2020 Census Operational Plan v 2.0

2020 Census Operational Plan
A New Design for the 21st Century
Issued September 2016
Version 2.0

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

census.gov

Note to Reader:
Please note that the 2020 Census Operational Plan v2.0 reflects the operational design for
the 2020 Census as of August 31, 2016. The operational plan has not been updated to reflect
the decision announced on October 18, 2016 to stop work on two field test operations in
FY 2017 to mitigate program risk amidst funding uncertainty. For more information on this
announcement, please view the 2020 Census Decision Memorandum Series: “Adjustment of
the FY 2017 Test Scope” at the following URL:
www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/2020-census/planningmanagement/memo-series/2020-memo-2016_21.html
If you are directed to an error page when clicking on this link,
please copy and paste this link into your browser instead.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.1 Purpose . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.2 Design Approach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.3 Document Scope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
1.4 Document Development Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.5 Document Organization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
2. The 2020 Census Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
2.1 Purpose, Goal, and Challenge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
2.2 Uses of Decennial Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
2.3 The Changing Environment and Escalating Costs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
2.4 Four Key Innovation Areas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
2.5 A New Design for the 21st Century . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
2.6 The 2020 Census Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
3. The Four Key Innovation Areas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
3.1 Reengineering Address Canvassing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
3.2 Optimizing Self-Response . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
3.3 Utilizing Administrative Records and Third-Party Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
3.4 Reengineering Field Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
3.5 Summary of Innovations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
4. Key Tests, Milestones, and Production Dates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
4.1 Tests to Inform the Operational Design and Prepare for Conducting the Census . . . . . . . . . 33

4.1.1 Tests in 2012–2014 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

4.1.2 Tests in 2015 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

4.1.3 Tests in 2016 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

4.1.4 Tests in 2017 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

4.1.5 Tests in 2018 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

4.1.6 Tests in 2019 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
4.2 Key Decision Points and Milestones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
4.3 2020 Census Production Operational Schedule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
5. The 2020 Census Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
5.1 Operations Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

5.1.1 Frame . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

5.1.2 Response Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

5.1.3 Publish Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
5.2 Program Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

5.2.1 Program Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
5.3 Census/Survey Engineering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

5.3.1 Systems Engineering and Integration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

5.3.2 Security, Privacy, and Confidentiality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

5.3.3 Content and Forms Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

5.3.4 Language Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
5.4 Frame . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

5.4.1 Geographic Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

5.4.2 Local Update of Census Addresses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80

5.4.3 Address Canvassing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

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5.5 Response Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

5.5.1 Forms Printing and Distribution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

5.5.2 Paper Data Capture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89

5.5.3 Integrated Partnership and Communications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92

5.5.4 Internet Self-Response . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94

5.5.5 Non-ID Processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99

5.5.6 Update Enumerate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102

5.5.7 Group Quarters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105

5.5.8 Enumeration at Transitory Locations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108

5.5.9 Census Questionnaire Assistance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110

5.5.10 Nonresponse Followup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113

5.5.11 Response Processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120

5.5.12 Federally Affiliated Americans Count Overseas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
5.6 Publish Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125

5.6.1 Data Products and Dissemination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126

5.6.2 Redistricting Data Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127

5.6.3 Count Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130

5.6.4 Count Question Resolution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132

5.6.5 Archiving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134
5.7 Other Censuses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135

5.7.1 Island Areas Censuses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
5.8 Test and Evaluation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137

5.8.1 Coverage Measurement Design and Estimation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138

5.8.2 Coverage Measurement Matching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140

5.8.3 Coverage Measurement Field Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141

5.8.4 Evaluations and Experiments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
5.9 Infrastructure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147

5.9.1 Decennial Service Center . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147

5.9.2 Field Infrastructure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149

5.9.3 Decennial Logistics Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152

5.9.4 IT Infrastructure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154
6. Key Program-Level Risks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159
6.1 Funding Requests Not Realized . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160
6.2 Administrative Records and Third-Party Data—External Factors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160
6.3 Public Perception of Ability to Safeguard Response Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160
6.4 Cybersecurity Incidents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
6.5 Enterprise IT Solutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
6.6 Data Quality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
6.7 Late Operational Design Changes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162
6.8 Reengineering Address Canvassing Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162
6.9 Administrative Records and Third-Party Data—Access and Constraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
6.10 Cloud Implementation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
6.11 Technological Innovations Surfacing After Design Is Finalized . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
6.12 Policy Impacts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
7. Quality Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165
7.1 Reengineering Address Canvassing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
7.2 Optimizing Self-Response . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
7.3 Using Administrative Records . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
7.4 Reengineering Field Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
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8. Life-Cycle Cost Estimate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
9. Approval Signature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
10. Document Logs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
10.1 Sensitivity Assessment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
10.2 Review and Approvals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
10.3 Version History . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181

Appendix: List of Acronyms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183

LIST OF FIGURES
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1: Approach to the Operational Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
2: 2020 Census Program Documentation Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
3: Organizations and Governance Boards for the 2020 Census Operational Plan . . . . . . . . . . . 3
4: 2020 Census Environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
5: Costs—Traditional vs Innovative 2020 Census . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
6: The 2020 Census—A New Design for the 21st Century . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
7: Operations by Work Breakdown Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
8: Summary of Reengineering Address Canvassing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
9: Operations That Contribute to Reengineering Address Canvassing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
10: Summary of Optimizing Self-Response . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
11: Operations That Contribute to Optimizing Self-Response . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
12: Summary of Utilizing Administrative Records and Third-Party Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
13: Operations That Contribute to Utilizing Administrative Records and Third-Party Data . . . . 24
14: Summary of Reengineering Field Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
15: Operations That Contribute to Reengineering Field Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
16: Operations With Significant Innovations Since the 2010 Census . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
17: High-Level View of Tests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
18: Tests in 2012–2014 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
19: Tests and Key Decisions in 2015 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
20: Tests Planned in 2016 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
21: Schedule for the 2017 Census Tests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
22: Schedule for the 2018 End-to-End Census Test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
23: Defect Resolution and Performance Tests in 2019 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
24: Key Decision Points and Milestones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
25: 2020 Census Operations—Production Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
26: High-Level Integrated Schedule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
27: Operational Overview by Work Breakdown Schedule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
28: High-Level Integration of Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
29: Program Management Framework . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
30: Summary of Geographic Programs Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
31: Paper Data Capture Flow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
32: Response Processing Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
33: 2020 Census Program-Level Risk Matrix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159

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LIST OF TABLES
Table 1: Operations and Purpose . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Table 2: Description of Operations That Contribute to Reengineering Address Canvassing . . . . . . . . . 18
Table 3: Description of Operations That Contribute to Optimizing Self-Response . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Table 4: Description of Operations That Contribute to Utilizing Administrative Records and
Third-Party Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Table 5: Description of Operations That Contribute to Reengineering Field Operations . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Table 6: Summary of Key Innovations by Operation—Con. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Table 7: Operational Tests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Table 8: Summary of Quality Parameters Collected for Reengineering Address Canvassing . . . . . . . . 168
Table 9: Summary of Quality Parameters Collected for Initial Frame . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168
Table 10: Summary of Key Quality Parameters Collected for the In-Office Address Canvassing
and MAF Coverage Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169
Table 11: Geographic Programs Quality Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
Table 12: Summary of Quality Parameters Collected for Enumeration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172
Table 13: Summary of Self-Response Workloads for Housing Units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173
Table 14: Summary of Key Quality Parameters Collected for Self-Response Person Error . . . . . . . . . . 173
Table 15: Summary of Key Quality Parameters Collected for Using Administrative Records Error
for Persons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
Table 16: Summary of Key Quality Parameters Collected for Nonresponse Followup Person Error
(Non-Ad Rec) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
Table 17: Summary of Key Quality Parameters Collected for Update Enumerate for Person Error . . . . 175

iv 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

U.S. Census Bureau

1. Introduction
1.1 PURPOSE
The U.S. Census Bureau’s 2020 Census Operational
Plan documents the current design for conducting the 2020 Census. As the initial version of an
emerging concept of operations, it reflects and
supports evidence-based decision making by
describing design concepts and their rationale,
identifying decisions still to be made, and describing significant issues and risks related to the implementation of the Operational Plan.

1.2 DESIGN APPROACH
As shown in Figure 1, the operational design comprises a set of design decisions that drive how the
2020 Census will be conducted. These design decisions are informed through research, testing, and
analysis of the cost and quality impacts of different
design options. The operational design also drives
the requirements for Information Technology (IT)
capabilities and acquisitions.

Approach to Design Decisions

The operational design
omprises a set of design
ecisions that together
eflect how the 2020 Census
will be conducted.

The 2020 Census is being designed and developed
on a rolling schedule. Accordingly, this process is
iterative. Preliminary design decisions have been
made based on early research, testing, and analysis, and these have been used to determine initial
requirements for capabilities and acquisitions. As
the design matures and more decisions are finalized, the requirements will be updated to reflect
the revised design.
An important aspect of the design approach for the
2020 Census is an increased reliance on enterprise
standards and solutions. Specifically, the design of
all IT capabilities adheres to the Enterprise Systems
Development Life Cycle (eSDLC) and IT Guiding
Principles. Furthermore, the 2020 Census Program’s
budget, schedule, and work activities align with
the eSDLC/Mission Enabling and Support Work
Breakdown Structure. The 2020 Census design also
leverages enterprise-shared services, including the
Census Enterprise Data Collection and Processing

Quality and
Cost Impact
Analysis

Research
and Testing
Results

Research, testing, and
nalysis of the cost and
uality impacts of different
esign options provide the
ata necessary to inform the
esign decisions.

Needs

Trade-Offs

Design Decisions

The operational design
rives the requirements
or IT capabilities and
cquisitions

Operations Design
Requirements

IT Capabilities

Requirements

Acquisitions

Figure 1: Approach to the Operational Design
U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census
Operational Plan—Version
2.0 1
14
Pre-decisional

Census 2020 Operational Design
Operational
Design

Research,
Testing,
and Assessments

Program
Management

Systems
Engineering and
Integration (SEI)

2020 Census
Operational Plan
Executive Summary

Plans

Plans

Management
Plans

2020 Census
Operational Plan

Results

Artifacts

Artifacts

Detailed
Operational
Plans

Other
Studies
and Reports

Life-Cycle
Cost
Estimates

Capabilities

Rebaselined
Schedule

Architectures

Designs

Figure 2: 2020 Census Program Documentation Structure
Pre-decisional

(CEDCaP) solution and the Center for Enterprise
Dissemination Services and Consumer Innovation
solution.1 These two initiatives provide the technology solutions required to support significant
portions of the innovations for the 2020 Census.

1.3 DOCUMENT SCOPE
This document is version 2.0 of the 2020 Census
Operational design and covers all operations
required to execute the 2020 Census, starting
with precensus address and geographic feature
updates, and ending once census data products
are disseminated and coverage and quality are
measured. It describes what will be done during
the 2020 Census and, at a high-level, how the work
will be conducted. Additional specifics of how
each operation will be performed are documented
in individual detailed operational plans, which are
being created on a rolling schedule. These detailed
1
Throughout this document, references are made to specific
CEDCaP systems (i.e., MOJO, PRIMUS, and COMPASS Census
Operations) that were only used to support the early 2020 Census
tests.

2 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

plans will include the business process models and
requirements that have been developed for each
operation.
While this document is a comprehensive plan, the
initial research and testing phase focused on those
areas that provided the greatest opportunity for
cost savings. The maturity level of the plan varies
by operation. For each operation, the plan presents
the decisions made to date and the design issues
to be resolved. Research and testing to refine and
improve all operations will continue through the
2018 End-to-End Census Test.
As shown in Figure 2, this Operational Plan, shaded
in yellow, is part of a broader set of documentation
for the 2020 Census Program that will be developed as the Program matures. Those items outlined
in dark blue (i.e., the 2020 Census Operational Plan
Executive Summary, the Life-Cycle Cost Estimates,
and the Rebaselined Schedule) are being completed
in conjunction with this Plan.

U.S. Census Bureau

27

anizations
Governance
rds for the
0 Census
rational Plan

CENSUS BUREAU
2020 Census Executive
Steering Committee

2020 Census
Detailed
Operational
Plan

CENSUS BUREAU
Portfolio Management
Governing Board (PMGB)
One for each
production
operation

2020 Census
Operational
Plan

DECENNIAL CENSUS
MANAGEMENT DIVISION
Budget Formulation and
Schedule Branches

DECENNIAL CENSUS
MANAGEMENT DIVISION
Operational Testing and
Management Branch

CENSUS BUREAU
(CROSS ORGANIZATIONAL)
Operational Integrated
Project Teams (IPTs)

CENSUS BUREAU
(CROSS ORGANIZATIONAL)
Operational Plan Team

DECENNIAL PROGRAM
MANAGEMENT OFFICE
Operational Plan and Decision
Inventory

CENSUS BUREAU
(CROSS ORGANIZATIONAL)
Operational Subject
Matter Experts

DECENNIAL STATISTICAL
STUDIES DIVISION
Quality Analysis Team

Figure 3: Organizations and Governance Boards for the 2020 Census
Operational Plan

1.4 DOCUMENT DEVELOPMENT
PROCESS
Many organizations across the Decennial Census
Directorate and the Census Bureau have been
involved in developing the 2020 Census operational
design. Figure 3 illustrates these organizations. The
Operational Plan Team consists of subject matter
experts from the key Census Bureau organizations with significant roles in supporting the 2020
Census. This team, supplemented with additional
subject matter experts from across the Census
Bureau, plays a key role in identifying research
needs, preparing for and analyzing the results of
tests, and recommending design decisions. The
U.S. Census Bureau

Decennial Census Management
Division is leading
12
Pre-decisional
the development of the schedule, life cycle cost
analysis, and the testing. The Decennial Statistical
Studies Division is leading the quality analysis. The
Decennial Program Management Office is leading
the annual review and revision of the 2020 Census
Operational Plan. The 2020 Census Operational Plan
has been reviewed and approved by both the 2020
Census Portfolio Management Governing Board and
the 2020 Census Executive Steering Committee.
Over the next two years, Operational Integrated
Project Teams are developing Detailed Operational
Plans (DOPs) for each production operation.

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 3

1.5 DOCUMENT ORGANIZATION
This document is organized into eight sections:
1.

Introduction

2.

The 2020 Census Overview

3.

The Four Key Innovation Areas

4.

Key Tests, Milestones, and Production Dates

5.

The 2020 Census Operations

6.

Key Program-Level Risks

7.

Quality Analysis

8.

Life-Cycle Cost Estimate

Section 5 describes each of the 34 census operations and constitutes the bulk of this Operational
Plan. All decisions in this section are current as of
August 31, 2016.

4 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

U.S. Census Bureau

2. The 2020 Census Overview
2.1 PURPOSE, GOAL, AND
CHALLENGE
The purpose of the 2020 Census is to conduct a
census of population and housing and disseminate
the results to the President, the states, and the
American people. The goal of the 2020 Census is
to count everyone once, only once, and in the right
place, and the challenge is to conduct the 2020
Census at a lower cost per household (adjusted for
inflation) than the 2010 Census, while maintaining
high-quality results.

2.2 USES OF DECENNIAL DATA
As the operational design of the 2020 Census is
finalized, it is important to keep in mind the purpose
of the 2020 Census and how the data will be used.
The primary requirement served by the decennial
census is the apportionment of seats allocated to
the states for the House of Representatives. This
requirement is mandated in the U.S. Constitution:
Article I, Section 2;
The actual Enumeration shall be made within
three Years after the first Meeting of the
Congress of the United States, and within every
subsequent Term of ten Years
Fourteenth Amendment, Section 2;
Representatives shall be apportioned among
the several States according to their respective
numbers, counting the whole number of persons in each State
Decennial data at the census block level are used
by governmental entities for redistricting, i.e.,
defining the representative boundaries for congressional districts, state legislative districts, school
districts, and voting precincts. Additionally, decennial data are used to enforce voting rights and civil
rights legislation.

