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CENSUS NEWS BRIEF
July 19, 2009
No. 71
IN THIS CENSUS NEWS BRIEF:
Groves Confirmation Elicits Broad Support
Legislation and Upcoming Hearings
Census Operations: Bilingual Questionnaire Areas Set
CENSUS NEWS ROUND-UP
GROVES CONFIRMATION ELICITS BROAD SUPPORT
Most Stakeholders Applaud Senate Approval of New Census Director
Members of Congress and 2010 census partner organizations applauded last week's confirmation of Dr. Robert Groves to head the U.S. Census Bureau and expressed relief that the agency finally had a director only six months before census operations begin in remote Alaska in January 2010.
Sen. Thomas Carper (D-DE), who as chairman of the subcommittee that oversees the Census Bureau helped shepherd Dr. Groves' nomination through the confirmation process, said the agency "will have the kind of leadership it needs" and that, "under [Dr. Groves'] leadership we can address the serious challenges that could jeopardize the success and cost-effectiveness of the 2010 Census." But Sen. David Vitter (R-LA), whose "hold" on the nomination delayed a confirmation vote for more than a month, said after the overwhelming July 13th vote (76 - 15) to overcome the objections voiced by the Louisiana lawmaker and Sen. Richard Shelby (R-AL), that he had "serious concerns" about the nominee because the Obama Administration was "unwilling" to offer "written assurances ... that sampling would not be used in the Census taking process and that ACORN [the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now] will have nothing to do with the census." Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ) took Republicans to task for "years of inattention and politically-motivated delays" in preparing for the census and said that, with Dr. Groves' confirmation, "we can be more confident that the Bureau will accelerate its preparations and overcome the many challenges that might impact an accurate count next year."
The chairman of the House census oversight panel, Rep. William "Lacy" Clay (D-MO), said the President had "chosen a remarkably talented leader" and that he would work closely with the new director "to reduce the undercount of minorities and to increase the national mail-back response rate" in 2010. The senior Republican on the House Information Policy, Census, and National Archives Subcommittee, Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-NC), said that he would not have selected Dr. Groves for the top Census Bureau post "[b]ecause of his past support of manipulating census results... ." The congressman congratulated Dr. Groves, however, saying that because the nominee had "ruled out the use of statistical adjustment, [he] is well positioned and well qualified to lead an accurate and successful 2010 Decennial." Rep. McHenry was referring to Dr. Groves' support, as one of seven out of nine senior Census Bureau officials, for using the results of a post-census accuracy check survey to adjust the raw 1990 census numbers to correct undercounts and overcounts. Then-Census Director Barbara Everitt Bryant agreed with the expert panel's recommendation to statistically adjust the 1990 census, but Commerce Secretary Robert Mosbacher rejected the idea.
House Republican Leader John Boehner (R-OH) said he looked forward to reports from Dr. Groves, "certifying" that the census is "free of partisan and political manipulation." The congressman also called on the new director to "sever all ties between the Census and ACORN," saying that the nonprofit organization's role as an official 2010 census partner "is damaging to taxpayers and voters alike." ACORN CEO Bertha Lewis also issued a statement after the Senate confirmed Dr. Groves by voice vote, calling the director "eminently qualified." Ms. Lewis went on to "condemn the irresponsible rhetoric on the Census that has variously threatened to boycott the count or misrepresented ACORN's role in the process for partisan gain."
Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) Chairwoman Nydia Velazquez (D-NY) highlighted the importance of the census to minority communities, citing government services and programs tied to census data. "We look forward to working with [Dr.] Groves ... in ensuring that the Census Bureau has all the resources it needs." Rep. Charles Gonzalez (D-TX), chairman of the CHC's Civil Rights, Veterans and Worker Protections Task Force," applauded Dr. Groves' "overwhelming experience" and said the director would "ensure a high level of commitment [within the Census Bureau] encouraging everyone to be counted in the 2010 census."
