1. The US Census and Secondary Data Sources 1

2. Secondary Data  Data that someone has collected, collated, or analyzed  The US Government provides many secondary data sources Environmental Protection Agency Department of the Interior Housing and Urban Development Department of Agriculture Department of Commerce Health and Human Services  International agencies the United Nations Amnesty International 2

3. Secondary Data  Inexpensive – often free  Widely available and accessible  Thoroughly studied  You do not ask the questions or determine the contents  You are never really sure how it is collected  Is an imperfect proxy for what you want to measure  BE CAREFUL 3

4. Census History Census mandated in the constitution: “[An] Enumeration shall be made within three Years after the first Meeting of the Congress of the United States, and within every subsequent Term of ten Years, in such Manner as they shall by Law direct.” Article 1, Section 2 4

5. Census History Controlling law is Title 13 of the US Code. Title 13 :  determines how often counts are to be made and when they are available (also known as enumeration) is found in 13 USC 141.13 USC 141  sets fines for failure to respond ($100, which was raised from $20 in 1970s). Although this has never been enforced.  mandates a mid-decade census 5

6. Census History – Government Uses  Redistricting—drawing boundaries for Congressional, legislative, etc. districts  Distribution of federal funds  Site location  Marketing  Program needs planning  Demographic change research 6

7. Census History – Government Uses Census Is Controversial  It moves power: Congressional reapportionment Congressional, state legislative redistricting redistricting of many elective bodies--city councils, school boards, etc.  It moves money: Over 100 federal programs that allocate $400 billion/year have census counts in some part of formulae 7

8. Census History – Census is always changing  Original census counted slaves (“other persons”) as 3/5 of a person. This was changed in the 14 th ammendment.  Slavery last asked in 1860  Feeble-minded in 1840-1890  Income first asked in 1940  Televisions surveyed, 1950-70  Detailed ancestry beginning 1980  Multiple races and grandparents as caregivers in 2000  Questions are passed by congress as law 8

9. Census History Grid of questions available at http://www.lib.umich.edu/govdocs/census2/censubj.pdfhttp://www.lib.umich.edu/govdocs/census2/censubj.pdf 9

10.  Public health professionals identify vulnerable populations for chronic disease  Urban planners identify zoning, housing, sewage, and transportation issues  Social workers conduct needs assessments for services to the elderly, poor, children Census Practical Applications 10

11.  Marketers target likely buyers  Politicians use the census to determine voting districts and to assess constituent interests  Environmentalists map the spread of toxic effluents and population densities Census Practical Applications 11

12.  Occupation by age, race, and sex for equal employment opportunity  Librarians base collection development policy on community characteristics  Mayors use numbers to apply for federal grants. Undercount costs money – the reason for lawsuits Racial minorities and undocumented aliens Should missionaries be counted as U.S. residents Census Practical Applications 12

13. Census Collection Method - Basic Enumeration 1.Mail Campaign (alerting postcard, the census form, note of thanks). 2.Expect about 60% - 70% response rate 3.Delivered to about 80% of respondants via USPS 4.For most of remaining 20%, census worker left a copy of the census 5.For remaining either used special methods, or collected in person 13

14. Census Collection Method - Basic Enumeration  Service based enumeration – homeless people and people using shelters  Group Quarters enumeration  Transient Night (T-Night) enumeration – People living “mobile lifestyle” (campgrounds at racetracks, public and private campgrounds, fairs and carnivals, marinas)  Remote Alaskan enumeration  Domestic military enumeration  Overseas enumeration 14

15. Census Collection Method – Nonresponse Followup (NRFU) 1.Sent census workers to collect responses at non- responsding addresses 2.Visited addresses where questions were returned without data 3.Visited buildings that were previously reported as nonexistent or vacant 15

16. Census Collection Method - Undercount  The census cannot count everybody.  The difference between the actual number of people and the number of people the census bureau counts is called the undercount.  There are some people who simply will not answer census questions. Many of whom simply do not trust the enumerators (census workers).  Nonresponders are disproportionately poor and members of a minority group.  The census bureau is trying to estimate the total number through sampling. 16

17. Census Collection Method – Accuracy and Coverage Evaluation (ACE) 1.Create Interactive Coverage Measurement (ICM) a “second” census of 750,000 housing units from around the country 2.Match and compare ICM with enumerated census 3.Make an estimate of undercounts and errors using Dual System Estimation (DSE) Accuracy and Coverage Evaluation is the Census Bureau’s process for estimating the undercount using sampling methods. There are three basic steps: 17

18. 2010 Census Changes No long form this census (asked for detailed social and economic information) Previous long form information will be collected through the American Community Survey on a 1-year or 3-year cycle depending on the size of the community. 18

19. 2010 American Community Survey Questions 19

20. 2010 American Community Survey Questions 20

21. 2010 American Community Survey Questions 21

22. 2010 American Community Survey Questions 22

23. 2010 American Community Survey Questions 23

24. 2010 American Community Survey Questions 24

25. 2010 American Community Survey Questions 25

26. 2010 American Community Survey Questions 26

27. 2010 American Community Survey Questions 27

28. Census Short Form  Distributed to 100% of households  10 Questions about: – Age – Sex – Race (Multiple) – Hispanic origin – Household relationship – Owner vs. renter occupied housing 28

29. 2010 Short Form Questions 29

30. 2010 Short Form Questions 30

31. 2010 Short Form Questions 31

32. 2010 Short Form Questions 32

33. 2010 Short Form Questions 33

34. 2010 Short Form Questions 34

35. 2010 Short Form Questions 35

36. 2010 Short Form Questions 36

37. 2010 Short Form Questions 37

38. 2010 Short Form Questions 38

39. 2010 State Apportionment The first data released from the 2010 Census are the official national and state population counts, which are used to apportion seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. 39