U.S. Census Bureau

The Census Bureau also uses the decennial census
results to determine the statistical sampling frames
for the American Community Survey (ACS), which
replaced the long form in the decennial census and
is part of the Decennial Program, and the dozens of current surveys conducted by the Census
Bureau. The results of these surveys are used to
support important government functions, such as
appropriating federal funds to local communities
(an estimated $400 billion annually); calculating
monthly unemployment, crime, and poverty rates;
and publishing health and education data.
Finally, decennial data play an increasingly important role in U.S. commerce and the economy. As
people expand their use of data to make decisions
at the local and national levels, they increasingly
depend on data from the Census Bureau to make
these decisions. Today, local businesses look at
data provided by the Census Bureau on topics
like population growth and income levels to make
decisions about whether or where to locate their
restaurants or stores. Similarly, a real estate investor who is considering investing significant funds
to develop a piece of land in the community relies
on Census Bureau data to measure the demand for
housing, predict future need, and review aggregate trends. Big businesses also rely heavily on
Census Bureau data to make critical decisions that
impact their success and shape the economy at
the national level. As noted above, the decennial
census is the foundation for the Census Bureau’s
demographic survey data.
The decennial data must meet high quality standards to ensure good decision-making and to
continue building confidence in the government,
society, and the economy. Studying the balance
between cost and quality is an increasing focus of
the census design.

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 5

he 2020 Census
nvironment
A mobile
population

2020 Census design
st be able to incorporate
ancements in technology in
ay that minimizes risk and
ures an accurate count.

Informal,
complex living
arrangements

Increasingly
diverse
population

Constrained
fiscal
environment

The 2020
Census
Declining
response
rates

Rapidly
changing use
of technology

Information
explosion

Distrust in
government

Figure 4: 2020 Census Environment

2.3 THE CHANGING ENVIRONMENT
AND ESCALATING COSTS
The 2020 Census challenge is exacerbated by multiple environmental factors that have the potential
to impact its success. The Census Bureau is committed to proactively addressing the challenges
that follow (see Figure 4):
•• Constrained fiscal environment: Budget
deficits place significant pressure on funding
available for the research, testing, design, and
development work required for successful
innovation.
•• Rapidly changing use of technology:
Stakeholders expect the decennial census to
use technology innovation, yet the rapid pace of
change makes it challenging to plan for and adequately test the use of these technologies before
they become obsolete.
•• Information explosion: Rapid changes in
information technology (IT) create stakeholder
expectations for how the Census Bureau
6 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

Pre-decisional
interacts with the
public to obtain3 and disseminate data products.

•• Distrust in government: Concerns continue to
grow about information security and privacy, the
confidentiality of information given to the government, and how government programs will
use the information they collect. This makes it
more difficult to collect important demographic
survey information.
•• Declining response rates: Response rates for
Census Bureau surveys, and for surveys and censuses in general, have declined as citizens are
overloaded with requests for information and
become increasingly concerned about sharing
information.
•• Increasingly diverse population: The demographic and cultural make-up of the United
States continues to increase in complexity,
including a growing number of households
and individuals of Limited English Proficiency,
who may experience language barriers to

U.S. Census Bureau

Total Costs
Traditional
2020 Census
$17.8 B*

Cost of repeating 2010 Census in 2020 =
$124 per housing unit
Expected 2020 Census cost =
$88 per housing unit

Innovative
2020 Census
$12.5 B

$12.3 B
$9.4 B

$4.7 B
$3.0 B
$1.1 B
1970
69.5

1980
89.5

1990
103.5

2000
117.5

2010
133.5

2020
142.9
(projected)

* Estimate based on 2020 Census life-cycle cost if the 2010 approach is used.
Note: Figures through 2020 shown in 2020 constant dollars.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Number
of housing
units
(millions)

Figure 5: Costs—Traditional vs Innovative 2020 Census

enumeration and who may have varying levels
of comfort with government involvement.
•• Informal, complex living arrangements:
Households are becoming more diverse and
dynamic, making it a challenge to associate
an identified person with a single location. For
example, blended families may include children
who have two primary residences. Additionally,
some households include multiple relationships
and generations.
•• A mobile population: The United States continues to be a highly mobile nation as about 12
percent of the population moves in a given year,
based on results from the ACS conducted in
2012–2013 and 2013–2014. Continued growth
in the use of cellular telephone technology and
an associated reduction in landline telephones
tied to physical locations may also complicate
enumeration.

U.S. Census Bureau

Several of the societal, demographic, and technological trends listed above can result in a population that is harder and more expensive to enumerate. As it becomes more challenging to locate
individuals and solicit their participation through
traditional methods, the Census Bureau must
decade after decade spend more money simply to
maintain the same level of accuracy as in previous
censuses. As shown in Figure 5, on average, the
total costs—in constant dollars—of conducting the
decennial census have increased significantly each
decade. Initial estimates for expected total costs
for the 2020 Census are $17.8 billion if the Census
Bureau repeats the 2010 Census design and
methods. With the innovations described in this
Operational Plan, the Census Bureau estimates that
it can conduct the 2020 Census for $12.5 billion.

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 7

2.4 FOUR KEY INNOVATION AREAS
With cost reductions in mind, the 2020 Census team focused on four Key Innovation Areas:

Reengineering
Address
Canvassing

Optimizing
Self-Response

Field costs associated with Address Canvassing
and Nonresponse Followup (NRFU) operations comprise the most expensive parts of the 2020 Census.
All four innovation areas are aimed at reducing
the costs of fieldwork. A reengineered Address
Canvassing operation is expected to reduce the
field workload for address updating by 75 percent.
Self-response innovations, which are aimed at
generating the largest possible self-response rate,
coupled with the use of administrative records and
third-party data, are intended to reduce the field
workload associated with NRFU. Finally, the reengineered field operations are intended to increase
the efficiency of those operations, allowing managers and fieldworkers to be more productive and
effective.
Each innovation area is described further in
Section 3.

2.5 A NEW DESIGN FOR THE 21ST
CENTURY
Figure 6 describes at a high-level how the 2020
Census will be conducted. This design reflects a
flexible approach that takes advantage of new technologies and data sources while minimizing risk.
The first step in conducting the 2020 Census is to
identify all of the addresses where people could
live, or Establish Where to Count. An accurate
address list helps ensure that everyone is counted.
For the 2020 Census, the Census Bureau began
an in-office review of 100 percent of the nation’s
addresses in September 2015 and continually
updates the address list based on data from multiple sources, including the U.S. Postal Service, tribal,
state, and local governments, satellite imagery,
and third-party data providers. This office work
will also determine which parts of the country
require fieldwork to verify address information.

8 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

Utilizing
Administrative
Records and
Third-Party Data

Reengineering
Field Operations

While fieldwork began in 2016 on a small scale for
address coverage measurement, the bulk of the
In-Field Address Canvassing will begin in 2019 and
is anticipated to cover approximately 25 percent of
all addresses, a significant reduction from the 100
percent that were reviewed in the field during the
2010 Census.
As noted on page 6, response rates to surveys and
censuses have been declining. To Motivate People
to Respond, the 2020 Census will include a nationwide communications and partnership campaign.
This campaign is focused on getting people to
respond on their own (self-respond) as it costs
significantly less to process a response provided via
the Internet or through a paper form than it does
to send a fieldworker to someone’s home to collect
their response. Advertising will make heavy use of
digital media, tailoring the message to the audience.
The Census Bureau Counts the Population
by collecting information from all households,
including those residing in group or unique living
arrangements. The Census Bureau wants to make
it easy for people to respond anytime and anywhere. To this end, the 2020 Census will offer the
opportunity and encourage people to respond via
the Internet and will not require people to enter a
unique Census identification with their response.
Online responses will be accurate, secure, and
convenient. If people are at the bus stop, waiting
at the doctor’s office, or watching TV and do not
have their Census ID handy, they can provide their
address instead.
For those who do not respond, the Census Bureau
will use the most cost-effective strategy for contacting and counting people. The goal for the 2020
Census is to reduce the average number of visits
by using available data from government administrative records and third-party sources. These

U.S. Census Bureau

The 2020 Census
Operational
Overview

Count everyone once,
in the right place.

ESTABLISH
WHERE TO
COUNT

MOTIVATE
PEOPLE TO
RESPOND

COUNT
THE
POPULATION

RELEASE
CENSUS
RESULTS

Identify all addresses
where people could live

Conduct a nation-wide
communications and
partnership campaign

Collect data from all
households, including
group and unique living
arrangements

Process and provide Census data

Conduct a 100-percent review
and update of the nation’s
address list

Work with trusted sources
to increase participation

Minimize in-field work
with in-office updating

Maximize outreach using
traditional and new media

Use multiple data sources
to identify areas with
address changes

Target advertisements to
specific audiences

Get local government input

Make it easy for people to
respond anytime, anywhere
Encourage people to use the
online response option
Use the most cost-effective
strategy to contact and
count nonrespondents

Deliver apportionment counts
to the President by
December 31, 2020
Release counts for
redistricting by April 1, 2021
Make it easier for the public
to get information

Streamline in-field
census-taking
Knock on doors only
when necessary

Figure 6: The 2020 Census—A New Design for the 21st Century
Pre-decisional

9

data may be used to identify vacant households,
determine the best time of day to visit a particular
household, or to count the people and fill in the
responses with existing high-quality data from
trusted sources. A reduced number of visits will
lead to significant cost savings. It can also allow
the Census Bureau to focus its field resources to
achieve consistent response rates across geographic areas and demographic groups.

and management structure is expected to increase
productivity and save costs.

Additional cost savings are expected to result from
the use of automation to streamline in-field census
taking. Fieldworkers will use handheld devices for
collecting the data. Operations such as recruiting,
training, and payroll will be automated, reducing
the time required for these activities. New operational control centers will rely on automation to
manage the work, enabling more efficient case
assignment, automatic determination of optimal
travel routes, and reduction of the number of
physical offices. In general, a streamlined operation

2.6 THE 2020 CENSUS OPERATIONS

U.S. Census Bureau

The last step in the 2020 Census is to Release the
2020 Census Results. The 2020 Census data will
be processed and sent to the President (for apportionment) by December 31, 2020, to the states
(for redistricting) by March 31, 2021, and to the
public beginning in December 2021.

The 2020 Census includes 34 operations that are
organized into eight major areas that correspond
with the Census Bureau standard Work Breakdown
Structure. The term operation refers to both support and business functions. For example, Program
Management is considered a support function,
and Address Canvassing is considered a business
function. Table 1 provides a high-level purpose
statement for each operation.

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 9

Table 1: Operations and Purpose—Con.
Operations

Purpose

Program Management
Program Management (PM)

Define and implement program management policies, processes, and the control
functions for planning and implementing the 2020 Census in order to ensure an efficient
and well-managed program.

Census/Survey Engineering
Systems Engineering and Integration
(SEI)

Manage the delivery of a system of systems that meets the 2020 Census Program
business and capability requirements.

Security, Privacy, and Confidentiality
(SPC)

Ensure that all operations and systems used in the 2020 Census adhere to the
appropriate systems and data security and respondent and employee privacy and
confidentiality.

Content and Forms Design (CFD)

Identify and finalize content and design of questionnaires and other associated
nonquestionnaire materials, ensure consistency across data collection modes and
operations, and provide the optimal design and content of the questionnaires to
encourage high response rates.

Language Services (LNG)

Assess and support language needs of non-English speaking populations, determine
the number of non-English languages and level of support for the 2020 Census, optimize
the non-English content of questionnaires and associated nonquestionnaire materials
across data collection modes and operations, and ensure cultural relevancy and
meaningful translation of 2020 Census questionnaires and associated nonquestionnaire
materials.

Frame
Geographic Programs (GEOP)

Provide the geographic foundation in support of the 2020 Census data collection and
tabulation activities, within the Master Address File (MAF)/Topologically Integrated
Geographic Encoding and Referencing (TIGER) System. The MAF/TIGER System
(software applications and databases) serves as the national repository for all of the
spatial, geographic, and residential address data needed for census and survey data
collection, data tabulation, data dissemination, geocoding services, and map production.
Components of this operation include: Geographic Delineations, Geographic Partnership
Programs and Geographic Data Processing.

Local Update of Census Addresses
(LUCA)

Provide an opportunity for tribal, federal, state, and local governments to review and
improve the address lists and maps used to conduct the 2020 Census as required by
Public Law (P.L.) 103-430.

Address Canvassing (ADC)

Deliver a complete and accurate address list and spatial database for enumeration and
determine the type and address characteristics for each living quarter.

10 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

U.S. Census Bureau

Table 1: Operations and Purpose—Con.
Purpose

Operations
Response Data
Forms Printing and Distribution (FPD)

Print and distribute Internet invitations letters, reminder cards or letters or both,
questionnaire mailing packages and materials for other special operations, as required.
Other materials required to support field operations are handled in the Decennial
Logistics Management or Field Infrastructure operations.

Paper Data Capture (PDC)

Capture and convert data from the 2020 Census paper questionnaires, including mail
receipt, document preparation, scanning, Optical Character Recognition, Optical Mark
Recognition, Key From Image, editing, and checkout.

Integrated Partnership and
Communications (IPC)

Communicate the importance of participating in the 2020 Census to the entire
population of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico to support
Field recruitment efforts, engage and motivate people to self-respond (preferably
via the Internet), raise and keep awareness high throughout the entire 2020 Census
and to encourage response and effectively support dissemination of Census data to
stakeholders and the public.

Internet Self-Response (ISR)

Maximize online response to the 2020 Census via contact strategies and improved
access for respondents and collect response data via the Internet to reduce paper and
NRFU.

Non-ID Processing (NID)

Make it easy for people to respond anytime, anywhere to increase self-response rates
by providing response options that do not require a unique Census ID, maximizing realtime matching of non-ID respondent addresses to the Census living quarters address
inventory, assigning nonmatching addresses to census blocks and conducting validation
of all non-ID responses.

Update Enumerate (UE)

Update the address and feature data and enumerate respondents in person. UE
combines listing methodologies with enumeration methodologies by verifying
and updating the address list and feature data for tabulation of the 2020 Census,
determining the type and address characteristics for each living quarter and
enumerating respondents at housing units for which a 2020 Census response was not
received within the UE geographical areas.

Group Quarters (GQ)

Enumerate people living or staying in group quarters, and provide an opportunity for
people experiencing homelessness, and receiving service at service-based locations,
such as soup kitchens, to be counted in the Census.

Enumeration at Transitory Locations
(ETL)

Enumerate individuals in occupied units at transitory locations who do not have a
Usual Home Elsewhere, such as recreational vehicle parks, campgrounds, racetracks,
circuses, carnivals, marinas, hotels, and motels.

Census Questionnaire Assistance
(CQA)

Provide questionnaire assistance for respondents by answering questions about
specific items on the Census form or other frequently asked questions about the 2020
Census and provide an option for respondents to complete a Census interview over the
telephone.

Nonresponse Followup (NRFU)

Determines housing unit status for nonresponding addresses that do not self-respond to
the 2020 Census and enumerate households that are determined to have a housing unit
status of occupied.

Response Processing (RPO)

Create and distribute the initial 2020 Census enumeration universe, assign the specific
enumeration strategy for each living quarter based on case status and associated
paradata, create and distribute workload files required for enumeration operations, track
case enumeration status, and run postdata collection processing actions in preparation
for producing the final 2020 Census results, and check for invalid or potential fraudulent
returns.

U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 11

Table 1: Operations and Purpose—Con.
Operations

Purpose

Federally Affiliated Americans Count
Overseas (FAA)

Obtain counts by home state of U.S. military and federal civilian employees stationed or
deployed overseas and their dependents living with them.

Publish Data
Data Products and Dissemination (DPD) Prepare and deliver the 2020 Census population counts to the President of the United
States for Congressional apportionment, tabulate and disseminate 2020 Census data
products for use by the states for redistricting, and tabulate and disseminate 2020
Census data for use by the public.
Redistricting Data (RDP)

Provide to each state the legally required P.L. 94-171 redistricting data tabulations by the
mandated deadline of 1 year from Census Day: April 1, 2021.

Count Review (CRO)

Enhance the accuracy of the 2020 Census through remediating potential gaps in
coverage by implementing an efficient and equitable process to identify and correct
missing or geographically misallocated large group quarters and their population and
positioning remaining count issues for a smooth transition to the CQR operation.

Count Question Resolution (CQR)

Provide a mechanism for governmental units to challenge their official 2020 Census
results.

Archiving (ARC)

Coordinate storage of the materials and data and provides 2020 Census records deemed
permanent, including files containing individual responses, to the National Archives and
Records Administration for archiving and to the National Processing Center to use as
source materials to conduct the Age Search Service.

Other Censuses
Island Areas Censuses

Enumerate all residents of American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern
Mariana Islands, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands; process and tabulate the collected
data; and disseminate data products to the public.

Test and Evaluation
Coverage Measurement Design and
Estimation (CMDE)

Develop the survey design and sample for the postenumeration survey for the 2020
Census and produce estimates of census coverage based on a post enumeration survey.

