About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

GGD-94-116R 1 (1994-08-02)

handle is hein.gao/gaobackpv0001 and id is 1 raw text is: United States (IAA fjn General Accounting Office Washington, D.C. 20548 General Government Division B-257820 August 2, 1994 The Honorable Thomas C. Sawyer Chairman, Subcommittee on Census, Statistics and Postal Personnel Committee on Post Office and Civil Service House of Representatives Dear Mr. Chairman: This letter addresses your request for our assistance in interpreting a Census Bureau memorandum entitled, Could the Census Bureau Reduce the Undercount by Not Using a 'Long Form'? (see encl. I). You asked us to review the effects on decennial census coverage (the accuracy of the basic count of the population) of eliminating (1) the long form used during the 1990 Census and (2) some of the questions on the 1990 Census short form. In its memorandum, the Bureau developed a statistical model that could be used to estimate the overall rate at which people were missed during the 1990 Census (the overall omission rate). Using the model, the Bureau estimated the possible effects on the omission rate of eliminating the census long form (one of the variables used to estimate the overall omission rate). We examined the reasonableness of the assumptions used in the Bureau's model, and we replicated calculations the Bureau used to estimate the effects on census coverage of eliminating the long form. We then used the Bureau's model to examine the second question raised by your letter concerning the effects on census coverage of eliminating some of the questions on the short form. Our review of the Bureau's memorandum relies on the results of Bureau evaluations of the omissions rates in the 1990 Census and the results of other Bureau evaluations done in 1992 and 1993 that tested the reaction of the public to different decennial census questionnaires of varying lengths and format. However, we did not independently validate any of GAO/GGD-94-116R, Improving Census Accuracy

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Contact us for annual subscription options:

Contact Us

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most