Date: Mon, 22 Feb 1999 From: Census2000 &lt;Census2000(a)ccmc.org&gt; Congressional Committee and Advisory Committee Debate Need For Post Census Local Review Program OMB Issues Draft Guidelines for Tabulating Multiple Race Responses Over the objection of panel Democrats and the Census Bureau, the House census subcommittee approved legislation to require a Post Census Local Review (PCLR) program in the 2000 census. The February 11 "mark-up" of H.R. 472, sponsored by subcommittee chair Dan Miller (R-FL), followed a hearing on the measure that featured testimony from several local officials and the Census Bureau's director in 1990, Dr. Barbara Everitt Bryant. (Please see our February 9 News Alert for a summary of H.R. 472, the "Local Census Quality Check Act".) In opening remarks, Chairman Miller called the Census Bureau's decision not to include PCLR in the 2000 census "unfortunate," saying the failure to allow local governments to review preliminary housing unit counts "breeds distrust in the Census." The chairman said he was "amazed that there is anyone at all testifying against" the bill. Noting that "we won" the "fight over sampling in the Supreme Court," Rep. Miller called for "concrete proposals that will help give the Bureau and local communities the resources and tools they need to get an accurate count." In brief remarks at the start of the hearing, the Committee on Government Reform's senior Democrat, Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA), registered a strong objection to the subcommittee's consideration of the bill so soon after its introduction and the hearing. The swift action, Rep. Waxman charged, indicated that the panel's majority members were not interested in evaluating comments and concerns about the local review program in order to develop the best solution. Democratic members were also upset that consideration of the legislation was taking place without Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), the subcommittee's senior Democrat, who was attending a conference in the Netherlands. Rep. Danny Davis (D-IL) called Post Census Local Review "an old issue with a troubled past," and suggested that efforts should be focused on "count[ing] all the people" instead of on housing units only. He then read a letter to the panel's chairman from Census Bureau Director Kenneth Prewitt, expressing concern that the Bureau had not been invited to present its view on H.R. 472 to the subcommittee. Rep. Davis listened to testimony from the four panels of witnesses, but refused to participate in the mark-up that followed the hearing. Rep. Harold Ford Jr. (D-TN), a new panel member, refused to attend both the hearing and the mark-up, saying the process appeared to be partisan. Several witnesses representing municipal governments or their associations said they supported reinstatement of a Post Census Local Review program in 2000. Palm Beach (FL) County Commissioner Carol Roberts, emphasizing the high growth rate in her community, said that PCLR offers the "best opportunity [for local governments] to correct miscounts" in the census. Ms. Barbara Welty, representing the National Association of Towns and Townships, said that smaller communities need 45 working days to review preliminary housing unit counts, as proposed in H.R. 472, because of limited fiscal and personnel resources as well as less technical expertise. She said that many smaller local governments are not participating in a pre-census review of census address lists and maps (called the Local Update of Census Addresses, or LUCA) due to lack of resources or time, making a post-census review more important for them. Mr. Lanier Boatwright, President of the National Association of Development Organizations (NADO), suggested that the Census Bureau should provide financial assistance to smaller governments that could not afford to review pre-census address lists or preliminary housing unit counts during the census itself. He noted that most of the nation's 39,000 local governments served fewer than 3,000 people. Expressing doubts about the benefits of a lengthy PCLR program, Richmond (VA) Mayor Timothy Kaine said that the 1990 PCLR was not cost-effective and that it did not address "two significant problems that produce an inaccurate census: systemic undercounting of people within households that are counted, and over counting." The U.S. Conference of Mayors, he said, believed that sampling methods were the best way to address those problems. In the 1990 census, local officials reviewed preliminary counts of housing units, but not population. Evaluations showed that about 70 percent of the people missed in the 1990 census lived in households that had been counted; among African American households, the comparable figure was 80 percent. Dr. Bryant called the 1990 PCLR "well intentioned but ineffective" and noted that the program added only 0.08 percent of all housing units counted in that census. She said the review was effective in identifying housing units or entire subdivisions that had been counted in the wrong location, but said that those geographic coding mistakes were corrected in the permanent mapping database. Former Commerce Under Secretary Everett Ehrlich, now a member of the Census Monitoring Board, compared Chairman Miller's proposal for PCLR in 2000 to the game "Beat the Clock." The legislation, Mr. Ehrlich cautioned, gives 39,000 local governments a chance to review and challenge their census counts without leaving enough time for the Bureau to evaluate the claims before the December 31, 2000 deadline for submitting state population totals to the President. Immediately after the hearing, the subcommittee's Republican members approved H.R. 472, without any amendments, by a 5 - 0 voice vote. The Government Reform