Coverage Measurement Matching
(CMM)

Identify matches and nonmatches between the 2020 Census and the Census Coverage
Measurement Survey for both housing units and people, including computer and clerical
components of the matching process.

Coverage Measurement Field
Operations (CMFO)

Collect person and housing unit information (independent from the 2020 Census
operations) for the sample of housing units in the Coverage Measurement Survey and to
help understand census coverage and to detect erroneous enumerations.

Evaluations and Experiments (EAE)

Document how well the 2020 Census was conducted, and analyze, interpret, and
synthesize the effectiveness of census components and their impact on data quality or
coverage or both. Measure the success of critical 2020 Census operations. Formulate
and execute an experimentation program to support early planning and inform the
transition and design of the 2030 Census and produce an independent assessment of
coverage via Demographic Analysis in addition to and separate from those produced via
the Coverage Measurement Operations.

Infrastructure
Decennial Service Center (DSC)

Support 2020 Census Field Operations and handle all service requests initiated by field
staff.

Field Infrastructure (FLDI)

Coordinate space acquisition for and lease management of the Regional Census
Centers and field offices and provide the administrative infrastructure for data collection
operations covering the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.

Decennial Logistics Management (DLM) Provide logistics management services to include procuring warehouse space,
warehousing, inventory management, kit assembly, deployment of materials, and
receiving and accessing materials.

12 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

U.S. Census Bureau

Table 1: Operations and Purpose—Con.
Operations

Purpose

IT Infrastructure (ITIN)

Provide the IT-related Infrastructure support the 2020 Census, including enterprise
systems and applications, 2020 Census-specific applications, Field IT infrastructure,
mobile computing, and cloud computing.

Figure 7 presents a graphic representation of
the 34 operations organized into the eight areas
described above. A separate area, Other Censuses,
was added to account for the Island Areas
Censuses operation, which is a unique component
of the Decennial Census Programs. See Section 5
for details about the design and decisions for each
of these operations.

U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 13

14 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

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Enumeration at
Transitory Locations

Internet Self-Response

Island Areas
Censuses

Coverage Measurement
Field Operations

Federally Affiliated
Americans Count
Overseas

Evaluations and
Experiments

Archiving

Count Question
Resolution

Count Review

Redistricting Data

Nonresponse Followup

Response Processing

Data Products and
Dissemination

PUBLISH DATA

Language Services

Census Questionnaire
Assistance

IT Infrastructure

Content and
Forms Design

Figure 7: Operations by Work Breakdown Structure

Coverage Measurement
Design and Estimation

Coverage Measurement
Matching

Group Quarters

Integrated Partnership
and Communications

Address Canvassing

TEST AND EVALUATION

Update Enumerate

Paper Data Capture

Local Update of
Census Addresses

OTHER CENSUSES

Non-ID Processing

Decennial Logistics
Management

Security, Privacy and
Confidentiality

Forms Printing and
Distribution

RESPONSE DATA

Field Infrastructure

Systems Engineering
and Integration

Census/Survey Engineering

Geographic Programs

FRAME

Decennial Service
Center

Infrastructure

Program Management

Program Management

SUPPORT

3. The Four Key Innovation Areas
The 2020 Census is designed to cost less per
housing unit than the 2010 Census (when adjusted
for inflation), while continuing to maintain high
quality. The Census Bureau plans to achieve this
by conducting the most automated, modern, and
dynamic decennial census in history. The 2020
Census includes sweeping design changes in four
key areas, including new methodologies to conduct
Address Canvassing, innovative ways of optimizing
self-response, the use of administrative records
and third-party data to reduce the Nonresponse
Followup (NRFU) workload, and the use of technology to reduce the manual effort and improve the
productivity of field operations. The primary goal is
to achieve dramatic cost savings by:
•• Adding new addresses to the Census Bureau’s
address frame using geographic information
systems and aerial imagery instead of sending
Census employees to walk and physically check
11 million census blocks.

U.S. Census Bureau

•• Encouraging the population to respond to the
2020 Census using the Internet, reducing the
need for more expensive paper data capture.
•• Using data the public has already provided to
the government and data available from commercial sources, allowing realized savings to
focus additional visits in areas that have traditionally been hard to enumerate.
•• Using sophisticated operational control systems
to send Census Bureau employees to follow up
with nonresponding housing units and to track
daily progress.
The Census Bureau estimates that conducting a
2020 Census that includes these major cost-­saving
innovations has the potential to save approximately $5.2 billion compared with repeating the
2010 Census design in the 2020 Census.

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 15

3.1 REENGINEERING ADDRESS
CANVASSING
The goal of Reengineering Address Canvassing is to
eliminate the need to canvass every census block.
Instead, the Census Bureau is developing innovative
methodologies for updating the Master Address
File/Topologically Integrated Geographic Encoding
and Referencing (MAF/TIGER) System throughout
the decade. Figure 8 highlights the key concepts in
the Reengineering Address Canvassing approach.
Continual research and updating will be conducted
through In-Office Address Canvassing that began
in September 2015 and will continue through 2019
with the establishment of the frame for the 2020
Census. Every year clerks will start with the most
recent Census Bureau address list and update it
based on new information from the United States

Postal Service (USPS) and data from tribal, state,
and local governments and third parties (i.e., commercial vendors). Clerks will review satellite imagery to determine where changes in addresses are
occurring, and based on these changes, the Census
Bureau will develop a plan for capturing those
changes. This plan will include In-Field Address
Canvassing where address updates cannot be
obtained or verified or in areas undergoing rapid
change. The number of addresses requiring In-Field
Canvassing is expected to be approximately 25
percent of the total number of addresses. These
design changes have the potential to save the
Census Bureau an estimated $900 million.
The operations shaded in darker blue in Figure
9 include innovations related to Reengineering
Address Canvassing.

In-Field
Canvassing
Limited In-Field Canvassing in 2019
for those areas where address updates
cannot be obtained or verified
or are undergoing rapid change

Continual In-Office Canvassing
Update and verify the MAF using aerial imagery,
administrative records and commercial data

2020 Census
Begins
Updated MAF
used to conduct
2020 Census

Master Address File (MAF) Coverage Study
Ongoing fieldwork to measure coverage, validate in-office procedures, and
improve in-field data collection methodologies

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

Figure 8: Summary of Reengineering Address Canvassing

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U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 17

Island Areas
Censuses

OTHER CENSUSES

Group Quarters

Integrated Partnership
and Communications

Address Canvassing

Coverage Measurement
Matching

Coverage Measurement
Field Operations

Federally Affiliated
Americans Count
Overseas

Response Processing

Nonresponse Followup

Census Questionnaire
Assistance

IT Infrastructure

Content and
Forms Design

Evaluations and
Experiments

Archiving

Count Question
Resolution

Count Review

Redistricting Data

Data Products and
Dissemination

PUBLISH DATA

Language Services

Figure 9: Operations That Contribute to Reengineering Address Canvassing

Coverage Measurement
Design and Estimation

TEST AND EVALUATION

Enumeration at
Transitory Locations

Update Enumerate

Paper Data Capture

Local Update of
Census Addresses

Internet Self-Response

Non-ID Processing

Decennial Logistics
Management

Security, Privacy and
Confidentiality

Forms Printing and
Distribution

RESPONSE DATA

Field Infrastructure

Systems Engineering
and Integration

Census/Survey Engineering

Geographic Programs

FRAME

Decennial Service
Center

Infrastructure

Program Management

Program Management

SUPPORT

Documented below are brief descriptions of how each operation contributes to the Reengineering Address
Canvassing innovation area:

Table 2: Description of Operations That Contribute to Reengineering Address
Canvassing
Operation

Contributions

Geographic
Programs

Simplified collection geography.
Simplified Type of Enumeration Area delineation.
More data sources to validate and augment the frame.
More frequent engagement with partners to improve quality of the MAF/TIGER System.

Local Update of Census Addresses

Local Update of Census Addresses submissions validated as part of In-Office or In-Field
Address Canvassing.

Address Canvassing

100 percent of address canvassing conducted in-office.
Target 25 percent of living quarters for In-Field Address Canvassing.
Ongoing in-office and in-field improvement process.
Classification of living quarter types during in-office review.
Increased productivity of field staff due to automated case assignment and route
optimization.

Update Enumerate

Geography in Update Enumerate areas not included in the in-field workloads.

Field Infrastructure

Reduced office infrastructure needed for In-Field Address Canvassing.
Automated administrative functions.

IT Infrastructure

Listing applications for In-Field Address Canvassing with flexibility to support decennial
Device as a Service (dDaaS).
Enterprise solutions with flexible architecture.
Additional IT infrastructure to support In-Office Address Canvassing.

Additional operations that contribute to
Reengineering Address Canvassing include
Decennial Service Center (DSC); Security, Privacy,
and Confidentiality; and the Systems Engineering
and Integration (SEI).

3.2 OPTIMIZING SELF-RESPONSE
The goal of this innovation area is to communicate the importance of the 2020 Census to the U.S.
population and generate the largest possible selfresponse, reducing the need to conduct expensive
in-person follow-up with those households.

and administrative records and third-party data to
target advertisements and tailor contact strategies
to different demographic groups and geographic
areas. The Census Bureau also plans to utilize its
partnership program, providing information to
government agencies and hosting events at community, recreation, and faith-based organizations.
Communication and contact strategies will encourage the use of the Internet as the primary response
mode through a sequence of invitations and postcard mailings. In addition, when Census Bureau
enumerators visit a house and no one is home, the
notice of visit will encourage self-response.

As shown in Figure 10, the Census Bureau plans to
motivate people to respond by using technology

18 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

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2
Generate the largest possible self-response, reducing the number of households
requiring follow-up.

Motivate
people to respond
and assure that
data are secure

MicroTargeted
Advertising

Tailored
Contact
Strategy

Partnership
Program

Notices
Encouraging
Self-Response

Make it easy to
respond from
any location at
any time
Multiple Modes and
Devices

Preassigned ID
Not Required*

Online Forms in
Multiple Languages

* Validate respondent addresses for those without a Census ID and prevent
fraudulent submissions.

Figure 10: Summary of Optimizing Self-Response
Pre-decisional

A second key aspect of Optimizing Self-Response
is to make it easy for people to respond from any
location at any time. This is done in several ways:
•• By enabling people to respond via multiple
modes (Internet, paper, or telephone if they
call the Census Questionnaire Assistance [CQA]
Center).

For these innovations to be successful, respondents must know that their personal information is
protected. Thus, a key element of this innovation
area is to assure respondents that their data are
secure and treated as confidential.
These design changes have the potential to save
the Census Bureau an estimated $400 million.

•• By allowing respondents to submit a questionnaire without a unique identification code.

The operations shaded in darker blue in Figure
11 include innovations related to Optimizing

•• By providing online forms in multiple languages.

Self-Response.

U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 19

6

20 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

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Island Areas
Censuses

Coverage Measurement
Matching

Coverage Measurement
Field Operations

Count Question
Resolution

Federally Affiliated
Americans Count
Overseas

Evaluations and
Experiments

Archiving

Count Review

Redistricting Data

Data Products and
Dissemination

PUBLISH DATA

Language Services

Response Processing

Nonresponse Followup

Census Questionnaire
Assistance

IT Infrastructure

Content and
Forms Design

Figure 11: Operations That Contribute to Optimizing Self-Response

Coverage Measurement
Design and Estimation

TEST AND EVALUATION

Enumeration at
Transitory Locations

Internet Self-Response

OTHER CENSUSES

Group Quarters

Integrated Partnership
and Communications

Address Canvassing

Update Enumerate

Paper Data Capture

Local Update of
Census Addresses

Non-ID Processing

Decennial Logistics
Management

Security, Privacy and
Confidentiality

SUPPORT

Forms Printing and
Distribution

RESPONSE DATA

Field Infrastructure

Systems Engineering
and Integration

Census/Survey Engineering

Geographic Programs

FRAME

Decennial Service
Center

Infrastructure

Program Management

Program Management

Documented below are brief descriptions of how each operation contributes to the Optimizing
Self-Response innovation area:

Table 3: Description of Operations That Contribute to Optimizing Self-Response
Operation

Contributions

Content and
Forms Design

Questionnaire designed for multiple modes and devices.

Language Services

Non-English questionnaires available across modes.
Non-English content development of contact materials (e.g., invitation letters and
postcards).

Forms Printing and Distribution

Census mailing that encourages people to respond via the Internet.

Paper Data Capture

Paper available as a response mode.

Integrated Partnership and
Communications

Microtargeted advertising.
Multichannel outreach.
Integrated Partnership and Communications program adjusted based on customer
response, behavior, and feedback.
National and local partnerships promoting self-response.
Educational awareness campaign via traditional and new media sources (e.g., social
media).

Internet Self-Response

Internet instrument optimized for mobile devices.
Multiple languages available.
Contact approach tailored based on prior response rates, Internet access data, and
demographics (up to five self-response mailings).
Real-time edit checks for Internet Self-Response to improve quality.

Non-ID Processing

Public can respond anytime, anywhere without a unique Census ID.
Real-time geocoding of responses.
Real-time validation of responses without a unique Census ID.
Real-time soft edits and checks for addresses.
Administrative records and third-party data used to validate identity and validate and
augment address data.

Census Questionnaire Assistance

Flexible and adaptive language support.
Web chat.
Respondent-initiated telephone response collection.

Response Processing

Single operational control system that tracks case status across all modes.

IT Infrastructure

Infrastructure built and sized to meet demand and ensure adequate performance for
Internet Self-Response.
Secure Internet response capability.

U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 21

In addition, the Security, Privacy and Confidentiality
operation and the Systems Engineering and
Integration operation contribute to the Optimizing
Self-Response innovation area.

3.3 UTILIZING ADMINISTRATIVE
RECORDS AND THIRD-PARTY DATA
The goal of this innovation area is to use information people have already provided to improve the
efficiency and effectiveness of the 2020 Census,
and, in particular, reduce expensive in-person
follow-up activities. Administrative record data
refers to information from federal and state governments. Third-party data refers to information
from commercial sources. As shown in Figure
12, data from both sources can help improve the
quality of the address list (frame), increase the
effectiveness of advertising and contact strategies, validate respondent submissions, and
reduce field workload for follow-up activities.

3

As has been done in prior decades, administrative
data from the U.S. Postal Service and other government records are used to update the address
frame and reflect changes to the housing stock that
occur over time. Additional administrative records
sources, as well as third-party data from commercial companies, will also be used for this purpose.
In addition, these data sources will be used to validate incoming data from tribal, federal, state, and
local governments.
To increase the effectiveness of advertising and
contact strategies, the Census Bureau will use
demographic and geographic information from
various administrative record and third-party data
sources to help target the advertising to specific
populations. These data may also be used to create
a contact frame that includes telephone numbers,
which enables the Census Bureau to expand its
contact methods beyond traditional postal mail.

Utilizing Administrative Records and
Third-Party Data

Use information people have already provided to reduce expensive in-person follow-up.
Improve the quality
of the address list

Update the address list

Validate incoming data from
tribal, federal, state, and local
governments

Increase effectiveness
of advertising and
contact strategies

Support the micro-targeted
advertising campaign

Create the contact frame
(e.g., telephone numbers)

Validate respondent
submissions

Validate respondent addresses
for those without a Census
ID and prevent fraudulent
submissions

Reduce field workload
for follow-up activities

Remove vacant and
nonresponding occupied
housing units from the
NRFU workload

Optimize the number of
contact attempts

Figure 12: Summary of Utilizing Administrative Records and Third-Party Data
Pre-decisional

22 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

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7

Administrative records and third-party data will
also be used to validate respondent addresses for
those who respond without providing a unique
Census ID. This will help prevent fraudulent and
erroneous submissions.
Finally, a primary use of administrative records
is to reduce field workload for follow-up activities. To this end, the Census Bureau will use data
from internal and external sources, such as the
2010 Census, the USPS, the Internal Revenue
Service, and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid
Services to identify vacant and nonresponding
occupied housing units and remove them from

U.S. Census Bureau

the NRFU workload. The Census Bureau plans to
continue acquiring and testing data from other
sources, including the National Directory of New
Hires, the Supplemental Nutrition and Assistance
Program, and state-administered programs such
as Temporary Assistance for Needy Families to
better understand how these data sources can help
reduce follow-up field workload.
These design changes have the potential to
save the Census Bureau an estimated $1.4 billion. The operations shaded in darker blue in
Figure 13 include innovations related to Utilizing
Administrative Records and Third-Party Data.