40. 2010 Census Operational Milestones Form delivery and Mail Back Phase (3/1 – 4/16/2010) Door-to-Door Follow-Up Phase (5/1 – 7/10/10) Quality Assurance Operations (4/11 – 9/3/10) Complete Questionnaire Data Capture & Processing (5/10 – 12/20/10) 2010 Population Counts Reported (12/31/10) 40

41. 2000 Census Short Form – Same Sex Couples “In determining the meaning of any Act of Congress, or of any ruling, regulation or interpretation of the various administrative bureaus and agencies of the United States, the word 'marriage' means only a legal union between one man and one woman as husband and wife, and the word 'spouse' refers only to a person of the opposite sex who is a husband or wife.” 1996 Defense of Marriage Act 41

42. 2000 Census Short Form – Same Sex Couples How the Census Bureau Calculates number of same sex couples: Collect information on the sex of everybody in the household Relationships of everybody in the household If two responses as “husband/wife” or “umarried partner” they counted as same sex couple Total Households105,380,101100.00% Heterosexual Households 59,969,00056.91% Spouse 54,493,23251.71% Umarried Partner 5,475,7685.20% Same Sex Couples 665,5230.63% Male 336,0010.32% Female 329,5220.31% 42

43. 2000 Census Long Form  Distributed to 1/6 people (appx 16.5%)  Includes 52 questions on 34 subjects  Personal subject areas include – Social – Economic  Housing subject areas include – Physical – Financial 43

44. 2000 Census Distribution  FTP – File Transfer Protocol  AFF – American Fact Finder  DVD – Order DVD or CD ROM from the census bureau  Private Data Repackagers – Combine and make it “easier” to use 44

45. 2000 Census Distribution FTPAFFDVD DifficultyHighLow CostNo Yes User LevelHighAll SpeedVariableHighN/A Connection IssuesPossibleUnlikelyN/A Download LimitsNone5 MBCD Size Graphical User Interface NoneYes 45

46. 2000 Census Public Use Microdata Samples  5% or 1% sample of individual responses to census data (micro data)  Create your own tables using raw data Value of 2 bedroom, hispanic owned houses Education, occupation and citizenship status of people born in Senegal  Larger geographies Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs) 46

47. Census Geography Legal Areas  Nation  State  Counties  Cities  Townships  Congressional Districts  School Districts  Native American Reservations 47

48. Census Geography Census Designated Areas  Metropolitan Statistical Area  Urbanized Area and Urban Cluster  Census Tract  Block Group  Block  Zip Code Tabulation Area  PUMAS/Super-PUMAS  Traffic Analysis Zones 48

49. Census Geography Main Hierarchy 49

50. Census Geography Small Area Geographies 50

51. Census Geography Small Areas - Blocks  Smallest units of data tabulation  Cover the entire nation  Do not cross census tracts or counties  Generally bounded by visible features and legal boundaries  Block numbers completely different from 1990  Size: average about 100 people 51

52. Census Geography Small Areas - Blocks 52

53. Census Geography Small Areas – Block Groups  Groups of blocks sharing the same first digit  Smallest areas for which sample data available  Size: optimally 1,500 people, range between 300 to 3,000 53

54. Census Geography Small Areas - Tracts  For the first time for Census 2000: Cover the nation  Relatively homogenous population characteristics  65,000 Census tracts across U.S.  Size: optimally 4,000 people, range between 1,000 and 8,000 54

55. Census Geography Small Areas – Block Groups and Tracts 55

56. Census Geography Small Areas - Places  Incorporated Places  Census Designated Places 56

57. Census Geography Minor Civil Divisions or Census County Divisions 57

58. Census Geography Small Areas - Counties Counties in 48 States Independent Cities in 4 States Parishes in Louisiana Cities and Boroughs in Alaska 58

59. Census Geography Large Geographic Areas  Regions  Divisions  States  Metropolitan Areas  Urbanized Areas  American Indian Reservations  Alaska Native Areas  Hawaiian Home Land Areas  Zip Code Tabulation Areas (ZCTAs)  Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs) 59

60. Census Geography Large Areas - Regions and Divisions 60

61. Census Geography Large Areas - Metropolitan Areas  Defined by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB)  Made up of a county or counties (or equivalent entities)  Contain large population nucleus  High socioeconomic integration 61

62. Census Geography Large Areas - Metropolitan Areas Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA): One city with 50,000 or more inhabitants or a Census-defined urbanized area and a total metropolitan population of at least 100,000 (75,000 in New England) Consolidated Metropolitan Statistical Area (CMSA): Meets MSA standards and population > 1 million, separate standard-meeting components can be identified, and local opinion supports component areas Primary Metropolitan Statistical Area (PMSA): Components that make up a CMSA Note: In 2003 new standards will go into effect. 62

63. Census Geography Large Areas – Metropolitan Areas 63

64. Census Geography Large Areas – Urbanized Areas  Densely settled areas with population of at least 50,000  Geographic core of block groups or blocks that have a population density of at least 1,000 people per square mile – Urban Cluster  Standards just released for Census 2000 tabulation in March 2002 www.census.gov/geo/www/ua/ua_2k.html 64

65. Census Geography Large Areas – Urbanized Areas 65

66. Census Geography Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs) 66

67. American Community Survey Conducted every year Mail survey, interview by phone, field representative visit Goes out to about 3 million households Will average responses for 3 year period to provide small area data Large area data will be published every year Will replace long form in 2010 census 67

68. 2010 Census 74% Participation 68