Here's the latest update on the Congressional ACS hearing... If any of our CTPP friends attend or sent in testimony and want to report back I am sure those on this listserve would be interested in hearing from you. -----Original Message----- From: Terri Lowenthal [mailto:terriann2k@aol.com] Good afternoon, Census Project stakeholders. Just a reminder that the congressional Joint Economic Committee will hold a hearing tomorrow (June 19) at 2:30PM to review the economic consequences of eliminating the Census Bureau's American Community Survey and other federal surveys (such as the quinquennial Economic Census). The Census Project encourages stakeholders in the Washington, DC area to attend this hearing in person, to demonstrate strong interest in and support for the ACS and other core Census Bureau programs. See the link on my Facebook page for more details about the hearing. However, if you are unable to attend, the committee will web case the hearing. Here's the link (to the best of our knowledge ... if it doesn't work, please go to the Joint Economic Committee home page!): http://www.jec.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?p=Hearings&ContentRecord_id=… Also, FYI, Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), who is presiding over the JEC hearing, will hold a short press conference at noon tomorrow at the House press "Triangle," to call more attention to the serious consequences of the House vote to eliminate the ACS and to encourage cooler heads to prevail. In addition to Rep. Maloney and a few other members of Congress, Wade Henderson (President/CEO of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights) and senior representatives from the National Association of Realtors and National Electrical Manufacturers Association will speak. For those of you who don't follow the legislative agenda closely, there is still no word on when the U.S. Senate will consider the FY13 Commerce, Justice, and Science Appropriations bill. Due to a whole range of election year politics, it might not before the election. However, at some point before this Congress adjourns, lawmakers must agree on a funding bill for the Census Bureau for fiscal year 2013, and they must resolve the issues of ACS funding, voluntary versus mandatory ACS response, and adequate funding for 2020 Census planning and the 2012 Economic Census. So we must use the time now to continue educating all lawmakers (both chambers, both parties!) about the importance of the ACS and the serious policy implications of eliminating the survey or making response voluntary. Thanks for your continued support and efforts. We will keep you posted! Terri Ann Lowenthal -- Ed Christopher 708-283-3534 (V) 708-574-8131 (cell) FHWA RC-TST-PLN 4749 Lincoln Mall Drive, Suite 600 Matteson, IL 60443