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 23

24 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

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Enumeration at
Transitory Locations

Internet Self-Response

Coverage Measurement
Design and Estimation

Coverage Measurement
Field Operations

Federally Affiliated
Americans Count
Overseas

Evaluations and
Experiments

Archiving

Count Question
Resolution

Count Review

Redistricting Data

Nonresponse Followup

Response Processing

Data Products and
Dissemination

PUBLISH DATA

Language Services

Census Questionnaire
Assistance

IT Infrastructure

Content and
Forms Design

Figure 13: Operations That Contribute to Utilizing Administrative Records and Third-Party Data

Island Areas
Censuses

Coverage Measurement
Matching

Group Quarters

Integrated Partnership
and Communications

Address Canvassing

TEST AND EVALUATION

Update Enumerate

Paper Data Capture

Local Update of
Census Addresses

OTHER CENSUSES

Non-ID Processing

Decennial Logistics
Management

Security, Privacy and
Confidentiality

Forms Printing and
Distribution

RESPONSE DATA

Field Infrastructure

Systems Engineering
and Integration

Census/Survey Engineering

Geographic Programs

FRAME

Decennial Service
Center

Infrastructure

Program Management

Program Management

SUPPORT

Documented below are brief descriptions of how each operation contributes to the Utilizing Administrative
Records and Third-Party Data innovation area:

Table 4: Description of Operations That Contribute to Utilizing Administrative
Records and Third-Party Data
Operation

Contributions

Security, Privacy, and Confidentiality

Ongoing monitoring of public perception of decennial application of administrative records
and third-party data.

Geographic Programs

Administrative records and third-party data used to determine types of enumeration
areas, basic collection units, and geographic boundaries.

Local Update of Census Addresses

Administrative records and third-party data used to validate incoming data from tribal,
federal, state, and local governments.

Address Canvassing

Additional sources of administrative records and third-party data used to update the
address frame in lieu of fieldwork.

Integrated Partnership and
Communications

Expanded use of administrative records and third-party data to support microtargeted IPC
program.

Internet Self-Response

Administrative records and third-party data used to tailor the contact strategy.

Non-ID Processing

Administrative records and third-party data used to validate and augment respondentprovided address data and validate identity for submissions without a unique Census ID.

Group Quarters

Electronic transfer and expanded use of administrative records and third-party data to
enumerate group quarters where possible.

Enumeration at Transitory Locations

Administrative records and third-party data used to update addresses of transitory
locations.

Nonresponse Followup

Expanded use of administrative records and third-party data to remove vacant and
occupied housing units from the NRFU workload.
Administrative records and third-party data used to reduce the number of contact
attempts made.
Administrative records and third-party data used to tailor work assignments based on
language and “best time of day” for contact.

Response Processing

Increased use of administrative records and third-party data to impute response data (in
whole or in part).
Increased use of libraries from past surveys and censuses to support editing and coding.
Increased use of administrative records and third-party data to enhance libraries for
Primary Selection Algorithm and Invalid Return Detection.

Count Question Resolution

Administrative records and third-party data used to resolve Count Question Resolultion
challenges.

Coverage Measurement Design and
Estimation

Administrative records and third-party data used for estimation.

Coverage Measurement
Field Operations

Administrative records and third-party data used to reduce the number of contact
attempts made.

Administrative records and third-party data used for sample design.

Administrative records and third-party data used to tailor work assignments based on
language and “best time of day” for contact.
Island Areas Censuses

Administrative records and third-party data used where appropriate to support both listing
and enumeration.

IT Infrastructure

Use of administrative records requires that systems be Title 13 and Title 26 compliant.

U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 25

Additional operations that contribute to utilizing Administrative Records and Third-Party Data
include Field Infrastructure, Federally Affiliated
Americans Count Overseas, and SEI.

3.4 REENGINEERING FIELD
OPERATIONS
The goal of this innovation area is to use technology to efficiently and effectively manage the 2020
Census fieldwork, and as a result, reduce the staffing, infrastructure, and brick and mortar footprint
required for the 2020 Census. Figure 14 shows the
three main components of the reengineered field
operations: streamlined office and staffing structure, increased use of technology, and increased
management and staff productivity.
The 2020 Census field operations will rely heavily
on automation. For example, the Census Bureau
plans to provide Listers and Enumerators with the
capability to work completely remotely and perform all administrative and data collection tasks
directly from a handheld device. Supervisors will
also be able to work remotely from the field and
communicate with their staff via these devices.
These enhanced capabilities significantly reduce the
number of offices required to support 2020 Census
fieldwork. In the 2010 Census, the Census Bureau
established 12 Regional Census Centers (RCCs)

4

and nearly 500 Area Census Offices. The agency
hired over 516,000 Enumerators to conduct NRFU
activities. The new design for the 2020 Census
field operations includes six RCCs with up to 250
Administrative Support Operation Centers.
In addition, automation enables significant changes
to how cases are assigned and the supervision of
field staff. By making it easier for supervisors to
monitor and manage their workers, the ratio of
workers to supervisor can be increased, reducing
the number of supervisors required. This streamlines the staffing structure. Other design changes
include optimized case assignment and routing.
All administrative functions associated with field
staff will be automated, including recruiting, hiring,
training, time and attendance, and payroll. Finally,
the new capabilities allow for quality to be infused
into the process through alerts to supervisors when
there is an anomaly in an enumerator’s performance
(e.g., the Global Positioning Satellite indicator on an
enumerator’s handheld device indicates that she or
he is not near the assigned location) and real-time
edits on data collection. Accordingly, the quality
assurance process used in the 2010 Census is being
reengineered to account for changes in technology.
In total, these design changes have the potential to

Reengineering Field Operations
save the Census Bureau an estimated $2.5 billion.
Use technology to more efficiently and effectively manage the 2020 Census fieldwork.

Streamlined Office and
Staffing Structure

Area Census
Office Manager

Increased Use of
Technology

Increased Management
and Staff Productivity

• Automated and
optimized work
assignments

• Increased visibility into
case status for improved
workforce management

Census Field
Managers

• Automated recruiting,
training, payroll, and
expense reporting

• Redesigned quality
assurance operations

Census Field
Supervisors

• Ability to conduct
address updates and
enumeration on same
device

Listers and
Enumerators

• Improved
communications

• Reduced paper and
manual processing

Figure 14: Summary of Reengineering Field Operations
26 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

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Pre-decisional

8

U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 27

Integrated Partnership
and Communications

Address Canvassing

Island Areas
Censuses

OTHER CENSUSES

Paper Data Capture

Local Update of
Census Addresses

Coverage Measurement
Matching

Enumeration at
Transitory Locations

Group Quarters

Update Enumerate

Non-ID Processing

Decennial Logistics
Management

Security, Privacy and
Confidentiality

Coverage Measurement
Field Operations

Federally Affiliated
Americans Count
Overseas

Response Processing

Nonresponse Followup

Census Questionnaire
Assistance

IT Infrastructure

Content and
Forms Design

Language Services

Evaluations and
Experiments

Archiving

Count Question
Resolution

Count Review

Redistricting Data

Data Products and
Dissemination

PUBLISH DATA

Figure 15: Operations That Contribute to Reengineering Field Operations

Coverage Measurement
Design and Estimation

TEST AND EVALUATION

Internet Self-Response

Forms Printing and
Distribution

RESPONSE DATA

Field Infrastructure

Systems Engineering
and Integration

Census/Survey Engineering

Geographic Programs

FRAME

Decennial Service
Center

Infrastructure

Program Management

Program Management

SUPPORT

The operations shaded in darker blue in Figure 15 include innovations related to Reengineering Field
Operations.
Documented below are brief descriptions of how each operation contributes to the Reengineering Field
Operations innovation area. The field data collection operations are grouped together as they all contribute similarly.

Table 5: Description of Operations That Contribute to Reengineering Field
Operations
Operation

Contributions

Field Infrastructure

Streamlined staffing structure.
Automated use of real-time data by the field operations control system to enable better
management of the field workforce.
Automated training for field staff.
Automated administrative functions, including recruiting and payroll.
Supervisory support for listers and enumerators available during all hours worked.

IT Infrastructure

Enterprise solutions with flexible architecture.
Listing and enumeration applications using dDaaS.

Integrated Partnership and
Communications

Enhanced communications to support field recruitment.
Reduced paper via automated online training, field data collection, time and expense,etc.

Field Data Collection Operations:

Reduced field workload as measured by cases and attempts.

Address Canvassing
Update Enumerate
Group Quarters
Enumeration at Transitory Locations
Nonresponse Followup
Coverage Measurement Field
Operations

Near real-time case status updates.
Automated and optimized assignment of work.
Declaration of work availability and case assignments.
Flexibility built into work assignment process based on in-field feedback or observations.
Data on household language and “best time of day to contact” standardized and available
at central location for work assignments.
Redesigned quality assurance process.
Ability to update address list and enumerate on a single device with a suite of integrated
applications.
Ability to enumerate addresses when identified through Address Canvassing.
Rapid reclassification of living quarter type.

28 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

U.S. Census Bureau

Additional operations that contribute to utilizing
Reengineering Field Operations include DSC, Island
Areas Censuses, and SEI.

3.5 SUMMARY OF INNOVATIONS
This section summarizes the key innovations
planned for the 2020 Census. Innovations are
considered significant changes to the operational
design as compared with the 2010 Census.
The operations shaded in darker blue in Figure
16 are those that have the most significant
innovations.

U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 29

30 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

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Island Areas
Censuses

Coverage Measurement
Matching

Coverage Measurement
Field Operations

Federally Affiliated
Americans Count
Overseas

Response Processing

Nonresponse Followup

Census Questionnaire
Assistance

IT Infrastructure

Content and
Forms Design

Language Services

Evaluations and
Experiments

Archiving

Count Question
Resolution

Count Review

Redistricting Data

Data Products and
Dissemination

PUBLISH DATA

Figure 16: Operations With Significant Innovations Since the 2010 Census

Coverage Measurement
Design and Estimation

TEST AND EVALUATION

Enumeration at
Transitory Locations

Internet Self-Response

OTHER CENSUSES

Group Quarters

Integrated Partnership
and Communications

Address Canvassing

Update Enumerate

Paper Data Capture

Local Update of
Census Addresses

Non-ID Processing

Decennial Logistics
Management

Security, Privacy and
Confidentiality

Forms Printing and
Distribution

RESPONSE DATA

Field Infrastructure

Systems Engineering
and Integration

Census/Survey Engineering

Geographic Programs

FRAME

Decennial Service
Center

Infrastructure

Program Management

Program Management

SUPPORT

The specific innovations planned for each of these operations are listed in Table 6 below. Note that these
innovations are dependent upon funding and decisions on the final design.

Table 6: Summary of Key Innovations by Operation—Con.
Operation

Contributions

Local Update of Census Addresses

Reduced complexity for participants.
Elimination of the full address list submission options to improve quality and reduce
burden and cost.

Address Canvassing

Use of a combination of in-office and in-field methods to achieve 100 percent Address
Canvassing (target of 25 percent of addresses going to the field).
Use of automation and data (imagery, administrative records, and third-party data) for
In-Office Address Canvassing.
Ongoing fieldwork (MAF Coverage Study) to validate in-office procedures, measure
coverage, and improve in-field data collection methodologies.
Use of reengineered field management structure and approach to managing fieldwork,
including new field office structure and new staff positions.

Integrated Partnership and
Communications

Microtargeted messages and placement for digital advertising, especially for hard-tocount populations.
Advertising and partnership campaign adjusted based on respondent actions.
Expanded predictive modeling to determine propensity to respond by geographic areas.
Expanded use of social media.

Internet Self-Response

Internet data capture, providing real-time edits, ability to capture unlimited household size
entries, and multi-access methods across different technologies (e.g., computers, phones,
tablets).
Online questionnaires available in multiple languages.
Contact approach tailored based on prior response rates, Internet access data, and
demographics (up to five self-response mailings).
A contact frame, including phone numbers, developed from administrative records and
third-party data to allow for follow-up if required (e.g., missing or illegible information and
reinterview for quality assurance).

Non-ID Processing

Ability for public to respond anytime, anywhere.
Real-time matching and geocoding of responses.
Validation of non-ID response data.
Use of administrative records and third-party data to validate identity and validate and
augment address data for non-ID submissions.

Update Enumerate

The 2010 Census Update Leave and Update Enumerate Operations combined into a
single operation.
Self-Response encouraged through mailings and materials left at the door. Enumeration
attempted at time of listing if no self-response received, using NRFU procedures.
Use of single device for both listing and enumeration.
Use of reengineered field management structure and approach to managing fieldwork,
including new field office structure and new staff positions.

U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 31

Table 6: Summary of Key Innovations by Operation—Con.
Operation

Contributions

Nonresponse Followup

Use of administrative records and third-party data to remove vacant housing units from
the NRFU workload.
Use of administrative records and third-party data to remove nonresponding occupied
housing units from the NRFU workload.
Use of reengineered field management structure and approach to managing fieldwork.
Use of a variable contact strategy and stopping rules to control the number of attempts
made for each address.
Assignment and route optimization.
Automated training for field staff.
Automation of the field data collection.
Automation of administrative functions such as recruiting, onboarding, and payroll.
Reengineered quality assurance approach.

Field Infrastructure

Reduced number of Regional Census Centers managing a reduced number of Area
Census Offices tasked with managing field operations and support activities.
Automated job application and recruiting processes, payroll submission and approval
process, and other administrative processes resulting in reduced staffing requirements.
Automated training.
Reduced number of Listers, Enumerators, and Supervisors due to reengineered design
for field operations.

Decennial Logistics Management

Implementation of an online, real-time Enterprise Resource Planning system with
extended access for the Regional Census Centers and field offices.
Implementation of a wireless network and bar code technology that will automate
inventory transactions.

IT Infrastructure

Early development of solutions architecture.
Use of enterprise solutions as appropriate.
Iterative deployment of infrastructure aligned with and based on testing.
Implementation of dDaaS.
Use of demand models to help predict Internet response volume, Census Questionnaire
Assistance center staffing, etc.
Scalable design.
Agile development of applications.

32 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

U.S. Census Bureau

4. Key Tests, Milestones, and Production Dates
The 2020 Census has multiple decision points,
milestones, and production dates that must be met
to deliver the final apportionment and redistricting
data. Informing the decision points are a series of
tests. More detailed information about each test
is captured in formal research and test plan documents and in an integrated master schedule, facilitating the integration and coordination of activities
across tests and operations. Refer to Figure 2 in
Section 1.2 for how this documentation fits into
the broader set of documentation for the 2020
Census Program. Detailed test plans and results are
available for review upon request.
The first part of this section describes the tests
used to inform the operational design and prepare for conducting the 2020 Census. The second
part highlights key decision points and milestones beginning with the research and testing
phase in late 2011 through the completion of the
2020 Census in 2023. The third part provides the
planned production timeline for the primary 2020
Census operations, and the final section shows an
integrated schedule of the tests, milestones, and
production operations.

4.1 TESTS TO INFORM THE
OPERATIONAL DESIGN AND PREPARE
FOR CONDUCTING THE CENSUS
As shown in Figure 17, the tests conducted early
in the decade (2012–2015) are aimed at answering
specific research questions (objectives) needed to
make decisions on important aspects of the operational design for the four key innovation areas.
Starting in 2016, the focus shifted to validating
and refining the design by testing the interactions
across operations and determining the proposed
methodology for the operations. Testing of production systems begins in 2017 and continues through
2018, with final performance testing to ensure
scalability occurring in 2019. An end-to-end test in
2018 will test the integration of all major operations and systems.
In May 2016 the Census Bureau announced that
the 2020 Census Program will use a Commercial
Off-the-Shelf platform for the data collection component of the 2020 Census.1 Prototype systems
(e.g., MOJO, PRIMUS, and COMPASS) were used for
1
Blumerman, L., 2020 Census Business Solution Architecture,
2020 Census Program Memorandum Series: 2016.06.

October 2015
2020 Census Operational Plan
With Design Decisions Issued

Systems Tests

October 2018
2020 Census
Operational Design
Decisions Finalized

Develop and Test
Production Systems

Test Innovations
From Four Key
Innovation Areas

Operational
Design Tests

2012

2013

2014

Test
Innovations
Individually

Test
Integration
of SelfResponse
and
Nonresponse

Test
Integration
of UE and
self-response
modes

2015

2016

2017

Conduct
End-to-End
Test of
Systems

Conduct
Performance
Testing

Conduct
End-to-End
Test of
Operations

2018

2019

2020

Figure 17: High-Level View of Tests

U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 33

the 2020 Census Tests in 2014-2016. Beginning in
2017, 2020 Census tests will include systems per
the revised Business Solution Architecture.
Table 7 lists the operational tests executed or
planned for the 2020 Census.

