Coats: It is Time to Shift the Economy Out of Low Gear

WASHINGTON, DC – Senator Dan Coats (R-Ind.), the chairman of the Joint Economic Committee, today issued a statement regarding newly released annual revisions from the Bureau of Economic Analysis showing that the American economy grew at a slower rate over the past several years than previously estimated:

“Annual revisions reveal that economic growth in recent years was not nearly as strong as originally believed. Combined with today’s GDP estimates, it is clear that our economy has shifted to a slower gear. Our current economic trend is forward, but slow. Job growth so far this year is tepid, prime-age labor force participation remains near recovery lows and the economic mobility of Americans shows no improvement, indicating that it remains difficult for American families to get ahead.

“I want America’s economy to come roaring back. It is time to shift the economy out of low gear by pursuing pro-growth policies such as tax reform, increased trade and regulatory reform.”

The Bureau on Economic Analysis’ advance estimate for the second quarter of 2015 revealed real GDP in the United States grew at an annual rate of 2.3%.

From the second quarter of 2009 to the first quarter of 2015, real GDP growth was revised down 0.1 percentage point to an average annual rate of 2.1%. The revisions over the most recent years depict an even smaller economy than previously estimated. From 2011 to 2014 alone, real GDP grew at an average annual rate of 2.0%, revised down from a previously estimated annual average of 2.3%.