What’s going on with Census data?
The Census Bureau has provided us with essential information for centuries, but we can’t take it for granted. Counting everyone is a massive effort, and while cost-saving innovations were planned for 2020, the Census faced significant challenges due to Covid-19. The 2020 Census results reflected those challenges. Congress has consistently failed to provide timely and adequate funding for the ACS and decennial census research and planning. It’s important to educate our Congressional leaders about the importance of the ACS and census planning. America's Essential Data at Risk
The ACS has its own challenges. It’s a survey - not a full count - so we need everyone who is selected to participate to ensure that we get reliable data. That’s why the Census makes the survey mandatory for those who receive it. It’s vital that we learn the hard lessons the Canadian government learned when it made its household survey voluntary – and keep the ACS mandatory
How does MACS help the Census?
MACS is your link to what’s happening with the issues threatening Census data. We’re following developments in census methodologies and research, identifying how changes in data accuracy and access impact Minnesotans, tracking support for funding and data on Capitol Hill, educating stakeholders and elected officials about how Census data support communities, and engaging Minnesotans to support accurate, consistent, and equitable Census data.