National Income (1934-1941):
The Economic Research Division of the U.S. Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce (BFDC), a precursor to the BEA, began estimating national income in 1933. The Senate requested official government estimates of national income to answer the need to measure the effects of the Depression.
Simon Kuznets oversaw the first national income estimates completed in 1934. In addition to Kuznets, economists Robert F. Martin and Robert R. Nathan, among others, contributed to the new estimates.
In the first report on national income in 1934, and Survey of Current Business articles from 1934 to 1941, the BFDC provided two measures of total income for the nation, national income paid out and national income produced.
- National income paid out measured the flow of income payments to individuals for the current production of goods and services.
- National income produced measured the value of net national product by adding a measure of business savings to national income paid out.
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