I got this from our friends at the Census Project. The U.S. House of Representatives is at it again! Next Wednesday, March 12, the House Committee on Oversight & Government Reform will hold a meeting to mark up Congressman Ted Poe’s (R-TX) bill to make the American Community Survey (ACS) voluntary. If the ACS is made voluntary, participation rates would drop dramatically and the value of the survey would substantially decline. Census Project Co-Director Terri Ann Lowenthal explains the issue in a new blog post today (http://censusprojectblog.org/2014/03/07/from-the-ashes-the-poe-bill-rises-a…). Additional information about the ACS is contained in a series of fact sheets developed by the Census Project (http://www.thecensusproject.org/factsheets.htm), and in a March 2012 letter to Congress (http://www.thecensusproject.org/letters/2012-03-06_Census_Project_voluntary…), from when the House made a similar move. The Census Project only learned of the committee’s intentions last night. We realize it’s a quick turnaround, but we hope your organization can co-sign a letter to congressional leadership (http://www.thecensusproject.org/letters/2014-03-acsbill/CensusProjectACSltr…) by 4:00 p.m. (Eastern) on Monday, March 10. We will then send this important letter to Congress and issue a press release on Tuesday in advance of the committee hearing on Wednesday. If your organization can co-sign the letter (http://www.thecensusproject.org/letters/2014-03-acsbill/CensusProjectACSltr…), please contact Jason Shevrin at jason.shevrin(a)gmail.com by 4:00 p.m. on Monday The Census Project http://www.thecensusproject.org/ -- Ed Christopher