Once, Only Once, and in the Right Place
Residence Rules in the Decennial Census
Daniel L. Cork and Paul R. Voss, Editors
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The project that is the subject of this report was supported by contract no. YA132304CN0005 between the National Academy of Sciences and the U.S. Census Bureau. Support of the work of the Committee on National Statistics is provided by a consortium of federal agencies through a grant from the National Science Foundation (Number SBR-0112521). Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the organizations or agencies that provided support for the project.
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Suggested citation: National Research Council (2006). Once, Only Once, and in the Right Place: Residence Rules in the Decennial Census. Panel on Residence Rules in the Decennial Census. Daniel L. Cork and Paul R. Voss, eds. Committee on National Statistics, Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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PANEL ON RESIDENCE RULES IN THE DECENNIAL CENSUS
PAUL R. VOSS (Chair),
Department of Rural Sociology, University of Wisconsin–Madison (emeritus)
JORGE CHAPA,
Center on Democracy in a Multiracial Society, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
DON A. DILLMAN,
Social and Economic Sciences Research Center and Departments of Sociology and Community and Rural Sociology, Washington State University
KATHRYN EDIN,
Department of Sociology, University of Pennsylvania
COLM A. O’MUIRCHEARTAIGH,
National Opinion Research Center and Harris School of Public Policy, University of Chicago
JUDITH A. SELTZER,
Department of Sociology, University of California, Los Angeles
C. MATTHEW SNIPP,
Department of Sociology, Stanford University
ROGER TOURANGEAU,
Joint Program in Survey Methodology, University of Maryland, and Survey Research Center, University of Michigan
DANIEL L. CORK, Study Director
MICHAEL L. COHEN, Senior Program Officer
AGNES E. GASKIN, Senior Program Assistant
BARBARA A. BAILAR, Consultant
MEYER ZITTER, Consultant
COMMITTEE ON NATIONAL STATISTICS 2005–2006
WILLIAM F. EDDY (Chair),
Department of Statistics, Carnegie Mellon University
KATHARINE G. ABRAHAM,
Joint Program in Survey Methodology, University of Maryland
ROBERT M. BELL,
AT&T Labs—Research, Florham Park, New Jersey
ROBERT M. GROVES,
Survey Research Center, University of Michigan, and Joint Program in Survey Methodology, University of Maryland
JOHN C. HALTIWANGER,
Department of Economics, University of Maryland
PAUL W. HOLLAND,
Educational Testing Service, Princeton, New Jersey
JOEL L. HOROWITZ,
Department of Economics, Northwestern University
DOUGLAS S. MASSEY,
Department of Sociology, Princeton University
VIJAYAN NAIR,
Department of Statistics and Department of Industrial and Operations Engineering, University of Michigan
DARYL PREGIBON,
Google, New York, New York
SAMUEL H. PRESTON,
Population Studies Center, University of Pennsylvania
KENNETH PREWITT,
School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University
LOUISE RYAN,
Department of Biostatistics, Harvard University
NORA CATE SCHAEFFER,
Department of Sociology, University of Wisconsin–Madison
CONSTANCE F. CITRO, Director
Acknowledgments
THE PANEL ON RESIDENCE RULES in the Decennial Census of the Committee on National Statistics (CNSTAT) is pleased to submit this final report and wishes to thank the many people who have contributed to our work over the panel’s lifetime.
We thank the staff of the U.S. Census Bureau, under the leadership of director C. Louis Kincannon, deputy director Hermann Habermann, and associate director for decennial census Preston Jay Waite, for their accessibility and cooperation in providing information and materials to the panel and for several valuable interactions with the panel. Philip Gbur and Frank Vitrano acted superbly as lead liaisons between the Census Bureau and the panel, and Vitrano was a particular pleasure to work with as the lead technical contact between the panel and the Bureau. Ed Byerly, head of the Census Bureau’s internal residence rules working group, merits recognition for guiding panel members and other participants through lengthy, comprehensive “walk-through” sessions at two of the panel’s five public meetings. In plenary sessions and in smaller working group activities, the panel also benefited from its interaction with other talented members of the Census Bureau staff, including Robert Fay, Eleanor Gerber, Nancy Gordon, Deborah Griffin, Karen Humes, Elizabeth Krejsa, John Long, Sue Love, Elizabeth Martin, Louisa Miller, Laurel Schwede, Dave Sheppard, Annetta Clark Smith, and Maria Urrutia.
Our Panel on Residence Rules on the Decennial Census was one of three simultaneous CNSTAT panels studying different topics related to the upcoming 2010 census and the emergence of the American Community Survey as a data collection vehicle. As our work has progressed, we have found multiple points of overlap with the other two panels—the Panel on the Functionality and Usability of Data from the American Community Survey and the Panel on Coverage Measurement and Correlation Bias in the 2010 Census. We have
benefited from our interaction with our colleagues on these panels, and we particularly thank their respective chairs, Graham Kalton and Robert Bell, for their cooperation with activities of our panel.
