-------- Original Message -------- Subject: Census funding update: GOOD NEWS! Date: Fri, 4 Nov 2005 16:06:07 EST From: Terriann2K(a)aol.com Hello, census stakeholders. News has trickled out from the House-Senate conference committee which yesterday considered the Census Bureau's Fiscal Year 2006 appropriations bill. Congressional sources tell me, and the Associated Press is reporting, that conferees agreed to the House-passed funding level of roughly $812.2 million. We do not have any additional details. Conferees are expected to file their joint report on Monday. The report should contain more detail on how (if) the funds are broken down by account (Periodic Censuses and Programs, and Salaries and Expenses) and activity. It also might include directives, such as a request for a report on alternative ways to count prisoners in the census (as the House included in its report). The apparent conference figure is still $65 million below the President's budget request, so the Census Bureau must determine how it will carry out its plans within this budget. Good work, everyone. There is no question in my mind that the focused effort of stakeholders, to let legislators know the importance of Census Bureau data, pushed the outcome in the right direction. Terri Ann Terri Ann Lowenthal Legislative & Policy Consultant 1250 4th St., SW Apt. W615 Washington, DC 20024 (tel.) 202-484-3067 (cell) 202-258-2425 TerriAnn2K(a)aol.com ***************************