The American Community Survey

Attachment Q

ACS-51(GQ)(F)
Issued January 2012

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Frequently Asked Questions
for Facility Administrators

American Community Survey
Group Quarters

Your Community’s Key to the Future

U.S. Department of Commerce
Economics and Statistics Administration
U.S. CENSUS BUREAU

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AMERICAN COMMUNITY SURVEY

What is the American
Community Survey?
The American Community Survey
is a survey conducted by the U.S.
Census Bureau in every county,
American Indian and Alaska Native
Area, and Hawaiian Home Land.
It replaced the long form in the
decennial census and greatly
simplified operations so that the
focus of the decennial census is
solely on counting the population.
The American Community Survey
provides current demographic,
social, economic, and housing
characteristics every year. In
the past, this information was
only available every 10 years
when the decennial census was
conducted. Estimates from the
American Community Survey
help communities make informed
decisions and is a key to their
future.

The American Community Survey
does not count the population, but
it does provide information that
reflects what the population looks
like and how it lives.
That information is vital for
states and local communities
in determining how to plan for
schools, roads, senior citizen
centers, and other goods and
services.
The U.S. Office of Management
and Budget (OMB) approved this
survey and gave it OMB approval
No. 0607-0810. Displaying this
number shows that the Census
Bureau is authorized to conduct
this survey. Please use this
number in any correspondence
concerning this survey.
Respondents are not required
to respond to any information
collection unless it displays a valid
approval number from the OMB.

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We have not heard of the
American Community Survey.
How long have you been
conducting it?
The American Community Survey
began in 1996 in a sample of
counties across the country. The
American Community Survey
began sampling group quarters
in 2006. Today, the survey is
conducted in all U.S. counties, as
well as in Puerto Rico where it is
called the Puerto Rico Community
Survey.
How does this group quarters
and its residents benefit
by answering the American
Community Survey?
The American Community
Survey provides up-to-date
information for your community.
By responding to the American
Community Survey you are
helping your community to
establish goals, identify problems
and solutions, and measure the
performance of programs.

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AMERICAN COMMUNITY SURVEY

Communities need data about the
well-being of children, families,
and the elderly to provide services
to them. These estimates are also
used to decide where to locate
new highways, schools, libraries,
hospitals, and community centers,
and to determine the goods and
services its residents need.
What type of group quarter
facilities are included in the
American Community Survey?
Examples of group quarter
facilities include:
• College/University student
housing
• Residential treatment centers
for adults
• Nursing facilities/
Skilled-nursing facilities
• Group homes intended for
adults
• Military quarters
• Correctional facilities for adults
• Workers’ group living quarters
and Job Corps centers

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AMERICAN COMMUNITY SURVEY

Why did the Census Bureau
select this group quarters
facility?

What level of assistance is
expected from my staff during
the survey period?

Group quarter facilities are
randomly selected each year
from a sample list of all group
quarters in your area. The larger
the group quarters, the greater the
probability that it will be selected
to participate in the survey one or
more times each year.

Your staff will be asked to:

Your participation is very
important for us to be able to
produce accurate information from
this survey.
We have already participated
in this survey. How many
times during the year will the
Census Bureau sample my
facility?
The number of times we visit
your facility depends on the size
of your facility. Large facilities
may be sampled multiple times
throughout the year.

• provide a list of residents
currently staying at your facility
• give the Census Bureau
representative access to the
sample residents to conduct
interviews, and
• inform the Census Bureau
representative of any special
requirements that may assist
them in conducting interviews
at your facility.
How are residents at my
facility selected to be in the
sample?
After you provide a list of all
residents currently staying at
your facility, field representatives
randomly select residents to take
part in the American Community
Survey. One of the advantages
of a random sample is that we
can use it to measure the whole

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population without having to
actually interview every resident
at every facility. But in order for
it to work properly, we cannot
substitute sample residents—the
sample has to be truly random.
Do the sampled group
quarters and sampled
residents have to answer the
questions on the American
Community Survey?
Yes. You are required by law to
answer the American Community
Survey. Two provisions of
Title 13, United States Code,
require your participation.
Section 221 of Title 13 makes
it mandatory for individuals
to participate in the American
Community Survey, and
Section 223 of Title 13 makes it
mandatory for building owners
and others to provide access to
individuals in order to conduct
the American Community
Survey group quarter interviews.
The same law protects the
confidentiality of the information

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AMERICAN COMMUNITY SURVEY

you provide. For more information
about Title 13, you may visit
the Census Bureau’s website at

and select the topic: “American
Community Survey: Must I
respond?”
How will information be
collected from sampled
residents in this facility?
The American Community Survey
collects residents’ information
through face-to-face or telephone
interviews. This can either be
with the sampled resident or a
proxy respondent. The sampled
resident may also fill out the
questionnaire on his/her own.
The Census Bureau representative
will leave the questionnaire with
the resident and return to pick up
the completed questionnaire at an
agreed upon time.