Table 7: Operational Tests
Calendar
Year
2012

Test
Public-Opinion Polling (ongoing as needed
throughout the decade).
2012 National Census Test.

2013

2014

2013 National Census Contact Test.

4.1.1 Tests in 2012–2014

2013 Census Test.
2014 Census Test.

As shown in Figure 18, eight tests were conducted
between 2012 and 2014.

Continuous Small-Scale testing (ongoing as
needed throughout the decade).

4.1.1.1 Public Opinion Polling

Local Update of Census Addresses Focus
Groups.
2014 Human-in-the-Loop Test.
2015

Address Validation Test (starts in late 2014).
2015 Optimizing Self-Response Test.
2015 Census Test.
2015 National Content Test.

2016

2016 Census Test.
Address Canvassing Test.

2017

The following sections describe the tests listed
above. Tests for Calendar Years 2012 through 2014
(the Research and Testing Phase) are combined into
one section. For the past and current tests, a short
description of the purpose, scope, and timing is
presented, followed by a table with objectives of
the tests, findings, and, where applicable, design
implications based on these findings. For future
tests, only the purpose, scope, timing, and objective are provided. These may change since future
test plans are based on availability of funding as
well as the analysis of prior tests.

2017 Census Test.
2017 Puerto Rico Census Test.

2018

2018 End-to-End Census Test.

2019

Post End-to-End Testing.

The Public Opinion Polling Test is a public opinion
survey of attitudes toward statistics produced by
the federal government that focuses on trust in the
federal statistical system, the credibility of federal
statistics, and attitudes toward and knowledge of
the statistical uses of administrative records and
third-party data. The Census Bureau is using the
Nightly Gallup Polling for this survey, and collects
data by telephone from 850 nationally representative housing units per week. Data collection started
in February 2012 and will continue on an ongoing
basis as needed.

Figure 18: Tests in 2012–2014

34 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

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Public-Opinion Polling Test
Objectives

Determine if the public’s perception
of the Census Bureau’s commitment
and ability to protect privacy and
confidentiality are impacted if
administrative records are used in the
2020 Census design.
Determine what the public is most
concerned about with regard to privacy
and confidentiality, in general and as
related to government data collection.

2012 National Census Test
Objectives

Evaluate the performance of combined
race and origin questions on the
Internet.
Assess the Telephone Questionnaire
Assistance operation.
Findings

Total self-response rate was 56.9
percent, and the Internet selfresponse rate was 36.5 percent.

Collect data on hiring practices for the
decennial census and on awareness of
the OPM data breach.
Findings

An advance letter resulted in no
significant difference in overall
response rate as compared with no
advance letter.

Reported belief in the credibility of
statistics predicts reported trust in
federal statistics.

Providing a telephone number in the initial mailing resulted in no significant difference in overall response, but did result
in an increase of telephone interviews.

Respondents are more likely to favor
using administrative records and thirdparty data when questions regarding
administrative records and third-party
data are framed to indicate that the use
of records can save the government
money or provide a social good.

A second reminder to answer the 2012
National Census Test performed well.
Tailoring the content of the reminder
materials resulted in no significant
difference in overall response.

Continue to see declines in reported
trust of federal statistics and in the
belief that federal statistical agencies
keep data confidential.

Design Implications

Results did not indicate expected
benefit of enhanced reporting of
detailed race and origin groups.

Hiring people with criminal
backgrounds for 2020 Census jobs has
the potential to erode trust for many
and would hardly ever earn trust.

Of the calls to the Telephone Questionnaire Assistance operation, 69 percent
were because the respondent did not
have a computer or Internet access.

Continue to pursue research and testing
related to the use of administrative
records and third-party data.

Continue plans for a rapid response
team to use communications to
mitigate negative impacts on trust from
any data breaches or similar events.
Do not hire people with criminal
backgrounds for the 2020 Census.

4.1.1.2 2012 National Census Test
The 2012 National Census Test studied overall
self-response rates and Internet self-response
rates. The test was conducted from August 2012
to October 2012 and included 80,000 nationally
representative housing units.

Response distributions of the combined
race and origin questions were similar
across the two question versions.

Awareness of the OPM data breach
negatively influences respondents’ trust
in Federal Statistics.

Continue efforts to use partnership and
communications activities to increase
trust.

U.S. Census Bureau

Assess relative self-response rates and
Internet self-response rates.

Design Implications

Continue tests to determine response
rates and optimal contact strategies.
Further study of the collection of
detailed race and origin groups in a
national mail out test.
The 2020 Census Questionnaire
Assistance operation must account for
increased call volumes.

4.1.1.3 2013 National Census Contact Test
The 2013 National Census Contact Test studied
two key areas related to strategies for contacting
respondents: the quality of the Contact Frame (a
list of supplemental contact information such as
email addresses and phone numbers, built from
third-party data sources) and automated processing
of census responses lacking a preassigned census
identification number (Non-ID Processing). The
study included 39,999 nationally representative
addresses.
2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 35

2013 National Census Contact Test
Objectives

Evaluate the quality of phone and email
contact information acquired from thirdparty data sources.

2013 Census Test
Objectives

Test proposed enhancements to
automated processing of responses
lacking a preassigned Census
identification number.
Findings

Evaluate the use of administrative
records and third-party data to
enumerate nonresponding occupied
housing units to reduce the NRFU
workload.

Respondents were not able to validate
contact information for other household
members.

Test an adaptive design approach
for cases not enumerated with
administrative records and third-party
data.

The use of administrative records
and third-party data was effective in
enhancing non-ID addresses to allow
for a match to the MAF.
Design Implications

Test methods for reducing the number
of enumeration contact attempts as
compared with the 2010 Census.

Continue testing the quality of the
Contact Frame.
Continue enhancing the functionality
associated with Non-ID Processing.

Evaluate the use of administrative
records and third-party data to identify
vacant housing units and remove them
from the NRFU workload.

Test the use of the telephone to make
initial enumeration contact attempts.
Findings

4.1.1.4 2013 Census Test
The 2013 Census Test was an operational study
of Nonresponse Followup (NRFU) procedures. This
test was conducted in late 2013 and involved
2,077 housing units in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Successfully used administrative
records and third-party data to identify
vacant and occupied housing units
and removed cases from the NRFU
workload.
Successfully used administrative
records and third-party data as part
of an adaptive design approach to
designate cases for one to three
contact attempts.
Adaptive design strategies as
implemented did not work.
Design added complexity to training of
enumerators.

Design Implications

Continue refinement of adaptive design
methods and administrative records
and third-party data usage.
Continue refinement of training
methods.

36 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

U.S. Census Bureau

4.1.1.5 2014 Census Test
The 2014 Census Test was an operational study of self-response and NRFU procedures. For this test,
Census Day was assumed to be July 1, 2014. The test involved 192,500 housing units in portions of
Montgomery County, Maryland, and Washington, DC.
2014 Census Test
Objectives

Test various self-response modes, including the Internet, Census Questionnaire Assistance (CQA), and
paper, and response without a preassigned Census identifier.
Evaluate the value of a preregistration option using “Notify Me” (a Web site that allows respondents to
indicate a preferred mode of contact for the 2020 Census).
Test the use of mobile devices for NRFU enumeration in the field.
Test the use of BYOD to conduct enumeration in the field.
Continue evaluating the use of administrative records and third-party data to remove cases (vacant and
nonresponding occupied housing units) from the NRFU workload.
Test the effectiveness of applying adaptive design methodologies in managing the way field enumerators
are assigned their work.
Examine reactions to the alternate contacts, response options, administrative record use, and privacy or
confidentiality concerns (including how the Census Bureau might address these concerns through micro- or
macro-messaging) through focus groups.

Findings

Total self-response rate was 65.9 percent, and the Internet self-response rate was 50.6 percent.
Email contact attempts did not work due to large number of incorrect email addresses (bounce-backs).
The address collection interface in the Internet instrument yielded a much greater proportion of higher
quality address data from respondents without a unique Census ID than in 2010.
Use of administrative records and third-party data matching improved the overall address matching rate.
“Notify Me” had low participation, with only about 3 percent of the sample choosing to preregister.
Higher than projected in-bound phone workloads due to respondent questions and issues primarily related
to Internet access.
Problems with coordinating contact with gated communities resulting in inefficient enumeration.
Need to strengthen training and procedures on contacting nonresponding housing units, specifically as
related to proxy interviews.
Need improved business rules and improved rule-based models for administrative records and third-party
data.

Design Implications

Conduct another test of “Notify Me” to determine if more people use this capability when advertising is used
to inform the public about the 2020 Census, and specifically about the “Notify Me” option.
Determine optimal use of adaptive design and administrative records and third-party data.
Further explore the use of BYOD.

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2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 37

4.1.1.6 Continuous Small-Scale Testing
The Continuous Small-Scale Testing is a study of
respondent and nonrespondent reactions to new
modes of decennial census contact and response.
The study focuses on reactions related to privacy
and confidentiality of these modes. This study
started in January 2014 and is ongoing as needed.
It included emails to 1,000–2,200 housing units
sampled from an opt-in frame.

Continuous Small-Scale Testing
Objectives

Determine how new contact and
response modes will impact the public’s
perception of the Census Bureau’s
commitment and ability to protect
privacy and confidentiality.
Determine how the public feels
about each new mode being tested,
specifically with regard to privacy and
confidentiality.

Findings

A text-based email out performed
graphical emails.
Longer email content with “Dear
Resident” and signature of the Director
outperformed a shorter email invitation
without the greeting and signature.
Respondents report preferring
reporting online to a decennial census
with a mailed invitation with the link
over all other options.
Experimenting with an idea for
publicity for the 2020 Census, very few
respondents (less than 4%) forwarded
a survey request to friend and family.
In an experiment with Non-ID
Processing, asking an explicit question
about collecting location data in
addition to the smartphone’s own
question appeared to increase the
percent of people who allowed their
mobile phones location to be accessed
compared to when only the phone’s
own location message appeared.
The source of the administrative data
has more impact on a favorable opinion
towards its use than any other attribute,
including the amount of time saved by
the respondent if administrative data
are used instead of a survey response.
Data use statements are more
important to respondents than other
messages contained in the survey
invitation. 

Design Implications

38 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

Continue to monitor respondent and
nonrespondent reactions to various
contact and response modes.

U.S. Census Bureau

4.1.1.7 LUCA Focus Groups
The LUCA Focus Groups collected input on potential LUCA models for the 2020 Census. Focus groups
consisted of eligible LUCA participants representing various sizes and types of governments across the
nation. Forty-six governmental entities participated. The focus groups were conducted from March 2014
through June 2014.
LUCA Focus Groups
Objectives

Obtain feedback on potential LUCA models for the 2020 Census through a series of focus groups with 2010
Census LUCA participants.

Findings

Continue the 2010 Census LUCA operation improvements that were successful:
•• Continue to provide a 120-day review time for participants.
•• Continue the 6-month advance notice about the LUCA operation registration.
•• Continue a comprehensive communication program with participants.
•• Continue to provide a variety of LUCA media types.
•• Continue to improve the partnership software application.
•• Continue state participation in the LUCA operation.
Eliminate the full address list submission options that were available in 2010 LUCA (Options 2
and 3). This will:
•• Reduce the number of deleted LUCA addresses in field verification activities.
•• Reduce the burden and cost of processing addresses and LUCA address validation.
•• Reduce the complexity of the LUCA operation.
Include census housing unit location coordinates in the census address list and allow partners to return their
housing unit location coordinates as part of their submission.
Provide any ungeocoded United States Postal Service (USPS) Delivery Sequence File address to state and
county partners.
Provide the address list in more standard formats.
Conduct an in-office validation of LUCA-submitted addresses.
Utilize Geographic Support System data and tools to validate LUCA submissions.
Encourage governments at the lowest level to work with higher level governments to consolidate their
submission.
Eliminate the Block Count Challenge.
Eliminate the use of the asterisk (*) designation for multi-units submitted without unit designations.
Encourage LUCA participants to identify addresses used for mailing, location, or both.

Design Implications

Develop in-office validation processes, procedures, and tools.
Define relationship between Address Canvassing and LUCA, taking into consideration the timing of LUCA
feedback and the appeals operation.
Determine the feasibility of technical recommendations for the 2020 Census LUCA operation:
•• Use of background imagery on paper maps.
•• Ability to provide structure locations within LUCA materials.
•• Feasibility of web-based registration.
Determine feasibility of using areas where the Census Bureau has planned field activities to validate LUCA
addresses.

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2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 39

4.1.1.8 2014 Human-in-the-Loop Test

4.1.2 Tests in 2015

The 2014 Human-in-the-Loop Test consisted of a
simulation of reengineered field operations using
an Operational Control Center and the enhanced
operational control system. The purpose was to
test proposed devices, systems, and the field
structure for staff and management processes.
The Simulation Experiment (SIMEX) occurred in
November 2014. Eighty-seven field and office staff
members tested real-time field operations and field
management structure in this test.

A key milestone in October 2015 was the release
of the preliminary operational design for the 2020
Census as documented in this plan and supporting
materials. This design is informed by tests conducted from 2012 through 2015. Future tests will
be used to refine the design.

4.1.2.1 Address Validation Test

2014 Human-in-the-Loop Test
Objectives

The Address Validation Test was conducted to
assess the performance of methods and models that will help develop the 2020 Census
address list, and to estimate the In-Field Address
Canvassing workloads for the 2020 Census. The
test contained two components, the MAF Model
Validation Test (MMVT) and the Partial Block
Canvassing (PBC) Test.

Exercise field reengineering methods
(staffing ratios and enhanced
operational control system) in a
simulated environment.
Refine methods and get input from field
staff to improve business processes
prior to the 2015 Census Test.

Findings

The new design for managing field
operations was successful, including
the use of an Operational Control
Center and operational control system
to manage the NRFU workload.

MAF Model Validation Test
The MMVT evaluated methods that are part of the
reengineered Address Canvassing innovation area.
The test was conducted from September 2014
to December 2014 and included 10,100 nationally representative blocks (100 blocks with no
addresses), which included approximately 1.04
million addresses in the sample blocks.

The ratio of enumerators to supervisors
can be increased from the 2010
Census.
Instant notification to enumerators and
supervisors is feasible and serves as a
successful means of communication.
Design Implications

Figure 19 shows the schedule for the four tests in
2015 and the 2020 Census Operational Plan milestone. Each test is described below.

Employ the new design for
reengineered field operations during
the 2015 Census Test.
Increase the ratio of enumerators to
supervisors—further testing required.

2014

Q3
Jul

2015 Address
Validation Test

MAF Model Validation

Aug

Sep

Oct

Q4
Nov

Q1
Dec

9/14

Partial Block Canvassing
2015 Optimizing
Self-Response Test
2015 Census Test

Jan

Q2

Feb

Mar

May

2015
Jun

Q3

Jul

Aug

Q4
Sep

Oct

Nov

Q1
Dec

Jan

12/14
12/14

2/15
2/15

5/15
3/15

2015 National
Content Test
2020 Census
Operational Plan

Apr

6/15
12/15

8/15
2020 Census Operational Plan

10/15

Figure 19: Tests and Key Decisions in 2015

40 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

U.S. Census Bureau

MAF Model Validation Test
Objectives

Test In-Office and In-Field Address
Canvassing procedures.

Partial Block Canvassing
Objectives

Determine the ability to ensure an
accurate MAF.

Determine ability to accurately canvass
partial blocks.

Assess the ability of two sets of
statistical models to predict blocks that
have experienced address changes.
Findings

Evaluate an interactive review of
various materials—primarily aerial
imagery over time and geographic
quality indicators.

In-Office Address Canvassing was
effective.
Statistical models were not effective at
identifying blocks with changes.

Findings

Operationally feasible to canvass
portions of blocks.
In-office imagery review of blocks has
utility.

Statistical models were not effective at
predicting national coverage errors.
Design Implications

Statistical models are not being
pursued for determining blocks with
changes or MAF coverage.
Continue with In-Office and In-Field
Address Canvassing approaches.

Measure unrecorded changes in blocks
and identify portions of blocks where
change is likely.

