Census May Drop the Long Form
Dateline: 04/07/00
Facing complaints and low return rates due to privacy concerns and ponderous length of the Census 2000 "long form" questionnaire, Rep. Dan Miller (R-Florida), Chairman of the House Subcommittee on the Census has announced plans to eliminate the controversial form in time for the 2010 census.
In his opening statements to the April 5th meeting of the Subcommittee, Rep. Miller acknowledged the public's objections to the longer census form.
"The reason why there is a long form controversy is because millions of Americans aren't comfortable answering the questions," stated Miller.
Rep. Miller suggested the media may have contributed to the public's negative feelings toward the census stating, "Long before remarks by any congressional leaders, news stories were talking about the long form problems. The News Hour on PBS had an entire segment on the privacy issue and the long form almost 2 weeks ago."
In expressing the desire of Congress to eliminate the long form by 2010, Rep. Miller stated, "Of course we can't eliminate the long form in a vacuum. There is information that government needs to make informed decisions on the allocation of resources, and the planning and distribution of $185 billion in funding. A new tool called the American Community Survey is being developed by the Census Bureau. Is that the answer? Maybe. This is going to take careful consideration by this subcommittee and eventually the Congress as a whole."
The Census Bureau is expected to release further details on the "American Communities Survey" soon.
Reference Resources
House Subcommittee on the Census
Chaired by Rep. Dan Miller of Florida, this House subcommittee is charged with overseeing the census. Hearings and Testimony.Census 2000 Homepage
The U.S. Census Bureau has all the answers to your questions plus the reasons you should participate.Census 2000 - Help With Forms
Need help filling out your census questionnaire? Look here. You might even be able to complete it online.Title 13 - United States Code
The complete law on the census from Cornell University.
Also on US Government Info/Resources |
Why Should You Answer the Census?
Find out how your community depends on a complete and accurate census.Census 2000 Fast Facts
What's the schedule for Census 2000? What's on the Census form? What is there to be counted?Jobs at the Census Bureau? Count on It!
Thousands of full and part time workers across the nation are being hired now.
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