Committee is expected to take up the measure in the near future. Census Advisory Committee debates merits of local review: Several members of the Commerce Secretary's 2000 Census Advisory Committee expressed disappointment both with the Census Bureau's decision to eliminate any form of post census local review and with Congress' efforts to pass legislation mandating such a program. Those who voiced their concerns generally agreed that an opportunity to review housing unit counts before they become final could help identify glaring mistakes in the geographic location of neighborhoods or group facilities. However, most of them also opposed requiring a specific Post Census Local Review program through legislation and said they did not advocate a repeat of the 1990 program in 2000. The comments were made at the committee's final meeting on February 19, where stakeholder organizations discussed their report and recommendations to the Secretary concerning the 2000 census. In its report, the committee unanimously endorsed a post census review of address or housing unit lists, as well as a large post-enumeration survey to provide the basis for correcting measurable undercounts and overcounts. The Advisory Committee agreed to establish a working group to address disagreements about the local review process between the Census Bureau and local governments. The Secretary of Commerce is expected to renew the committee's charter so that it can continue to provide guidance during final preparations and the census itself. We will provide a more comprehensive summary of the Advisory Committee meeting in a future News Alert. Draft Guidelines Issued for Race and Ethnic Data: The Office of Management and Budget issued Draft Provisional Guidance on the Implementation of the 1997 Standards for Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity (formerly known as OMB Statistical Policy Directive 15) on February 17. The draft guidelines were developed by an inter-agency task force to provide guidance on tabulating multiple responses to the race and ethnicity questions in the 2000 census and other federal data collection activities. The new standards issued in October 1997 include several other changes to the race categories. OMB is seeking comment on the draft guidance and expects to amend the document after additional research and analysis. The agency will issue the final provisional guidance at the end of April 1999, after a two-month discussion period. Interested stakeholders may obtain further information from the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (the division of OMB responsible for federal statistical policy) at 202/395-3093. Appropriations hearings scheduled: House and Senate appropriators have signaled the start of the annual funding process by scheduling hearings to review Fiscal Year 2000 (FY00) budget requests for the Commerce Department and Census Bureau. The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, State, and The Judiciary, chaired by Rep. Harold Rogers (R-KY), will hear testimony from Commerce Secretary William Daley on February 25, at 10 a.m. in room 2358 Rayburn House Office Building. Census Bureau Director Kenneth Prewitt will discuss the Bureau's funding needs at a hearing on March 4, at 10 a.m. (room TBA). The counterpart Senate appropriations subcommittee, chaired by Sen. Judd Gregg (R-NH), has scheduled a hearing on March 11, at 10 a.m., in room S-146 The Capitol, to review the Commerce Department's funding request. Congress also must pass, and the President must sign, legislation to keep funds for the current fiscal year (FY99) flowing to the Census Bureau and all other agencies covered under the Commerce, Justice, State, and The Judiciary budget account by June 15, 1999. Census Monitoring Board activities: The presidential appointees to the Census Monitoring Board will hold community forums in San Antonio, TX, and Miami, FL, to assess how the undercount in 1990 affected these communities and to hear local concerns about the 2000 census. On February 24, Board Co-Chair Tony Coelho will convene a forum from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., at the University of Texas/San Antonio Downtown Campus, 501 West Durango St., Buena Vista Street Building, Lecture Hall 1.328. On February 25, a Presidential Board appointee will hold a forum from 10:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., in the Miami-Dade Public Library, Main Building, First Floor Auditorium, 101 W. Flagler St., in Miami. Both events are open to the public. Census stakeholders may obtain information on the activities of the Board's Presidential appointees by calling 301/457-9900. The Board's congressional appointees may be reached at 301/457-5080, or through their web site at www.cmbc.gov <http://www.cmbc.gov>. The presidential members plan to establish a web site in the near future. New publication: The Population Reference Bureau has issued a report entitled, "The 2000 Census Challenge," authored by Dr. Barry Edmonston, director of Oregon's Center for Population Research and Census. Dr. Edmonston discussed the report's highlights at a briefing sponsored by the National Press Club on February 18. After reviewing concerns about rising census costs and diminished accuracy, the author concluded that fundamental reform of the census process was needed to obtain a more accurate count of historically-undercounted groups. Dr. Edmonston also co-authored "Modernizing the U.S. Census," a 1995 report issued by the National Academy of Sciences' National Research Council pursuant to a legislative mandate. Copies of the new report are available from the Population Reference Bureau, at 202/939-5417 or rsilvis(a)prb.org <mailto:rsilvis@prb.org>. 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.