Stakeholder organizations continued to praise the new director. Wade Henderson, president of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights (LCCR), said Dr. Groves' scientific credentials "will be essential to making sure that the census is as accurate and inclusive as possible." Mr. Henderson noted that even a small undercount could deprive local communities of federal funding for public services such as hospitals, roads, schools, and disaster preparedness.
Dr. Groves, who most recently headed the Survey Research Center at the University of Michigan, said in a statement, "Extensive planning has put the 2010 Census on track to be the most accurate and technologically advanced in our nation's history." His efforts, the new director said, would include "mak[ing] sure the public understands the vital importance of filling out and mailing back the census questionnaires in a timely fashion." Dr. Groves noted that the Census Bureau's many surveys require "constant innovation" to ensure the "efficiently produced, high quality statistics this country needs." Commerce Secretary Gary Locke said Dr. Groves would head the bureau "with the integrity and independence demanded by the Constitution and expected by the American people."
Hearing scheduled to review census data role in economic policy: Five former Census directors will discuss the Census Bureau's role in producing key government statistics at a Joint Economic Committee (JEC) hearing this week. The committee, chaired by Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), noted in a press release that, "Census data and analysis plays a central role in US government economic policy making." Data experts from the National Academy of Sciences' Committee on National Statistics, the Brookings Institution, and the Population Reference Bureau also will testify. The July 21 hearing, entitled "The Federal Statistical System in the 21st Century: The Role of the Census Bureau," will start at 1:00PM in Room 2203 Rayburn House Office Building. Chairwoman Maloney is a long time member of the House subcommittee that oversees the Census Bureau.
Bill seeks to counter "intrusive" ACS: Legislation to make response to the American Community Survey (ACS) voluntary would "eliminate ... irrelevant questions and ensure our right to personal privacy," according to the bill's sponsor, Rep. Ted Poe (R-TX). H.R. 3131 would remove the mandatory response requirement for all questions except a person's name, contact information, date of response, and the number of people living in the household.
"I feel that it is important that the Census Bureau stick to counting people and not intrude into the personal lives of the American people," Rep. Poe said in a statement last week. The congressman pointed to questions about home utility costs, employment status, and disability as examples of "intrusive" questions. Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN), an original cosponsor of H.R. 3131, said that although a count of the population is a "legitimate" constitutional requirement, the census expanded to include additional questions "so that the federal government could have more detailed information to make and implement its ever-expanding public policy." The congresswoman said she believed that many Americans shared her concern "about the ultimate protection of our sensitive personal information."
The ACS, an ongoing survey that produces annually updated demographic and economic information about the nation's population and housing, replaced the traditional census long form in 2005. Data gathered in the census and ACS generally are required by federal law to administer programs, allocate funds, evaluate the effectiveness of programs, and monitor compliance with anti-discrimination laws. Congress has frequently directed the Census Bureau to collect statistics in the census (of which the ACS is a part) that are used to distribute formula grant funds among states and local governments. For example, data on selected monthly homeowner costs (including the cost of utilities) are used by the Health and Human Services Department to allocate home energy assistance funds to low-income individuals and families under the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program and by the Housing and Urban Development Department to determine eligibility for urban development grants for cities and counties under the Community Development Block Grant Program. The Labor Department uses data on employment status to allocate job training funds, while the Bureau of Economic Analysis relies on the information to help develop state per capita income estimates used to allocate funds for many federal programs, including Medicaid. Recently, Sen. Mel Martinez (R-FL) introduced a bill to change the way the Census Bureau collects data on disability in the ACS. S. 1127 would replace the current ACS disability question with "standardized function questions used by medical providers," Sen. Martinez explained, saying the current wording "is not meeting its legislative purpose." The bill specifically directs the Census Bureau to use the Katz Activities of Daily Living Index and the Lawton-Brady Instrumental Activities of Daily Living to measure extent of disability.
A new Census Bureau analysis found that, in Fiscal Year 2007, over $400 billion were distributed through federal grant and direct assistance programs using data from the census, ACS, and census-based annual population estimates. Deputy Census Director (and former Acting Director) Thomas Mesenbourg announced the updated analysis when he testified before the House census oversight subcommittee on July 9. Previous Census Bureau materials pegged the annual amount of federal funds tied to census data at $300 billion.
