Hickenlooper, Colleagues Demand Better Data on AI Workforce Impact

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator John Hickenlooper joined a bipartisan group of his Senate colleagues to urge the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, and Census Bureau to expand data collection and public reporting on the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on the U.S. workforce.

"Over the last several years, the enhanced capabilities of artificial intelligence have resulted in its increased application and adoption across many and varied industries and occupations. Predictive machine learning systems and generative AI have already created evolutions within the labor market due to those tools' ability to perform tasks and functions that ordinarily require human intelligence. The emergence of autonomous technologies, including agentic AI and robotics integrating AI, present opportunities for a dramatic shift in the nature of work," the senators wrote.

The senators continued: "However, reporting from across the private sector, academia, and media depict an uncertain picture of artificial intelligence's current and potential impact on the workforce, with some use cases demonstrating a high probability of job disruption and others making the case for employment growth. Recent reporting has generated an increased focus on artificial intelligence's effect on new labor entrants. As such, it is imperative that the federal government serves as an agile, objective, and reliable source of information regarding the significant labor market changes that this technological advancement presents."

Hickenlooper understands that AI has the ability to transform our economy, but workers need a roadmap to navigate new developments. He introduced the AI Workforce PREPARE Act to increase visibility of how AI is affecting the workforce so that we can find the way forward together.

Hickenlooper has also chaired two hearings of the Senate Help, Education, Labor & Pensions Committee's Subcommittee on Employment and Workplace Safety, focusing on training workers on AI and the potential of AI to transform the workplace.

Full text of the letter is available HERE and below:

Dear Secretary Chavez-DeRemer, Acting Commissioner Wiatrowski, and Mr. Cook:

We write to strongly urge the federal government's statistical agencies to prioritize the collection, analysis, and dissemination of high-quality, timely data regarding artificial intelligence's (AI) impact on the labor market.

Over the last several years, the enhanced capabilities of artificial intelligence have resulted in its increased application and adoption across many and varied industries and occupations. Predictive machine learning systems and generative AI have already created evolutions within the labor market due to those tools' ability to perform tasks and functions that ordinarily require human intelligence. The emergence of autonomous technologies, including agentic AI and robotics integrating AI, present opportunities for a dramatic shift in the nature of work.

However, reporting from across the private sector, academia, and media depict an uncertain picture of artificial intelligence's current and potential impact on the workforce, with some use cases demonstrating a high probability of job disruption and others making the case for employment growth. Recent reporting has generated an increased focus on artificial intelligence's effect on new labor entrants.

As such, it is imperative that the federal government serves as an agile, objective, and reliable source of information regarding the significant labor market changes that this technological advancement presents. As it stands, the federal government's statistical agencies' data, research, and measurement on artificial intelligence significantly lags behind non-governmental labor market data. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics has begun incorporating artificial intelligence impacts on employment projections and has published occupational case studies on these efforts. The U.S. Census Bureau has added artificial intelligence tailored questions to its Business Trends and Outlook Survey and Annual Business Survey. While we applaud these initial steps, we call on your agencies to build upon these actions swiftly and considerably.

Specifically, we direct your attention to the Joint Explanatory Statement that accompanied the Department of Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2026 as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2026 (Pub. L. 119-75), which states the following:

"The agreement recognizes the value of understanding how artificial intelligence affects our workforce and encourages BLS to evaluate the impact of artificial intelligence on the economy, including job loss, creation, and displacement."

In response to this directive, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and the U.S. Census Bureau should identify opportunities to fully leverage existing data collection efforts, including, but not limited to, integrating additional artificial intelligence questions into surveys, continuing the incorporation of occupational classification systems into reports, linking cross-agency data measurement to produce comprehensive reports, partnering with non-public entities to produce additional public use statistics, and increasing the frequency of published reports.

Specifically, we point your agencies to several opportunities where surveys can be expanded to better understand the impact of artificial intelligence:

• The Current Population Survey (CPS) serves as the primary source of near real-time labor force statistics and is a cornerstone of the monthly jobs report. BLS should consider adding supplemental surveys focused on artificial intelligence and task specific questions.

• The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) produces monthly and annual estimates of job openings, hires, and separations. While this survey serves as an important measure of labor demand, it does not currently provide an understanding of labor demand by occupation and how this may be changing with artificial intelligence adoptions. We recommend that JOLTS add questions on the occupations and wages of both new hires and workers who separate from employers and how many hires, job postings, and layoffs are directly related to the business' use of AI.

• The National Longitudinal Survey follows the lives of a sample of American youth. By establishing a new cohort and adding questions related to artificial intelligence, we can understand long-term trends.

At a time when the U.S. workforce is approaching an inflection point due to the acceleration of artificial intelligence, adaptable and responsive federal statistical agencies are necessary in guiding labor market participants, researchers, and policymakers on how to properly respond to this moment.

Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Sincerely,

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