Design Implications

Continue to evaluate risks vs. benefits
of PBC approach. (Note: subsequent
to this test, a decision was made to do
only full block address canvassing. See
the Address Canvassing Operation
section for more information.

Partial-Block Canvassing

4.1.2.2 2015 Optimizing Self-Response Test

The PBC Test evaluated the feasibility of canvassing portions of blocks, rather than entire blocks
using both in-office and in-field methods. This test
was conducted from December 2014 to February
2015. The staff conducted an interactive review of
aerial imagery over time and geographic quality
indicators. Six hundred fifteen blocks with national
distribution were listed by 35 professional staff.

The 2015 Optimizing Self-Response Test was an
operational study of self-response procedures.
For this test, Census Day was April 1, 2015. In the
Savannah, Georgia media market, 407,000 housing units were included in this test, with 120,000
sampled self-responding housing units.

U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 41

2015 Optimizing Self-Response Test
Objectives

Determine use of digital and targeted
advertising, promotion, and outreach to
engage and motivate respondents.
Test value of “Notify Me” when
partnerships and traditional and
targeted advertising are used to
promote early engagement of
respondents.

4.1.2.3 2015 Census Test
The 2015 Census Test was an operational study
of NRFU procedures. It assumed a Census Day of
April 1, 2015. This test included 165,000 sampled
housing units in Maricopa County, Arizona.

Offer opportunity to respond without a
Census ID (Non-ID Processing) and
determine operational feasibility and
potential workloads around real-time
Non-ID Processing.
Determine self-response and Internet
response rates.
Findings

The total response rate was 47.5
percent, and the Internet response rate
was 33.4 percent.
An additional 35,249 Internet
responses came from housing units not
selected in mail panels as a result of
advertising and promotional efforts.
Continued low participation in “Notify
Me.”
Successful implementation of real-time
Non-ID Processing, matching 98.5
percent of cases.
A new postcard panel, designed to
test how housing units not originally
included in the sample would respond
to an invitation after being exposed to
advertising, generated a response of
approximately 8 percent.

Design Implications

Discontinue “Notify Me.”
Continue testing related to
partnerships, advertising, and
promotional efforts.
Continue use of offering the non-ID
option to respondents.

42 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

U.S. Census Bureau

2015 Census Test
Objectives

Continue testing of fully utilizing a field operations management system that leverages planned automation
and available real-time data, as well as data households have already provided to the government, to
transform the efficiency and effectiveness of data collection operations.
Begin examining how regional offices can remotely manage local office operations in an automated
environment, the extent to which enumerator and manager interactions can occur without daily face-to-face
meetings, and revised field staffing ratios.
Reduce NRFU workload and increase productivity with use of administrative records and third-party data,
field reengineering, and adaptive design.
Test operational implementation of Bring Your Own Device (BYOD).
Explore reactions to the NRFU contact methods, administrative records and third-party data use, and
privacy or confidentiality concerns.

Findings

The total self-response rate was 54.9 percent and the Internet self-response rate was 39.7 percent.
•• Coverage questions increased respondent burden.
Field Staff Training.
•• Combination of online and classroom training provided standardization of the information, provided
tracking capabilities, and offered various learning methods.
•• Reduced training hours compared with the 2010 Census NRFU enumerator training from 32 hours to 18
hours.
•• Deployment of YouTube videos efficiently provided supplemental training to enumerators.
•• Topics requiring additional training in future tests were identified.
Field Reengineering.
•• Area Operations Support Center and staffing of the Area Operations Support Center were successful.
•• Electronic payroll was successful.
•• Enumerator entry of availability for work and office operational system workload optimization were effective.
•• Operational Control System alerts were effective in bringing attention to situations that required follow-up
and possible corrective action.
•• Optimized routing was successful overall, but uncovered need for modifications to the routing algorithm.
Census Operations Mobile Platform for Adaptive Services and Solutions (COMPASS) was effectively used
as the application for enumerating nonresponding housing units.
•• COMPASS application was easy to use.
•• COMPASS application experienced crashes and freezes; further investigation into root causes is needed.
Field Test Procedures.
•• Work needed to define a coordinated approach to enumeration within multi-units and gated communities.
•• Refinement to data collection application “pathing” needed to better assist enumerators in cases on
proxy responses and noninterviews.
BYOD.
•• Training was fairly labor intensive.
•• Based on observations, no adverse respondent reactions to the device being used for data collection.
•• A variety of logistical and security risks related to implementation of BYOD were identified.

Design Implications

Employ the use of automated training.
Continue to test the use of administrative records and third-party data in reducing the NRFU workload.
Optimize the number of visits and phone contacts for nonresponding housing units.
Make at least one contact for nonresponding housing units.
Continue to test field procedures for contacting nonresponding housing units.
The decision to stop testing BYOD and move forward with dDaaS was made in January 2016 because of
the risks related to BYOD. The decision discussion and risks are documented in the “2020 Census Program
Memorandum Series: 2016.01”.

U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 43

4.1.2.4 2015 National Content Test
The 2015 National Content Test evaluated and
compared different census questionnaire content. It
assumed a Census Day of September 1, 2015. The
test included 1.2 million nationally representative
households, including 20,000 households in Puerto
Rico and 100,000 reinterviews.

2015 National Content Test
Objectives

Evaluate and compare different census
questionnaire content, including
questions on Race and Hispanic origin
(e.g., combining Race and Hispanic
origin into a single question versus
using separate questions, and introducing a Middle Eastern North African
category), relationship (introducing
same-sex relationship categories), and
within-household coverage (streamlined approach for ensuring accurate
within-household coverage).
Refine estimates of national selfresponse and Internet response rates.
Continue to test self-response modes
and contact strategies (see 2014
Census Test objectives).
Reinterview a subsample of respondents to further assess the accuracy
and reliability of the question alternatives for race, Hispanic origin, and
within-household coverage.

Findings

The total self-response rate was 51.9
percent, and the Internet self-response
rate was 35.6 percent
Adding a fifth mailing, a reminder
sent after the paper questionnaire,
significantly increased response rates.
Sending the first reminder sooner by a
few days prompted quicker responses,
thus reducing the size of the third
mailing.
In low response areas, the “choice”
strategy of sending a paper
questionnaire in the first mailing, is
effective.
Providing the letters in English and
Spanish, rather than just English with a
Spanish sentence, elicits more Spanish
language responses.
The new relationship question (with
same-sex and opposite-sex categories)
showed the same distributions as the
old relationship question.
Analysis of the race and ethnicity
questions is not yet completed.

Design Implications

Send a fifth mailing to nonrespondents.
Send the first reminder mailing a few
days sooner.
Provide more language support in the
mail materials.
Continue research on identifying
which areas should receive the paper
questionnaire in the first mailing.
Use the new relationship categories.

44 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

U.S. Census Bureau

4.1.3 Tests in 2016
In 2016, the Census Bureau moved from small scale individual tests using proof of concept and prototype
systems to more refined tests and the building and integration of systems that will support the 2020
Census. As shown in Figure 20, two tests are planned for 2016. The 2016 Census Test focused on the
integration of self-response and NRFU. The Address Canvassing Test expands early address canvassing
tests to refine the in-office and in-field methods. Each test is described below.
The following operations and systems were or will be tested in 2016 through these two tests:
Key Innovation Area

Operations

Systems

Reengineering Address
Canvassing

Address listing.

Enterprise Listing and Mapping System/
Listing and Mapping Instrument.

Optimizing Self-Response

Internet Response.

PRIMUS Prototype.

Telephone Response.

Census Bureau Call Centers.

Paper Response.

Integrated Capture and Data Entry.

Non-ID Processing.

Real-time Non-ID Processing.

Utilizing Administrative Records
and Third-Party Data

Identification of vacant and occupied units.

Headquarters’ servers.

Removal of cases with high-quality data from
other sources from the NRFU workload.

Control and Response Processing Data
System.

Reengineering Field Operations

Workload Control.

MOJO (in-field operational control system)
prototype begins interfacing with Multi-mode
Operational Control System.

Enumeration.
Quality Assurance.

COMPASS Prototype.

Figure 20: Tests Planned in 2016

U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 45

4.1.3.1 2016 Census Test
The 2016 Census Test was an operational study of both self-response and NRFU procedures. It had a
Census Day of April 1, 2016, and included a planned 250,000 housing units per site in Los Angeles
County, California, and Harris County, Texas.
2016 Census Test
Objectives

Self-Response.
•• Test provision of language support to Limited English Proficient populations through partnerships and
bilingual questionnaires.
•• Test ability to reach demographically diverse populations.
•• Test deployment of non-English data collection instruments and contact strategies.
•• Refine Real-Time Non-ID Processing methods, including respondent validation.
NRFU.
•• Refine the reengineered field operations.
•• Refine the field management staffing structure.
•• Test enhancements to the Operational Control System and COMPASS.
•• Refine the path in COMPASS to conduct proxy interviews.
•• Test improved procedures for multiunit accessibility and contact.
Reengineered quality assurance.
•• Evaluate the use of paradata and Global Positioning Satellite points collected during interview.
•• Test reinterview functionality.
Measure the systems’ abilities to manage a significant number of concurrent users during self-response.
Test a combination of government-furnished equipment and decennial dDaaS strategies for supplying
enumerators with hardware devices.
Test scalability of Internet and Non-ID Processing during self-response using enterprise solutions.

Findings and Design Analysis is underway, and findings will be forthcoming.
Implications

4.1.3.2 Address Canvassing Test
The primary objective of the Address Canvassing
Test is to examine the effectiveness of the In-Office
Address Canvassing through the results of the
In-Field Address Canvassing. In addition, the test
will provide the opportunity to measure the effectiveness of integrated systems, field staff training,
and the use of new collection geography in the
field. The Address Canvassing test will occur in
Buncombe County, North Carolina and city of St.

46 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

Louis, Missouri. Both Address Canvassing components, In-Office and In-Field, will be conducted
for all areas of the test sites. All data collection
activities for the test will occur from August
through December of 2016, with In-Office Address
Canvassing data collection from August through
October of 2016, In-Field Address Canvassing data
collection from October through mid-November of
2016, and In-Field Relisting from mid-November
through mid-December of 2016.

U.S. Census Bureau

Address Canvassing Test
Objectives

Implement all In-Office Address
Canvassing processes, including
Interactive Review (IR), Active Block
Resolution (ABR), MAF Updating and
Identification of the In-Field Address
Canvassing workload.
Evaluate the effectiveness of online
training for Field Supervisors and Field
Representatives.
Measure the effectiveness of In-Office
Address Canvassing through In-Field
Address Canvassing.
Integrate multiple information technology applications to create one seamless operational data collection, control
and management system.

Findings and Design To be completed once the test is
Implications
conducted.

4.1.4 Tests in 2017
In 2017 the Census Bureau will validate and refine
the design for the Update Enumerate (UE) operation
and will gain experience with critical operations in
Puerto Rico. The Census Bureau will also explore
the availability of administrative records and test

the capacity to receive these data electronically
from Group Quarters administrators within Census
Bureau processing systems. As shown in Figure 21,
two tests are planned for 2017: The 2017 Census
Test and the 2017 Puerto Rico Census Test. Each
test is described below.
4.1.4.1 2017 Census Test
The 2017 Census Test is a nationwide self-response
test of 80,000 households and a site test on tribal
lands. It will allow the Census Bureau to test the
feasibility of collecting tribal enrollment information. It will also refine methods for enumerating
areas with unique location characteristics where
we cannot mail to a street address. In addition to
tribal areas, the test will oversample areas with
relatively high populations of American Indians and
Alaska Natives as a mechanism for testing potential
tribal enrollment questions nationwide. This test
will have a Census Day of April 1, 2017 and will
cover the national sample and two site locations on
tribal land: Colville Reservation and Off-Reservation
Trust Lands in Washington State and Standing Rock
Indian Reservation in North and South Dakota.

Figure 21: Schedule for the 2017 Census Tests

U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 47

2017 Census Test
Objectives

Test the integration of operations and
systems for Self-Response.

2017 Puerto Rico Test
Objectives

Test the Address Canvassing operation
in Puerto Rico

Test the integration of operations and
systems for UE.

Integrate Self-Response, UE, and
NRFU operations

Test the feasibility of collecting tribal
enrollment information.

Test Spanish versions of the software
and systems needed to support
Census activities

Findings and Design To be completed once the test is
Implications
conducted.

Findings and Design To be completed once the test is
Implications
conducted.

4.1.4.3 2017 Puerto Rico Census Test
The 2017 Puerto Rico Census Test will evaluate the
effectiveness of address canvassing and integration of the data collection methods—primarily, the
data collection geared toward self-response and
NRFU. This test will provide the Census Bureau an
important opportunity to test components of new
technologies to ensure they work independently
and together, and also an opportunity to gain some
test experience with Puerto Rico residents ahead
of the 2020 Census. The test will have a Census
Day of April 1, 2017, and will take place in three
municipios within the San Juan metro area, with
approximately 123,000 addresses within Carolina,
Loíza, and Trujillo Alto municipios.

4.1.5 Tests in 2018
One test is planned for 2018, the 2018 End-toEnd Census Test. The goal is to have the entire
operational design for the major operations ready
for production—from a systems, operational, and
architectural perspective. This test and its scope
are dependent on funding. The 2018 End-to-End
Census Test will include significant field data collection components, and the timing of the field operations will mimic the 2020 Census (see Figure 22).
Findings and lessons from prior tests will be used
to develop the test plans. Other efforts in preparation of this test include introducing enterprise
systems that were not in place for earlier tests,
expanding and enhancing systems already in use,
and expanding and enhancing the systems using
cloud technologies.
Any problems found during the 2018 End-toEnd Census Test will be addressed using careful
regression testing and change control procedures
in 2019.

Figure 22: Schedule for the 2018 End-to-End Census Test
48 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

U.S. Census Bureau

4.1.5.1 2018 End-to-End Census Test
The 2018 End-to-End Census Test is planned to test
and validate 2020 Census operations, procedures,
systems, and infrastructure together. This test will
have a Census Day of April 1, 2018 and will be conducted in three areas: Pierce County, Washington;
Providence County, Rhode Island; and, BluefieldBeckley-Oak Hill, West Virginia. The Address
Canvassing operation will be conducted in the prior
calendar year because this operation is responsible
for producing the census frame, which has to be
done before the data collection.
2018 Census End-to-End Test
Objectives

Test and validate 2020 Census
operations, procedures, systems, and
field infrastructure together to ensure
proper integration and conformance
with functional and non-functional
requirements.

Findings and Design To be completed once the test is
Implications
conducted.

4.1.6 Tests in 2019
As shown in Figure 23, two types of tests are
planned for 2019, Defect Resolution Testing and
Post End-to-End Census Test Performance Testing.
These tests and their scope are dependent on
funding. The Defect Resolution Testing will ensure
that any changes made to fix defects in the systems tested in the 2018 End-to-End Census Test are
correctly resolved. This final performance testing

2018
Jul

Defect Resolution
Testing

Defect Resolution Testing

Post End-to-End
Performance
Testing

Address Canvassing

Aug

Sep

Oct

4.2 KEY DECISION POINTS AND
MILESTONES
Figure 24 shows the key decision points and milestones for the full life cycle of the 2020 Census.
Milestones include public facing milestones, such
as launching the 2020 Census Web site, delivery
of topics and questions to Congress, as well as
delivery of 2020 Census products to the President,
states, and the public.

4.3 2020 CENSUS PRODUCTION
OPERATIONAL SCHEDULE

Produce a prototype of geographic and
data products.

Thread

in 2019 minimizes the risk of system crashes and
delays in processing respondent Internet submissions and phone calls. Components of performance
testing will be done according to best practices.

Figure 25 describes the planned timing for the
major production field operations for the 2020
Census. This schedule represents the current baseline and may change based on available funding
and final design decisions.
Figure 26 provides an integrated schedule for the
tests, key milestones, and production operations
in one chart. Different types of tests (research,
readiness, performance, end-to-end, and post endto-end) are shown in different colors as noted in
the legend. Key milestones, including the baseline
of the 2020 Census Operational Plan, Census Day,
and the delivery of apportionment counts and
redistricting data are also shown.