For more information on the consequences of making response to the census and ACS voluntary, see the July 12, 2009 Census News Brief #69.
New bill would give postal workers preference in temporary census hiring: Legislation sponsored by Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-UT), a member of the House census oversight subcommittee, would require the Census Bureau to hire mail carriers "to the maximum extent practicable" for temporary census enumerator positions, before hiring non-federal employees. Enumerators -- often called census takers -- go door-to-door to collect information from households that do not return their census forms by mail.
H.R. 3167 asserts that the U.S. Postal Service is "uniquely qualified" to help with the census because it has "more experience than any other organization in locating and delivering services to households." According to the bill's "findings," using postal employees as enumerators "will help the Government to realize a net reduction in costs" because the Census Bureau would not need to hire temporary enumerators. The legislation provides that mail carriers serving as census takers would not be required to deliver the mail on the same day or to help with the census for more than one day a week.
A 1995 report by the National Academy of Sciences' National Research Council, Modernizing the U.S. Census, concluded that letter carriers earn four times the pay of census enumerators, thereby "significantly increas[ing] census costs." The expert panel that prepared the report found that postal workers "are not well acquainted with the occupants of residential addresses" because they often deliver mail to central locations, such as apartment building lobbies or housing development cluster boxes, instead of going door to door. (Barry Edmonston and Charles Schultze, eds., Modernizing the U.S. Census, National Academy Press, Washington, DC, 1995.)
2010 CENSUS OPERATIONS UPDATE:
Bilingual Questionnaire Areas Set
About 13.5 million households will receive bilingual census forms in English and Spanish next year, the first time the Census Bureau will mail or deliver questionnaires in a language other than English in the initial wave of forms all homes will receive next winter. The agency used 2005 - 2007 data from the American Community Survey on language spoken at home and English-language ability, to identify census blocks that will receive bilingual questionnaires.
Geographic tracts in which at least 20 percent of addresses house one or more Spanish-speaking adults (age 15 or older) who do not speak English "very well" were selected to receive bilingual forms. The Census Bureau linked these areas to collection blocks; all housing units in the 336,343 targeted blocks will receive an English/Spanish form, either through the mail (13 million) or delivered by census workers who confirm address lists and drop off questionnaires in sparsely populated or remote areas as part of the Update/Leave operation (500,000).
The 2010 census also will be the first to include a replacement questionnaire, a second form that will be sent in early April 2010 to roughly 40 million housing units in areas with low mail response rates. Households in the replacement form universe that initially received a bilingual form, however, will receive an English-only second form.
The Census Bureau decided to print in-language 2010 census questionnaires in Chinese, Korean, Russian, and Vietnamese (in addition to Spanish) based on recent ACS data, as well. People may obtain in-language forms by calling the toll-free questionnaire assistance lines or visiting Questionnaire Assistance Centers or Be Counted sites. The bureau's web site and 2010 census partner organizations will offer additional assistance and materials in these and other languages.
The 2010 census paid advertising campaign will include additional languages: Asian-Indian, Tagalog, Polish, Arabic, French Creole, Japanese, Portuguese, French, Italian, German, Farsi, Khmer, Armenian, Greek, Hmong, Laotian, Thai, Urdu, Yiddish, Bangladeshi, and Ukranian. Language assistance guides will be available in roughly 50 languages.
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Census News Briefs are prepared by Terri Ann Lowenthal, an independent legislative and policy consultant specializing in the census and federal statistics. All views expressed in the News Briefs are solely those of the author. Please direct questions about the information in this News Brief to Ms. Lowenthal at TerriAnn2K@aol.com. Please feel free to circulate this document to other interested individuals and organizations. Ms. Lowenthal is a consultant to the nonpartisan Census Project, organized by the Communications Consortium Media Center in Washington, DC. Previous Census News Briefs are posted at www.thecensusproject.org.
Contact Information:
TerriAnn2K@aol.com
Phone: 203-353-4364