Under Secretary of Commerce for Economic Affairs (the Under Secretary).

.02   This revision describes the Chief Data Officer, the Evaluation Officer, and the subordinate functions to the Office of the Under Secretary. It updates the order of succession in the event that the Under Secretary is not able to carry out his/her duties or during a vacancy in the office and also updates the delegation authorities of the Under Secretary.

SECTION 2. STATUS AND LINE AUTHORITY.

.01   The position of Under Secretary of Commerce for Economic Affairs was established by the Act of June 16, 1982, Public Law (P.L.) 97-195. The Under Secretary is appointed by the President by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. The Under Secretary shall determine policy, direct programs, and be responsible for all economic and statistical analysis programs as delegated by the Secretary of Commerce (the Secretary). The Office of the Under Secretary shall be a primary operating unit of the Department of Commerce.

.02   The Under Secretary shall be assisted by a Chief Economist, a Chief Data Officer, and an Evaluation Officer who shall perform such duties as the Under Secretary assigns.

.03   The Director of the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) or the Director of the Bureau of the Census, whichever is designated as the Statistical Official for the Department pursuant to the Evidence Act, shall perform the functions and duties of the Under Secretary in the event that the Under Secretary is not able to carry out his/her duties, or in the event of a vacancy in the office. The Deputy Director for the Director designated as the Statistical Official, the Director of BEA or Census not designated as the Statistical Official, and the Deputy Director for the Director of BEA or Census not designated as the Statistical Official, in that order, shall perform the duties of the Under Secretary in the absence of both the Under Secretary and the Director designated as the Statistical Official.

SECTION 3. DELEGATION OF AUTHORITY.

.01   Pursuant to the authority vested in the Secretary of Commerce (the Secretary) by law, the Under Secretary is hereby delegated the authorities of the Secretary under 15 United States Code (U.S.C.) 1501 et seq., 15 U.S.C. 172 et seq., 15 U.S.C. 4901 et seq., P.L. 101-533, and P. L. 115-435, Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018, as necessary to carry out the functions of the Under Secretary. The Secretary reserves the authority to designate officials pursuant to the Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018 and provide policy guidance and direction to the Under Secretary (and delegates) to the extent permitted by law regarding the exercise of authorities delegated by this Section.

.02   The Under Secretary may exercise other authorities of the Secretary as applicable to performing the functions assigned in this Order.

.03   Unless specified otherwise in this Order, the Under Secretary may redelegate the authorities prescribed in this Section, subject to such conditions in the exercise of that authority as the Under Secretary may prescribe.

SECTION 4. FUNCTIONS.

.01   The Under Secretary shall advise the Secretary, the Deputy Secretary, and other officials of the Department of Commerce (the Department) regarding economic and statistical matters; and shall serve as Department representative to the Council of Economic Advisers, the various Cabinet and interagency Councils and their working groups, as directed by the Secretary, and to other government agencies concerned with economic and statistical affairs.

.02   The Under Secretary shall be responsible for the analysis and development of policies on economic and statistical issues, and on issues affecting broad sectors of the domestic economy in response to the needs and interests of the Secretary or Deputy Secretary. The Under Secretary’s principal responsibilities shall include: economic forecasting; consultation with the private sector on economic and broad economic sectoral developments; and policy analysis and development in the areas of macroeconomic policy, monetary, fiscal and anti-inflation policy, domestic labor market policy, policy issues having major implications for multiple business sectors, regulatory issues affecting the domestic economy, statistical policy issues, international financial arrangements and exchange rates, and, in collaboration with the Under Secretary for International Trade, international trade policy issues having broad impact on the domestic economy. The Under Secretary shall also guide data-driven decision-making and evidence-building activities and increase access to government data while ensuring privacy and confidentiality.

.03   The Under Secretary shall provide strategic direction and guidance to the Department’s data governance activities and to related government-wide initiatives, as well as advance Commerce bureaus’ data collection, storage, use, and access.

.04   The Under Secretary shall provide strategic direction and guidance to the Department’s program evaluation activities and collaborate with, shape, and contribute to related evidence-building functions within and across the Department.