To assist in its work, the panel commissioned two papers for presentation at its meetings and to inform our deliberations. Terri Ann Lowenthal, an independent consultant and a former congressional staff member with expertise in the census, outlined the congressional and regulatory perspectives on census residence issues and reviewed legislative and judicial precedents. We thank her for her contribution, as well as for her ongoing work of informing the broader census stakeholder community of legislative developments in her series of “News Alerts” from the Census Project (http://www.censusproject.org). In the second paper, futurist Joseph F. Coates reviewed broad societal trends that may complicate the definition and interpretation of residence in the next 25 years. His paper provoked a stimulating discussion at the panel’s December 2004 meeting, and we appreciate his work.
This report has been reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise, in accordance with procedures approved by the Report Review Committee of the National Research Council (NRC). The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the institution in making the published report as sound as possible and to ensure that the report meets institutional standards for objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process.
We thank the following individuals for their participation in the review of this report: Margo Anderson, History and Urban Studies, University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee; Beth Osborne Daponte, Institution for Social and Policy Studies, Yale University; Vincent Fu, Department of Sociology, University of Utah; Kimberly Goyette, Department of Sociology, Temple University; Martha Jones, Division of Workers’ Compensation Research Unit, Department of Industrial Relations, State of California; Steven Ruggles, Minnesota Population Center, University of Minnesota; Nora Cate Schaeffer, Department of Sociology, University of Wisconsin–Madison; and John H. Thompson, Office of the Executive Vice President, National Opinion Research Center, Chicago, Illinois.
Although the reviewers listed above provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the conclusions or recommendations nor did they see the final draft of the report before its release. The review of the report was overseen by Kenneth Wachter, Department of Demography, University of California, Berkeley, and Stephen E. Fienberg, Department of Statistics, Carnegie Mellon University. Appointed by the NRC, they were responsible for making certain that an independent examination of the report was carried out in accordance with institutional proce-
dures and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content of this report rests entirely with the authoring panel and the institution.
In addition to the Census Bureau staff, we wish to thank the other expert speakers who contributed to our plenary meetings: Patricia Allard, Brennan Center for Justice, New York University School of Law; Robert Goldenkoff, U.S. Government Accountability Office; David McMillen, National Archives (formerly with the U.S. House Committee on Government Reform); Jim Moore, U.S. House Committee on Government Reform; and Peter Wagner, Prison Policy Initiative.
Our meeting drew attendants from several other federal agencies and interested groups. We can not list them all, but we do wish to thank those whose active contributions helped further the work of the panel: Allen Beck, Bureau of Justice Statistics; John Drabek, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; Robert Parker, U.S. Government Accountability Office (retired); D.E.B. Potter, National Center for Health Statistics; Susan Schechter, U.S. Office of Management and Budget; Ed Spar, Council of Professional Associations on Federal Statistics; and Katherine Wallman, U.S. Office of Management and Budget.
The panel appreciates the efforts of the reports office of the Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education. Eugenia Grohman provided careful editing of the manuscript, Kirsten Sampson-Snyder patiently shepherded the report through scheduling and review processes, and Yvonne Wise managed the production of the finished volume.
Logistical support for the panel was provided with great skill and cheerfulness by Agnes Gaskin, senior program assistant. Research assistance was provided by Marisa Gerstein prior to her resumption of graduate studies in early 2005. The panel also benefited greatly from the long experience and wise counsel of CNSTAT consultants Barbara Bailar and Meyer Zitter. The panel is particularly indebted to the regular and active participation in its meetings of Constance Citro, director of CNSTAT. We simply could not have wished for a more experienced and talented group of committee staff as we worked our way through the history of residence rules in the census and particular problems regarding the concept of residence and its implementation in the 2000 census, and as we explored alternative ways to better ensure that future censuses will count each person living in the country once, and only once, and in the correct place.
I speak for the entire panel in expressing our profound gratitude to the panel’s study director, Daniel Cork. His uncanny ability to somehow bring to the screen exactly the relevant paragraph from some obscure report or a needed statistic from some data set regularly delighted panel members and routinely kept us on task. He carefully guided the panel during the process of coming to consensus regarding a final set of recommendations, and he drafted
the text of our report during a time when his efforts were also very much in heavy demand by another CNSTAT panel.
Finally, I thank my fellow panel members for their generous contributions of time and expert knowledge. We worked extraordinarily well together, somehow always maintaining a wonderful sense of spirited camaraderie despite occasional disagreements over matters of emphasis or substance.