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AMERICAN COMMUNITY SURVEY

Why do you select residents
who may be physically or
mentally unable to answer the
American Community Survey?
Residents are randomly selected
to take part in the American
Community Survey. Sampled
residents may designate another
person, such as a relative,
guardian, or facility administrator
to help with the survey.
The facility administrator may
talk with the Census Bureau
representative to resolve any
issues. To produce the most
accurate results, it is very
important that every resident
selected for the survey is included.
How long will it take to
complete the survey?
We estimate that the facility
survey will take about 15 minutes
to complete and each resident
survey will take about 25 minutes
to complete. Send comments
regarding this burden estimate or
any other aspect of this collection
of information, including
suggestions for reducing this

burden, to: Paperwork Reduction
Project 0607-0810, U.S. Census
Bureau, 4600 Silver Hill Road,
AMSD-3K138, Washington, DC
20233. You may email comments
to [email protected]; use
“Paperwork Project 0607-0810” as
the subject.
Can the sampled resident
interviews be done via e-mail
or online?
No. At this time, the survey
cannot be completed via e-mail or
online.
Why do you ask detailed
questions that may seem
unnecessary for residents
living in this facility?
The American Community Survey
asks very detailed questions
because we are required to collect
specific information that is used
for a variety of federal and state
programs. The questionnaire is
used for residents of many types
of facilities. Therefore, not every
question will apply to everyone
who receives it.
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Will the Census Bureau keep
the group quarter facility
and resident information
confidential?
Yes. Your answers are
confidential by law under Title 13,
United States Code, Section 9.
This law specifies that the Census
Bureau can use the information
provided by the facility and
residents for statistical purposes
only and cannot publish or release
information that would identify
any group quarters or individual.
How will the Census Bureau
use the information the
group quarters and sampled
residents provide?
The Census Bureau will compile
and publish estimates for
geographical areas, such as, for
the nation, states, counties and
Puerto Rico municipios. The
Census Bureau will not publish
or release information that would
identify a facility, or its residents.
Estimates are then available for
use by a variety of programs
supporting your community.
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AMERICAN COMMUNITY SURVEY

Who can see the answers this
group quarters or its residents
provide to the survey?
Your facility and resident responses
will only be seen by Census Bureau
personnel with a work-related
need to know. The Census Bureau
protects the confidentiality of the
information. The police cannot see
it and no court of law can see it.
No one can see or use your specific
answers to enforce any type of law
or amend any kind of benefit.
If any Census Bureau employee
were to share information about
your facility or its residents, he
or she would be subject to severe
criminal sanctions imposed
by Congress—up to 5 years
imprisonment and/or up to a
$250,000 fine (Title 13, United
States Code, Section 214, as
amended by Title 18, United States
Code, Sections 3559 and 3571).

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AMERICAN COMMUNITY SURVEY

When will results of the
survey be available?
The previous years’ results of
the American Community Survey
are released every fall. Survey
estimates are released each year
for areas of 65,000 or more
people. For smaller areas, results
are available in the form of 3-year
and 5-year estimates.
How can the group quarters
and the residents see the
results of the survey?
This information is published on
the Census Bureau’s American
FactFinder Web site at

Where can the facility and its
residents get assistance or
find more information about
the American Community
Survey?
You can contact the Census
Bureau’s Regional Office nearest
you as listed below:
Census Bureau Regional Offices
Atlanta, GA
1-800-424-6974
Chicago, IL
1-800-865-6384
Denver, CO
1-888-209-7659
Los Angeles, CA
1-800-992-3530 (ext. 1)
New York, NY
1-800-991-2520 (ext. 3400)
Philadelphia, PA
1-866-238-1374

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For more information about the
American Community Survey, or
to obtain survey results from past
years, we encourage you to visit
our Web site at:
.
You may also contact us by calling
301-763-INFO (4636), or by visiting
, or by mail
at the following address:
American Community Survey
U.S. Census Bureau
4600 Silver Hill Road
Washington, DC 20233-7500

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AMERICAN COMMUNITY SURVEY

Attachment Q

AMERICAN
COMMUNITY
SURVEY
U.S. CENSUS BUREAU

http://ask.census.gov

Phone: 1-888-346-9682

Internet:
www.census.gov/acs