.05   The Under Secretary shall exercise policy direction and management supervision over BEA and the Bureau of the Census (Census), which are subordinate to the Under Secretary.

SECTION 5. OFFICIALS REPORTING TO THE UNDER SECRETARY.

.01   The Chief Economist, appointed by the Secretary, shall serve as an advisor to the Under Secretary for Economic Affairs on macroeconomic matters.

a.   The Chief Economist conducts analyses of policy proposals with macroeconomic implications; monitors and interprets current economic developments and domestic fiscal and monetary policy; analyzes economic conditions and policy initiatives of major trading partners; makes projections of the economic outlook; analyzes major economic policy developments for use by senior White House officials and the Secretary’s and Under Secretary’s participation in interagency deliberations; and takes part in discussions of policies affecting the statistical agencies. The Chief Economist serves as the Department's principal source for interpreting and analyzing domestic economic developments and analyzes and reviews important developments in key industrial and developing countries.

b.   The Chief Economist’s principal activities include the preparation of periodic reports on international developments; regular reports on U.S. domestic economic conditions; short summaries of U.S. data releases; press statements on selected data released by BEA or Census; and responses to requests for special analyses, data, or briefing materials from senior officials.

c.   The Chief Economist advises the Under Secretary on the structure and performance of American industry, on the relationship between industry-level and more general economic developments, and on policies affecting U.S. industrial performance and the economy at large. The official conducts policy analyses and develops policy proposals on issues affecting multiple business sectors, such as antitrust, product liability, business deregulation, corporate finance, business tax policy, employment and training, pensions, technology policy, health care financing, and human services. The official also conducts analyses of proposed policies, regulations, and laws and develops proposed positions on them; develops Departmental positions on microeconomic issues for the Cabinet policy process; represents the Department on Cabinet agency working groups and interagency committees dealing with issues affecting business; coordinates environmental economic and statistical activities; and integrates the Office of the Under Secretary of Economic Affairs’ (OUS/EA) statistical and economic analyses with the government's policy process.

.02   The Chief Data Officer, designated by the Secretary, shall serve as an advisor to the Under Secretary for Economic Affairs to promote better use and management of data and evidence.

a.   The Chief Data Officer shall have authority and responsibility for data governance and lifecycle data management.

b.   The Chief Data Officer chairs the Department’s Data Governance Body.

.03   The Evaluation Officer, designated by the Secretary, shall serve as an advisor to the Under Secretary for Economic Affairs to strengthen the program evaluation function to expand evidence building.

a.   The Evaluation Officer shall have authority and responsibility for overseeing evaluation activities, learning agenda, and capacity assessment.

b.   The Evaluation Officer provides technical and methodological leadership to assess, improve, and advise on evaluation activities.

.04   The Director of BEA will provide mission support and administrative guidance on management policy, management activities, and mission priorities for the Under Secretary.

a.   The Director of BEA will advise the Under Secretary on the allocation of personnel and budgetary resources; the formulation and implementation of the budget for OUS/EA; and oversee implementation of OUS/EA executive resources, human resources, and the Senior Executive Service and General Workforce performance management program.

b.   The Director of BEA will serve as Statistical Official, as specified in the Evidence Act, on a rotating basis with the Director of Census.

c.   The Director of BEA will serve as the Under Secretary’s liaison for Enterprise Services, Commerce Working Capital Fund Services, and other shared services.

d.   The Director of BEA will advise the Under Secretary on internal and external communications functions; and provide and oversee the implementation of OUS/EA communications resources, including media affairs, web services, publications services, and congressional and intergovernmental affairs.

.05   The Director of Census will provide mission support and administrative guidance related to the Bureau of the Census on management policy, management activities, and mission priorities for the Under Secretary. The Director of Census will serve as Statistical Official, as specified in the Evidence Act, on a rotating basis with the Director of BEA.

SECTION 6. ORGANIZATION STRUCTURE.

The organizational structure of the Under Secretary of Commerce for Economic Affairs shall be as depicted in the attached organization chart (Exhibit 1).

SECTION 7. EFFECT ON OTHER ORDERS.

This Order supersedes Department Organization Order 10-9, dated January 29, 2019.

Signed by:   Secretary of Commerce