Q4
Nov

Q1
Dec

Jan

Feb

Q2
Mar

Apr

May

2019
Jun

Jul

Q3
Aug

Sep

Oct

Nonresponse Followup

Nov

Dec

Jan

Feb

5/23/19
6/25/19

Internet Self Response
Update Enumerate

2020
Q1

Q4

11/20/19
Legend
Defect Resolution
Performance Test

12/19/19
12/24/19

Figure 23: Defect Resolution and Performance Tests in 2019

U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 49

50 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

U.S. Census Bureau

Release Final 2020 Data
Products
Complete 2020 Census

Complete LUCA

Deliver Counts to the
President
Deliver Redistricting Counts to
States

Count Review Complete

Complete NRFU

Census Questions to Congress
Key Decision
Open Field Offices
Points/Milestones
Group Quarters Operations
Begin
2020 Census Day

Open Regional Census Centers

Deliver Final Residence Rules

Census Topics to Congress

Award Census Questionnaire
Assistance Contract
Award Communications
Contract

2020 Census Operational Plan

Launch 2020 Census Website

Begin 2020 Census

Decision

2012

2013

2014

2015
2016

2017

2018

2019
2020

2021
2022

2023

11/11
1/15
10/15

8/16

7/16

4/17

11/20

3/21
9/21
4/23

Complete 2020 Census

Release Final 2020 Data Products

Complete LUCA

Deliver Redistricting Counts to States

12/20

Count Review Complete

Complete NRFU

2020 Census Day

Group Quarters Operations Begin
8/20

4/20

2/20

Open Field Offices

Deliver Counts to the President

1/19

Census Questions to Congress

Open Regional Census Centers

Deliver Final Residence Rules

4/18

12/17

12/17

Census Topics to Congress

Award Communications Contract

Award Census Questionnaire Assistance Contract

2020 Census Operational Plan

Launch 2020 Census Website

Figure 24: Key Decision Points and Milestones

Begin 2020 Census

9/23

Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1

2011

U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 51

2020 Production
Operation Schedule

Dec

Q1
Mar

Q2
Jun

Q3

2016
Sep

Q4
Dec

Q1
Mar

Q2
Jun

Q3

2017
Sep

Q4
Dec

Q1
Mar

Q2
Jun

Q3

2018
Sep

Q4
Dec

Q1
Mar

Q2

8/19

7/19

Jun

Q3

2019

Deliver Redistricting Data

Deliver Apportionment Counts

Census Day

Response Processing to Deliver
Apportionment

Nonresponse Followup (NRFU)

9/20

8/20

Q1

Mar

Q2

2021

Deliver Redistricting Data

Q3
Jun

3/31/21

12/31/20

Dec

11/20

Q4
Sep

9/20

7/20

6/20

Jun

Q3

2020

4/1/20

Mar

Q2

Deliver Apportionment Counts

Census Day

1/20

4/20

3/20

1/20

2/20

12/19

Dec

Q1

Update Enumerate (UE)

Sep

Q4

3/20

Figure 25: 2020 Census Operations—Production Timeline

9/15

Jun

Q4
Sep

2015
Q3

Internet Self-Response

Census Questionnaire Assistance

Group Quarters (GQ)

In-Field Address Canvassing

In-Office Address Canvassing

Operation

Figure 26: High-Level Integrated Schedule
52 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

U.S. Census Bureau

5. The 2020 Census Operations
This section of the document provides the current
state of the operational design. An overview of
the 34 operations is presented, followed by more
detailed descriptions of each operation that include
the following:
•• Purpose: A concise description of the
operation.
•• Changes Made Since Version 1.1
Operational Plan Release: A brief summary of
significant changes made for this operation.
•• Lessons Learned: Selected lessons learned
from the 2010 Census or tests or studies that
have occurred since the 2010 Census.2
•• Opportunities to Innovate: Major planned
innovations for this operation.
•• Description of Operation: A basic description
of the operation.
•• Research Completed: Research completed
through the Research and Testing phase of the
2020 Census Program (2012–2015) and the
major findings from this research.
•• Decisions Made: A list of the design decisions
made based on research completed.
•• Design Issues to Be Resolved: A list of the
outstanding design decisions and the date by
which they are expected to be made.
•• Cost and Quality: The expected cost and
quality impacts of the proposed design (or alternative designs) for this operation.
•• Risks:3 The top risks associated with this
operation.
•• Milestones: Important dates associated with
this operation, to include decision points and
production dates.
For support and similar operations that do not
require a research-based design, the research and
2
The Knowledge Management Database contains the lessons
learned from the 2010 Census and is available for review upon
request.
3
Each operation has its own project-level risk register, which
includes the full list of project risks.

U.S. Census Bureau

decision section focuses on work completed or to
be completed.
Throughout this section, some references are made
to specific Census Enterprise Data Collection and
Processing (CEDCaP) systems (i.e., MOJO, PRIMUS,
and COMPASS) that were only used to support the
early 2020 Census tests.

5.1 OPERATIONS OVERVIEW
Figure 27 illustrates all 34 operations organized by
the 2020 Census Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)
elements. As noted by the shading on the diagram,
the degree to which detailed planning has been
conducted for each operation varies. The maturity
of the operational design for the 34 operations also
varies based on the amount of planning conducted
to date.
Detailed Operational Plans (DOPs) will be produced
for most of the 34 operations. The development of
the DOPs is not only further refining the design for
those individual operations, but also helping clarify
scope, boundaries, and interaction points among
operations.
The operations must work together to achieve a
successful census. Information flows among the
operations as the census proceeds from frame
development through collection of response data to
the publishing and release of the data. Key information flows among the primary business operations
are highlighted in Figure 28. Major interactions and
flows are shown via the arrows in the diagram, and
the key external interfaces are depicted in blue text.
The integration of these business operations
requires integration of the IT systems that support them. This significant effort is underway.
The Systems Engineering and Integration (SEI)
operation will complete the 2020 Census Solution
Architecture based upon Capability Requirements
(CAP).

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 53

54 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

U.S. Census Bureau

Detailed
planning
not started

Detailed
planning
recently
begun

Detailed
planning is
underway

Island Areas
Censuses

Coverage Measurement
Matching

Coverage Measurement
Field Operations

Count Question
Resolution

Federally Affiliated
Americans Count
Overseas

Evaluations and
Experiments

Archiving

Count Review

Redistricting Data

Data Products and
Dissemination

PUBLISH DATA

Language Services

Response Processing

Nonresponse Followup

Census Questionnaire
Assistance

IT Infrastructure

Content and
Forms Design

Figure 27: Operational Overview by Work Breakdown Schedule

Coverage Measurement
Design and Estimation

TEST AND EVALUATION

Enumeration at
Transitory Locations

Internet Self-Response

OTHER CENSUSES

Group Quarters

Integrated Partnership
and Communications

Address Canvassing

Update Enumerate

Paper Data Capture

Local Update of
Census Addresses

Non-ID Processing

Decennial Logistics
Management

Security, Privacy and
Confidentiality

Forms Printing and
Distribution

RESPONSE DATA

Field Infrastructure

Systems Engineering
and Integration

Census/Survey Engineering

Geographic Programs

FRAME

Decennial Service
Center

Infrastructure

Program Management

Program Management

SUPPORT

U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 55

NPC
Field
staff

MAF Coverage Field
staff
Study

In-Field

In-Office

Address Canvassing

Addresses
to canvass

Address and
map updates

Addresses and
boundaries

GEO Data
Processing

GEO
Partnerships

GEO
Delineations

Geographic
Programs

OTHER CENSUSES

Local
Update of
Census
Addressess

State and
local
governments

Addresses,
spatial
data, and
boundaries

Spatial data inputs

Redistricting
Data Program

Tribes,
partners,
USPS, etc.

External
data
sources

FRAME

Address updates, electronic responses

Nonresponse cases

Field staff

Field Verification

Nonresponse
Followup
Field Operation

Response data ready for tabulation

Non-ID addresses

TEST AND EVALUATION

Response
Processing

Awareness and
education

NPC

Batch/Manual

Integrated
Partnership and
Communications

Respondent

Non-ID
addresses

Forms Printing and
Distribution
Enumeration cases

Electronic
responses

Internet SelfResponse

Census
Non-ID
Real-Time
Questionnaire addresses
Assistance
Non-ID processing

Contact materials

Paper Data
Capture

Self-Response Data Collection

Figure 28: High-Level Integration of Operations

Administrative records and
third-party data

Address updates

Enumeration
cases

Enumeration
cases

Paper responses

Address updates,
electronic responses
Addresses,
spatial data, and boundaries

Field staff

Federally Affiliated
Americans Count
Overseas

Group Quarters

Update Enumerate

Enumeration at
Transitory
Locations

Data Collection
for Special
Locations and
Populations

RESPONSE DATA

SUPPORT

Archiving

Public

Primary Flow
Secondary Flow

Tribal, state,
and local
governments

Legislature

Redistricting
Data Program

Count
Question
Resolution

Partners

Count
Review

Data Products
and
Dissemination

Apportionment

White House

Response data

Image data

PUBLISH DATA

5.1.1 Frame
As shown in Figure 28 from the previous page, the
basic flow of information begins in the frame area
with the Geographic Programs operation that
receives addresses, spatial data, and boundary
information from tribal, federal, state, and local
governments. An additional method for updating
the frame is the review of the address and boundary information through the Local Update of
Census Addresses (LUCA) program. Updates
through Geographic Programs and LUCA typically
include adding missing living quarters, deleting
erroneous living quarters, and modifying or correcting existing records. The most current address
list is provided to the Address Canvassing
operation, where staff make updates to the list via
in-office and in-field procedures. These updates
are processed on an ongoing basis throughout the
decade. Once the frame updates are complete, the
initial universe of living quarters is used for enumeration operations in the Response Data area.
The Geographic Programs operation allocates the
universe of addresses into different methods and
modes for the following operations conducted for
special locations and populations:
•• Enumeration at Transitory Locations (ETL):
Enumerate individuals in occupied units at
transitory locations, such as recreational vehicle
parks, campgrounds, tent cities, racetracks,
circuses, carnivals, marinas, hotels, and motels,
who do not have a usual home elsewhere.
•• Update Enumerate (UE): Update the address
and feature data and enumerate housing units
in certain designated geographic areas with special enumeration needs (e.g., areas that do not
have city-style addresses and areas with unique
challenges associated with accessibility). (This
operation crosses Frame and Response Data
Collection in the graphic and in the WBS).
•• Group Quarters (GQ): Enumerate people living
or staying in group quarters, people experiencing homelessness, and people receiving service
at service-based locations.
•• Federally Affiliated Americans Count
Overseas: Obtain counts by home state of
U.S. military and federal civilian employees stationed or deployed overseas and their dependents living with them. All responses from these

56 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

operations are collected electronically. Some
of these operations (e.g., UE or ETL) may find
addresses that were not in the initial universe.
Address updates collected during these operations
are sent back to the Geographic Programs operation for processing.

5.1.2 Response Data
A key goal for the 2020 Census is to optimize
self-response. Integrated Partnership and
Communications and Forms Printing and
Distribution create awareness for and send contact
materials to the respondents, directing them to the
online questionnaire or to a paper questionnaire.
During Internet Self-Response, some respondents
will not have a Census ID; the Census Bureau will do
real-time (during the interview) processing to identify the correct block for the respondent’s address
using methods in the Non-ID Processing operation. The respondents who do not respond on the
Internet will be given the opportunity to respond via
Paper Data Capture (PDC). Some respondents will
call with questions, and the Census Bureau will offer
to collect their response via the telephone through
the Census Questionnaire Assistance operation.
All the responses from each of the Response Data
Collection operations, including those operations
conducted for special locations and populations, will
go to the Response Processing operation, which
manages the status of cases across the universe.
Addresses for which the Census Bureau did not
receive a response are sent to the Nonresponse
Followup (NRFU) operation, which determines
the most cost-effective way of enumerating those
households (personal visit, use of administrative
records and third-party data, proxy responses, or
imputation). Any new addresses identified during
NRFU are sent to the Geographic Programs operation for processing.

5.1.3 Publish Data
The Response Processing operation delivers the edited data to the Data Products and
Dissemination operation to prepare the final
2020 Census data products. This operation
delivers:
•• Apportionment counts to the White House and
statistical data to the public.

U.S. Census Bureau

•• State counts to the Redistricting Data
Program for dissemination to the state legislatures so state governments can define the
geographic boundaries for Congressional and
legislative districts.
•• Final counts to the Count Review operation for
Federal-State Cooperative Population Estimates
(FSCPE) members to ensure the accuracy of the
2020 Census.
•• Final counts to the Count Question
Resolution operations so challenges to Census
Counts can be resolved.
•• Every questionnaire to the Archiving operation
for public release 72 years after the census.
This description of all 34 operations and the basic
integration only depicts high-level data flow and
interaction. The detailed Business Process Models
(BPM) found in the DOPs for each operation show
how information flows within operations.

5.2 PROGRAM MANAGEMENT
5.2.1 Program Management
Detailed Planning Status:

Underway

Purpose
The Program Management (PM) operation defines
and implements program management policies,
processes, and the control functions for planning
and implementing the 2020 Census in order to
ensure an efficient and well-managed program.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: There have been no major changes
to this operation.
Lessons Learned
Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census
and other reviews, the following recommendations
were made:
•• Develop a life-cycle schedule for the 2020
Census, and complete it earlier in the decade.
•• Place more emphasis and resources on updating
cost and schedule estimates throughout the life
cycle.
•• Obtain independent cost estimates and use
them to validate cost estimates (that include

U.S. Census Bureau

contingency reserves) developed by stakeholder
organizations.
•• Improve strategic planning and early
implementation of the 2020 Census Risk
Management process.
•• Align system development schedules with operational deadlines to allow adequate time to test
systems before their deployment.
•• Reevaluate the practice of frontloading and
develop a better process for developing workload and cost assumptions.
•• Rethink and rework stakeholder engagement,
education, and management. The Census
Bureau needs to better define, and then clearly
articulate, its expectations with regards to roles
and responsibilities between the Census Bureau,
contractors, and stakeholder groups.
•• Set a clear and publicly announced goal to
reduce the inflation-adjusted per housing unit
cost relative to 2010 Census totals.
Opportunities to Innovate
Following an analysis and review of the 2010
Census program management practices, the 2020
Census improved its program management capabilities and defined program management processes
earlier in the decade to support 2020 Census
Research and Testing activities. New and improved
program management practices integrated into
the 2020 Census that were not part of the 2010
Census include the following:
•• Iterative operational planning to allow for periodic design refinements based on findings from
research and testing as well as external changes
in legislation and technology.
•• Evidence-based decision-making to ensure that
operational designs are based on solid evidence
from research, testing, analysis, and prior survey and census experience.
•• Integration of schedule, scope, and budget using
a common WBS.
•• An integrated life-cycle master schedule that
uses best practices based on the Government
Accountability Office (GAO) schedule assessment guide.
•• Cost and schedule estimates updated throughout the 2020 Census life cycle based on GAO
best practices:
2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 57

Program Management
Framework
12. Risk/Issue
Management

1. Governance
Project Life Cycle

11. Human Capital
Management

2. Strategic
Communications

Initiation

Planning

10. Performance
Management
Project Management
and Project Control

Earned Value
Management

Execution
4. Document
Management

Closeout/
Evaluation

9. Schedule
Management

3. Strategic
Management

8. Budget
Management

5. Change
Management

6. Knowledge
Management
7. Acquisition and
Sourcing Management

Figure 29: Program Management Framework

ºº Publication GAO-09-3SP Cost Estimating
and Assessment Guide: Best Practices for
Developing and Managing Capital Program
Costs.

•• Increased international stakeholder communications to leverage learnings of other countries’
census efforts and to share the Census Bureau’s
best practices and challenges.

ºº Publication GAO-12-120G Schedule
Assessment Guide: Best Practices for Project
Schedules.

•• Governance that bridges organizational silos.

•• A Knowledge Management process and database
for lessons learned from the 2010 Census, 2020
Census Research and Testing Program, advisory
committees, and audit and oversight reports.
•• Alignment with the Census Bureau’s approach
to implement activity-based management and
earned value management techniques.
•• Formal risk management kicked off earlier in
decade (2012) and occurs at both the programlevel and project-level.
•• Increased transparency and collaboration with
internal and external stakeholders about the
2020 Census.
58 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

•• Performance Management includes a focus on
key cost drivers.
•• Workforce that is appropriately skilled and trained.
Description of Operation
The PM operation is responsible for the planning and implementation of the 2020 Census.
Specifically, this operation defines the overall 2020
Census program and project management policies,
framework, and control processes used across the
entire 2020 Census and all projects established
within the program.
The established PM framework is shown in Figure
29.

