Item Structure and Publication Changes to the Consumer Price Indexes for January 2010

Effective with the release of CPI data for January 2010 scheduled for Friday, February 19, the BLS will introduce several item structure and other publication changes into the CPI.

Shelter The expenditure weight for second homes will be moved from Lodging away from home to a new, unpriced stratum under the Owners’ equivalent rent expenditure class. As such, the expenditure class index for Owners’ equivalent rent will now include both primary and secondary homes, and the title of that expenditure class index will change from Owners’ equivalent rent of primary residences to Owners’ equivalent rent of residences. Both the expenditure class (Owners’ equivalent rent of residences), and the Owners’ equivalent rent of primary residence stratum within it, will be published.

Current Structure:

  • Lodging away from home
    • Housing at school, excluding board
    • Other lodging away from home including hotels and motels
  • Owners’ equivalent rent of primary residence
    • Owners’ equivalent rent of primary residence*

New Structure:

  • Lodging away from home
    • Housing at school, excluding board
    • Other lodging away from home, including hotels and motels
  • Owners’ equivalent rent of residences
    • Owners’ equivalent rent of primary residence
    • Unsampled owners’ equivalent rent of secondary residences*

Medical care commodities The item structure for Medical care commodities will change:

Current Structure

  • Medical care commodities
    • Prescription drugs
      • Prescription drugs
      • Unsampled rent or repair of medical equipment*
    • Nonprescription drugs and medical supplies
      • Internal and respiratory OTC drugs
      • Nonprescription medical equipment and supplies

New Structure

  • Medical Care Commodities
    • Medicinal drugs
      • Prescription drugs
      • Nonprescription drugs
    • Medical equipment and supplies
      • Medical equipment and supplies
      • Unsampled rent or repair of medical equipment*

Telephone services The item structure for telephone services will also change:

Current structure

  • Telephone services
    • Land-line telephone services, local charges
    • Land-line telephone services, long distance
    • Wireless telephone services

New structure

  • Telephone services
    • Wireless telephone services
    • Land-line telephone services

Indexes that are deemed continuous will have the same reference base previously used. New index series will have a December 2009 = 100 reference base. Unpublished series are indicated with a *.

Other publication changes

The index for State and local registration and license will be retitled State motor vehicle registration and license fees.

A new index for Intracity mass transit will be published. Indexes for Land-line interstate toll calls and Land-line intrastate toll calls will be discontinued.

Changes to Series Available in the BLS CPI Databases: CU & CW

New Series

There will be 7 new series.

New Item Code Old Item Code (if continuous) Series Title Populations Geographic Areas Base Date
SEED04   Land-line telephone services CU, CW U.S. city average December 2009=100
SEHC01 SEHC Owner’s equivalent rent of primary residence CU, CW All December 1982=100
SEMF   Medicinal drugs CU, CW U.S. city average December 2009=100
SEMF01 SEMA Prescription drugs CU, CW U.S. city average 1982-84=100
SEMF02   Nonprescription drugs CU, CW U.S. city average December 2009=100
SEMG   Medical equipment and supplies CU, CW U.S. city average December 2009=100
SS53031   Intracity mass transit CU U.S. city average December 2009=100

Discontinued Series

The following 8 series will no longer be available. The historical data through December 2009 will be moved to the MU (for CU) and MW (for CW) databases, and may be accessed through the series report data retrieval tool.

Item Code Title
SEED01 Land-line telephone services, local charges (CU, CW)
SEED02 Land-line telephone services, long distance charges (CU, CW)
SEMA Prescription drugs (CU, CW)
SEMB Nonprescription drugs and medical supplies (CU, CW)
SEMB01 Internal and respiratory over-the-counter drugs (CU, CW)
SEMB02 Nonprescription medical equipment and supplies (CU, CW)
SS27051 Land-line interstate toll calls (CU)
SS27061 Land-line intrastate toll calls (CU)

Item title changes

The titles for the following 2 series will be changed:

Item Code Old Title New Title
SEHC Owners' equivalent rent of primary residence Owner's equivalent rent of residences
SETF01 State and local registration and license State motor vehicle registration and license fees

 

Last Modified Date: February 1, 2010