Paul R. Voss, Chair
Panel on Residence Rules in the Decennial Census
List of Figures
2-1 |
Basic residence question (Question 1), 2000 census questionnaire |
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6-1 |
Basic residence question, advance materials distributed prior to enumerator visits, 1960 census |
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6-2 |
Basic residence instructions and Question 1, 1970 census questionnaire |
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6-3 |
Basic residence question (Question 1), 1980 census questionnaire |
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6-4 |
Basic residence question (Item 1), 1990 census questionnaire |
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6-5 |
Coverage probe questions, 1970 census questionnaire |
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6-6 |
Coverage probes (Questions H1–H3), 1980 census questionnaire |
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6-7 |
Coverage treatment groups, 2005 National Census Test |
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6-8 |
Coverage probe questions, 2005 National Census Test |
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8-1 |
Introductory household count question, 2005 American Community Survey |
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8-2 |
Excerpt of household roster question and instructions, 2005 American Community Survey |
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8-3 |
Excerpt of household roster question and instructions, 1996–1998 American Community Survey |
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8-4 |
Question 25, 2005 American Community Survey |
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B-1 |
Proposed form of basic usual residence questionnaire item (UR1), 2006 Census of Population and Housing, Australia |
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B-2 |
Residence instructions, 2001 Census of Population, Canada |
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B-3 |
Basic residence questions, 2001 Census of Population, Canada |
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B-4 |
Questionnaire items to collect primary and secondary address information, 2000 Census of Population, Switzerland |
List of Tables
2-1 |
Residence Rules for the Current Population Survey |
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3-1 |
Group Quarters Population by Group Quarters Type, 2000 Census |
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3-2 |
Undergraduate College Housing, 2003–2004 |
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3-3 |
Patient Discharges and Distribution of Current Nursing Home Residents, by Length of Stay (in percent) |
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3-4 |
Sentence Length for Most Serious Individual Offense, New Court Commitments to State Prisons, by Offense, 1993 and 2002 |
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3-5 |
Time Served by Newly Released State Prisoners, 1993–2002 |
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3-6 |
Time Served by Newly Released State Prisoners, by Offense Type, 1993 and 2002 |
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4-1 |
Classification of Farm Workers |
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4-2 |
Children Under Age 18 by Household Composition, 1996 and 2001 (in thousands) |
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4-3 |
Divorces by Whether and to Whom Physical Custody of Children was Awarded, Selected States, 1989 and 1990 |
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4-4 |
Type of Child Custody per Most Recent Agreement, 1994–1998 (in percent) |
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4-5 |
Births and Deaths in the United States by Month, 2004, Provisional Vital Statistics Data |
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4-6 |
Criteria for Distinguishing Separate Units in Multi-Unit Dwellings, 1850–2000 |
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7-1 |
Mode of Completion, Group Quarters Individual Census Reports, 2000 Census |
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7-2 |
Group Quarters Questionnaire Records in the Non-ID Process by Form Type, 2000 Census |
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B-1 |
Usual Residence Categories as Delineated by the Census Order 2000, United Kingdom |
List of Boxes
2-1 |
Why Is April 1 “Census Day”? |
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2-2 |
Types of Enumeration Areas (TEAs), 2000 Census |
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2-3 |
Group Quarters Categories for the 2000 Census |
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2-4 |
State Definitions of Residence: California |
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2-5 |
Franklin v. Massachusetts (1992) |
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2-6 |
Undercount and Overcount in the 2000 Census |
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2-7 |
Census Bureau’s Proposed 2010 Census Residence Rule |
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3-1 |
Individual, Military, and Shipboard Census Reports |
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3-2 |
Borough of Bethel Park v. Stans (1971) |
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3-3 |
District of Columbia v. U.S. Department of Commerce (1992) |
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4-1 |
Types of Child Custody Arrangements |
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4-2 |
Colonias |
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4-3 |
S-Night |
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4-4 |
Service-Based Enumeration |
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5-1 |
Ethnographic Research in the Census |
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5-2 |
Living Situation Survey |
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5-3 |
Alternative Questionnaire Experiments |
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5-4 |
Residence Rules for the 1990 Census |
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5-5 |
Include and Exclude Instructions in the 1950 Census |
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6-1 |
Illustration of Application of Residence Principles as the Basis for “Frequently Asked Questions” |
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6-2 |
Residence Question and Instructions in the 2000 Census and the 2000 Alternative Questionnaire Experiment |
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6-3 |
Coverage Follow-Up Plans for the 2010 Census |
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7-1 |
2006 Census Test Group Quarters Definitions |
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7-2 |
Kansas Census Adjustment |