Bankers and economists watch for signs that the economy is slowing. One statistic they monitor is consumer debt, particularly credit card debt. The Federal Reserve conducts surveys of consumer finances every 3 years. The last survey determined that 23.8% of American households have no credit cards and another 31.2% of the households paid off their cost recent credit card bills. The remainder, approximately 50 million households, did not pay their credit card bills in the previous month. A random sample of these households was drawn. Each household in the sample reported how much credit card debt it currently carries. The Federal Reserve would like an Estimate (with 95% confidence) of the total credit card debt in the United States.