[CTPP] Census 2020 PL 94-171 Data: Legacy Format vs API Format

Hello all: The Census 2020 “PL 94-171” file — the “redistricting file” — the “short form” data from the decennial census — will be released by August 16, 2021 in a “legacy format”. This means that it will be released in large data chunks, downloadable from the Census Bureau’s website, but not accessible using the Census API (Application Programming Interface) until (perhaps) September 30, 2021. This means that the PL 94-171 data will not be available (immediately) via data.census.gov <http://data.census.gov/> or r-programs such as TIDYCENSUS. Census Bureau’s main page on Census 2020 PL 94-171: https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/about/rdo/summary-… <https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/about/rdo/summary-files.html> Census Bureau’s video on the PL 94-171 data release. Watch It! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O0MhAue2Tuk&t=86s <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O0MhAue2Tuk&t=86s> But there are two R program packages available to read in the “legacy format” PL 94-171 files: CENSUSAPI https://CRAN.R-project.org/package=censusapi <https://cran.r-project.org/package=censusapi> and PL94171 https://CRAN.R-project.org/package=PL94171 <https://cran.r-project.org/package=PL94171> And they work! I really like PL94171, and will be using it in my analyses between August 16th and to whenever the “API ready” data is available. Attached are my scripts that test the CENSUSAPI, TIDYCENSUS, and PL94171 for the Census 2010 (Rhode Island, California); and the 2018 Test Census (Providence County, RI). # # # And here is the TWITTER stream that alerted me to the presence of the PL94171 package: from the twitterverse: Kyle Walker <https://twitter.com/kyle_e_walker> @kyle_e_walker <https://twitter.com/kyle_e_walker> (July 12, 2021) tidycensus #rstats <https://twitter.com/search?q=%23rstats> users: this means that the soonest we'll have 2020 redistricting data in the package is early October, though you can work with the raw data yourselves in mid-August by downloading from the FTP site. Hansi Lo Wang @hansilowang <https://twitter.com/hansilowang> (July 12, 2021) PRO TIP: If you're confused by the Census Bureau citing two different expected release dates for 2020 census redistricting data — Aug. 16 and Sept. 30 — bureau official Nicholas Jones says in this video: "It's the same data, just in different formats" youtube.com/watch?v=O0MhAu… <https://t.co/C8yYHFsot1> Christopher Kenny @Chris_T_Kenny <https://twitter.com/Chris_T_Kenny> Jul 12 <https://twitter.com/Chris_T_Kenny/status/1414639454548119560> Replying to @kyle_e_walker In that interim, @CoryMcCartan <https://twitter.com/CoryMcCartan/> and I have the PL94171 package on CRAN CRAN.R-project.org/package=PL94171 <https://t.co/nnRbEcRJpc>. It has tools to download, read, and process the PL files once they're available from the FTP. (I look forward to once they're tidycensus readable!) Kyle Walker @kyle_e_walker <https://twitter.com/kyle_e_walker> Jul 12 <https://twitter.com/kyle_e_walker/status/1414648437447053317> Replying to @Chris_T_Kenny @CoryMcCartan excellent, great work! Chuck Purvis @charleypurvis <https://twitter.com/charleypurvis> (July 19, 2021) Replying to @kyle_e_walker The good news is that TIDYCENSUS can currently read the Census 2010 PL 94-171 data. I was sincerely hoping the Census Bureau had the 2020 PL data “API ready” by August 16, but alas, this doesn’t appear to be the case! # # # Hopefully folks can use and improve on my R scripts. I’m still an old-dog-learning-new-tricks with R, so recommendations to improve them would be welcome. And if you’re really ambitious, you can check out the REDIST package (geographic methods for re-districting!). cheers, Chuck Purvis, Hayward, California (formerly of the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, San Francisco, California) # # # Attachments: