[CTPP] Census 2000 News Alert

From: Census2000 &lt;Census2000(a)ccmc.org&gt; Hearing and Document Update Because of recent changes in, or additions to, the schedule for congressional activities relating to the census, we want to provide stakeholders with updated information on these events. We also want to pass along information on how to access new materials of interest to stakeholders. Congressional oversight hearings: The House Subcommittee on the Census will hold a hearing this afternoon to discuss the "America Counts Today (ACT) Initiative," a proposal by Chairman Dan Miller (R-FL) to "enhance traditional enumeration methods." The hearing starts at 2:00 p.m. in room 2203 Rayburn House Office Building. Census Bureau Director Kenneth Prewitt will testify. The subcommittee will also hear from Rep. Carrie Meek (D-FL), sponsor of the "Decennial Census Improvement Act of 1999" (H.R. 683). The bill would allow federal agencies to disregard income earned by temporary census enumerators in determining eligibility for certain federal benefits. The census subcommittee will vote on H.R. 683 at a "mark-up" scheduled for Thursday, March 4, at 9:15 a.m. in room 311 Cannon House Office Building. Congressional appropriations hearings: The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, State, and The Judiciary has rescheduled its hearing to review the Commerce Department's budget request for Fiscal Year 2000 (FY00), which includes funding for the Census Bureau. Secretary William Daley will appear before the panel, chaired by Rep. Harold Rogers (R-KY), on Wednesday, March 3, at 2:00 p.m. in room 2359 Rayburn House Office Building. The hearing originally scheduled for March 4, to review the Census Bureau's funding request in more detail with Director Prewitt, has been postponed. Secretary Daley is scheduled to testify before the counterpart Senate appropriations subcommittee, chaired by Sen. Judd Gregg (R-NH), on Thursday, March 11, at 10:00 a.m. in room S-146 of The Capitol. Census Monitoring Board: The eight-member Census Monitoring Board will hold a meeting on Monday, March 8, at 9:30 a.m., in the Census Bureau's conference center at its Suitland, MD, headquarters. The agenda for the meeting and any witnesses have not yet been announced. Tabulating race and ethnic data: The Office of Management and Budget's Draft Provisional Guidance on the Implementation of the 1997 Standards for the Collection of Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity can now be found on OMB's web site at <http://www.whitehouse.gov/WH/EOP/OMB/html/misc-doc.html>. OMB is accepting comments on the draft guidelines for tabulating multiple responses to the race question in the census and other federal surveys for two months and expects to issue provisional guidance at the end of April. Dress rehearsal evaluation: The Census Bureau has issued a "Report Card: Evaluation of the Standards for Success" on its Census 2000 Dress Rehearsal, conducted in three sites in 1998. The report compares data from various stages of dress rehearsal operations with a set of standards for each site: Columbia, S.C. and surrounding counties; Sacramento, CA; and Menominee County, WI (including the Menominee American Indian Reservation). Key elements for evaluation include the address lists, mailing a replacement questionnaire to all households, the paid advertising campaign, door-to-door follow-up activities, and unduplication of multiple responses from the same household. For more information on the dress rehearsal February 1999 Report Card, please contact the Bureau's Planning, Research, and Evaluation Division at 301/457-3525. Questions about the information contained in this News Alert may be directed to TerriAnn Lowenthal at 202/484-2270 or, by e-mail at &lt;terriann2k(a)aol.com&gt;om>. Please direct all requests to receive News Alerts, and all changes in address/phone/fax/e-mail, to the Census 2000 Initiative at &lt;Census2000(a)ccmc.org&gt; or 202/326-8700. Please feel free to circulate this information to colleagues and other interested individuals.