U.S. Census Bureau

General activities are required to manage multiple,
ongoing, interdependent projects in order to fulfill
the 2020 Census mission and objectives. The PM
operation defines and manages the following 12
program management processes:
1.

Governance: The overall management
structure, decision-making authority, priority
setting, resource utilization, and performance
verification at each level of the program.

2.

Strategic Communications: The engagement with internal and external stakeholders,
including Congress and the general public, in
the planning, research and analysis, progress,
and decisions related to the 2020 Census.
This activity also includes collaboration with
international organizations, particularly the
International Census Forum and the United
Nations Statistics Division (for the global view
of censuses) and the United Nations Economic
Commission for Europe (for the regional view).

3.

4.

5.

Strategic Management: The process for
determining and documenting the 2020
Census strategic direction regarding strategies, goals, objectives, performance, and
investments.
Document Management: Activities for
consistent and centralized management of
program documentation produced in support
of the 2020 Census program.
Change Management: Activities for managing and controlling the 2020 Census strategic
baseline, including control of charters, process
plans, design documents, operational plans,
project plans, requirements, and schedules.

6.

Knowledge Management: Practices used
to identify, create, represent, distribute, and
enable adoption of insights and experiences.

7.

Acquisition and Sourcing Management:
Activities to provide and support acquisition
principals and guidelines.

8.

9.

Budget Management: Activities used to
establish and manage future-year budget
formulations, current-year budget execution,
and cost estimating and cost modeling.
Schedule Management: Activities used
to identify and schedule activities required

U.S. Census Bureau

to produce program deliverables, identify
interdependencies between activities, and
determine activity resource requirements
and duration.
10. Performance Management: Practices used
to monitor the progress of the 2020 Census
in order to identify variances, assign corrective actions, and make timely changes.
11. Human Capital Management: Activities to
ensure that human competencies and skills
are present and available to the organization.
12. Risk and Issue Management: Activities to
facilitate the identification, analysis, mitigation, and contingency planning for risks and
issues related to achieving the program’s
objectives.
Each component of the framework is documented
in detail in a separate process plan. PM process
plans are revised based primarily on lessons
learned, other feedback received from process
owners and users, and as the program evolves.
Work Completed
The following work has been completed for this
operation:
The program management processes listed above
were approved in 2011, funded, established, and
utilized during the 2020 Census Research and
Testing Phase. They will continue to be used for the
remaining phases of the 2020 Census.
Decisions Made
The following decisions have been made for this
operation:
99 Strategies for each program management element were defined and approved in 2011 and
formed the basis for the management of the
2020 Census Program.
99 The 2020 Census will be managed by using a
fully integrated master schedule designed and
built using best practices based on the GAO
schedule assessment guide (GAO-12-12G, May
2012).
99 The 2020 Census will follow the Enterprise
Systems Development Life Cycle (eSDLC) process
for all decennial IT projects. The Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 59

Project Life Cycle will be followed for all projects
(IT and non-IT projects).
99 The 2020 Census will manage program-level risk
at the Portfolio Management Governing Boardlevel and project-level risks at the project team
level.
99 The program will have a finalized and integrated
governance and performance measurement
reporting mechanism.
99 The risk management plan includes both the
program and project-level processes.
99 A formal memorandum series will be used to
document significant program decisions.
99 The program will actively engage with stakeholders and advisors on major aspects of the
2020 Census.
99 Quarterly 2020 Census Program Management
Reviews will be conducted, including live
Webcast, so stakeholders can watch live or on
demand later.
99 The 2020 Census Monthly Status Reports will be
delivered to key oversight entities.
99 A Decennial Policy Team will be developed and
managed to ensure interdisciplinary, interdirectorate communication in regard to legal, policy,
and IT security sensitivities.
99 The 2020 Census Web site will be developed and
supported.
99 Frequently Asked Questions about the test
program will be developed along with other
supporting materials.
99 Talking Points for customer assistance for internal phone and correspondence support centers
will be developed.
99 A directorate representative to Census Bureau’s
International Collaboration Steering Committee
will be appointed to communicate and coordinate international collaboration across the
agency.
99 The Census Bureau will actively participate with
international and national statistical and geographic organizations for key learnings and to
share the Census Bureau’s experiences.

60 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

99 The Census Bureau will ensure the full utilization
of performance management to better facilitate
early identification and correction of problems.
99 The Census Bureau will use change management
processes to better ensure impact assessment.
99 The Census Bureau will use human capital
management outlined in the 2020 Census
Human Capital Management Plan to better plan,
facilitate, and monitor a workforce that has the
required competencies and skills.
99 The Census Bureau will mature the use of the
Primavera scheduling tool for the program and
MS Project interaction for the enterprise.
99 The Census Bureau will ensure the integration of
2020 Census schedules with enterprise efforts
and enterprise schedules as outlined in the 2020
Census Schedule Management Plan.
Design Issues to Be Resolved
Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:
Question

Expected Date

Defining the role and processes for
using SharePoint in performance
management.

August 2017

Defining the detailed earned value
management methodology.

December 2017

Defining methods to link risk mitigation
actions to the master integrated
schedule.

December 2018

Cost and Quality
Investment in PM helps ensure an efficient 2020
Census, which is projected to influence (reduce
 or increase ) the 2020 Census overall costs.
Specific examples are noted below.
ÐÐ Investment in establishing a robust and formal
program management office that develops and
manages processes that minimize potential negative cost, schedule, and scope impacts.
ÐÐ Ongoing stakeholder engagement reduces the
likelihood of unplanned design changes late in
the decade, which can prevent additional costs.
PM does not directly impact the quality of the 2020
Census results.

U.S. Census Bureau

Risks

Milestones

The PM operation identifies and manages all program-level risks. The risks listed below are specific
to this operation.
Commitment by the 2020 Census senior managers
to mature the program management process used
for the 2010 Census program requires dedicated
resources, including staff with certain skillsets.
IF the dedicated resources are not available and
funded to implement program management, THEN
critical functions such as schedule, budget, scope,
and risk management will be jeopardized.
As part of the 2020 Census PM operation, a framework of various program management processes
have been developed for ensuring the implementation of consistent and thorough program management controls. IF staff working on the 2020 Census
operations do not follow the program management
processes, THEN the 2020 Census projects may
lack sufficient scope, schedule, budget controls,
and risk management, increasing the likelihood of
negative impacts to cost and schedule.
Performance measurement is a critical function
needed by managers to track the status of planning,
development, and implementation of the 2020
Census program and operations. IF performance
measures are inadequately defined or monitored or
both, THEN managers will have difficulty assessing
and reporting accurate cost and progress status.

Date

Activity

September 2010

Baseline the initial 2020 Census Strategic
Plan.

June 2011

Baseline the initial 2020 Census Life
Cycle Rough Order of Magnitude Cost
Estimation (or Estimate).

September 2011

Develop and gain approval for 2020
Census Program Management Process
Strategies for each component described
in this operation.

September 2012

Baseline the initial 2020 Census ProgramProject Management Plans for each
component described in this section.

December 2012

Begin the quarterly 2020 Census Program
Management Reviews.

May 2013

Baseline the initial 2020 Census Missionlevel Requirements.

April 2014

Baseline the initial 2020 Census Life
Cycle Integrated Schedule.

October 2015

Issue the Baseline of the 2020 Census
Operational Plan.

October 2015–
September 2018*

Baseline the 2020 Census DOPs (one for
each operation).

Annually

Refresh and reissue strategic program
documentation and the 2020 Census
Operational Plan based on lessons
learned, test results, and other feedback.

Annually

Conduct project management process
training to process users.

* The dates for each of the DOPs vary depending on the timing of the
operation. For example, the DOP for the Address Canvassing operation
was produced in December 2015 and the DOP for the Evaluations and
Experiments operation is due in 2018.

U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 61

5.3 CENSUS/SURVEY ENGINEERING
The support operations in this area provide the
foundation for conducting the 2020 Census. This
area consists of four operations: SEI; Security,
Privacy, and Confidentiality; Content and Forms
Design; and Language Services. Each is described
below.

5.3.1 Systems Engineering and
Integration
Detailed Planning Status:

Underway

Purpose
The Systems Engineering and Integration operation
(SEI) manages the delivery of a system of systems
that meets 2020 Census Program business and
capability requirements.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: Updated schedule and nomenclature
to align with the Integration and Implementation
Plan (IIP). Also, updated schedule to reflect year
and month. The 2020 SEI Program adheres to cost
processes of the 2020 Census Program; therefore, specific references to cost and budget were
removed. “Work Completed” was updated to reflect
current status of major efforts. Updated risks to be
consistent with Program-Level Risk Register.
Lessons Learned
Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census
and other reviews, the following recommendations
were made:
•• Need to have a well-documented plan that
describes the development of the business
architecture and the solution architecture. The
architecture plan must have buy-in and adoption
by all stakeholders.
•• Consider greater flexibility for requirements
configuration management in the early design
and development processes to help minimize
the necessity to make subsequent corrections,
potentially saving resources and costs associated with unplanned resource needs.
Opportunities to Innovate
Opportunities to innovate include the following:
•• Application of the Census Bureau’s eSDLC.

62 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

•• Integration with the Census Bureau’s Enterprise
Architecture.
•• Definition and implementation of performance
measurement.
•• Integration with Enterprise systems, as
appropriate.
•• Dedicated resources from the IT Directorate for
key positions, including Chief Architect, Chief
Engineer, and Chief IT Security Engineer
Description of Operation
The scope of the SEI operation includes managing
the delivery of a system of systems that meets
2020 Census Program business and capability
requirements. SEI has five major components:
Requirements Engineering, Solution Architecture,
Technical Integration and Solution Development
Oversight, Test and Evaluation, and Deployment
Operations and Maintenance. As part of all of
these efforts, SEI will utilize the following standard
program management concepts to manage these
tasks: Schedule Management, Risk Management,
Issue Management, Configuration Management,
and Quality Assurance.
Requirements Engineering
Based on the design of the 2020 Census and plans
documented in the 2020 Census Operational Plan,
the SEI operation defines and executes a requirements engineering approach for the 2015–2018
Census Tests and 2020 Census that aligns with
the Census Bureau’s eSDLC, meets agency and
Department of Commerce standards and guidelines, and emphasizes a consistent approach across
the portfolio of 2020 Census projects. The scope
of the Requirements Engineering effort includes the
following:
•• Ensuring the controlled and consistent application of a standardized approach to requirements
engineering throughout the program and project
life cycles.
•• Conducting early and more frequent user testing
and engagement, employing the use of prototypes, models, and simulations wherever practicable and avoiding an “over the fence” approach
to requirements engineering.
•• Establishing the requirements engineering methodology and tools that must be applied across
the decennial and supporting programs:
U.S. Census Bureau

ºº Developing Business Process Models (BPMs) in
concert with subject matter experts for each
operation for each of the 2015–2018 Census
Tests and the 2020 Census as a tool to begin
the requirements elicitation process.
ºº Extracting Project-Level Business
Requirements (PLBR) and drafting CAP from
the BPM and reviewing with subject matter
experts to finalize the initial baseline of PLBR
and CAP. This supports the scalability of the
System of Systems.
•• Facilitating broad program and project level
understanding of needs for all phases of the
2020 Census.
•• Developing 2015–2018 Census Tests and 2020
Census Workload Demand Models, which will
aid the 2020 Census Operational Integrated
Project Teams in identifying the nonfunctional
performance PLBR and CAP.
•• Conducting Program Systems Requirements
Reviews (SRR) for each major Census Test and
2020 Census.
ºº As the incremental baselines of the PLBR and
CAP for 2015–2018 Census Tests and 2020
Census are completed, they will be allocated
to the projects for decomposition down to the
detailed solution and specification levels. At
this point in the process, the role of the SEI
operation is to provide technical oversight
and monitoring to ensure that solutions
appropriately address the business requirements and specifications. SEI will also ensure
traceability from PLBR and CAP through to the
implementation of solution-level requirements
and specifications.
Solution Architecture
The SEI operation develops the 2020 Census
Solution Architecture and Systems and Interface
Inventories. The development of the solution architecture is comprised of the following:
•• Building upon lessons learned from the 2010
Census, as well as the results and findings of the
2020 Census Research and Testing phase.
•• Reviewing and revising BPMs developed as part
of the requirements engineering effort to create
the Business Architecture.
•• Creating the Solution Architecture document
including the Systems and Interface Inventory
U.S. Census Bureau

based on the “to be” business processes
and capabilities, as well as the Architecture
Transition Plan (ATP) and Systems Engineering
Management Plan.
•• Providing technical oversight of the 2020
Census IT Project Portfolio to ensure conformance to the prescribed solution architecture.
•• Conducting Program Critical Design Reviews for
each major Census Test and 2020 Census.
Developing the scalability plan for the overall solution architecture to meet the demand models and
high availability requirements of the 2020 Census.
•• Refining and delivering subsequent baselines
of the 2020 Census Solution Architecture and
Systems and Interface Inventories.
•• Mediating gaps in capabilities between solution
providers and operations representatives where
required, and subsequently refining architecture
to represent output of mediation.
Technical Integration and Solution Development
Oversight
During solution development, the requirements,
architecture, and low-level technical design
are used to develop the end-product System
of Systems and required interfaces. As part of
Technical Integration and Solution Development
Oversight, the SEI operation performs the following
activities:
•• Develops and tracks progress against the IIP.
•• Provides support as it relates to interpretation of
PLBR, CAP, and BPM.
•• Ensures development is completed within the
structure of the solution architecture.
•• Oversees the Solution Development process to
ensure that the overall solution is developed
within cost and schedule constraints in compliance with the Census Bureau’s eSDLC process.
•• Conducts weekly systems integration meetings
with system providers to ensure progress (teams
for each system report status, issues, and risks).
•• Oversees Interface Working Groups to ensure the
systems as developed will function cohesively
when exercised in an end-to-end fashion.
•• Works with enterprise programs (such as
CEDCaP and Center for Enterprise Dissemination
Services and Customer Innovation (CEDSCI) to

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 63

ensure that they are meeting the 2020 Census
schedule and functional requirements.
Test and Evaluation
As part of Test and Evaluation area, SEI will perform
the following:
•• Oversee integration tests of programs that are
comprised of multiple projects (CEDCaP, CEDSCI,
etc.).
•• Oversee integration tests of individual projects
that are not part of a larger enterprise program
or collection of projects.
•• Conduct Test Readiness Reviews (TRR) for each
program release.
•• Conduct Integration and Test activities across
programs and independent projects to ensure
the 2020 Census System of Systems, as a whole,
performs as expected. This level of testing
could comprise many different types of tests to
include: Cross Program and Project Integration,
Data Quality, and System Performance.
•• Conduct testing to demonstrate that systems
integration and performance meet 2020 Census
operational needs.
•• Document measures for acceptance in the Test
and Evaluation Master Plan and document endto-end system readiness in a Test Report.
Deployment and Operations and Maintenance (O&M)
The SEI operation provides oversight and structure
around the deployment of systems as well as O&M
activities. As part of the Deployment and O&M
activities, the SEI operation will perform the following activities:
•• Provide oversight to ensure that all systems
are deployed and ready to support 2015–2018
Census Tests and 2020 Census activities.
•• Conduct Production Readiness Reviews (PRR) for
each program release.
•• Provide oversight to ensure all supporting organizations are deployed and ready to support all
operational activities.

Work Completed
The following work has been completed for this
operation:
•• Business process models and business and
capability requirements are baselined for all
applicable business operations.
•• Solutions for the 2015 Optimizing Self-Response
Test, 2015 Census Test, 2015 National Content
Test and 2016 Census Test were delivered.
•• The solution architectures for the 2016 Census
Test and the Address Canvassing Test are
baselined.
•• The IIP was the developed, and several key IIP
Reviews were held, including:
ºº Systems Requirements Reviews (SRR) for
the 2017 Census and Puerto Rico Census
Tests and initial SRR for the 2018 End-to-End
Census Test.
ºº Critical Design Reviews for the Address
Canvassing Test and 2017 Census and Puerto
Rico Census Tests.
ºº Test Readiness Reviews for 2016 Census Test
and Address Canvassing releases.
ºº Production Readiness Reviews for the 2016
Census Test releases.
•• The eSDLC Phase Gate Review process is being
used.
Decisions Made
The following decisions have been made for this
operation:
99 Key IT Directorate roles, such as the 2020
Census Chief Architect, Chief Systems Engineer,
and the Chief IT Security Engineer, will be
funded by and matrixed to the 2020 Census
Program.
99 The 2020 Census Program will leverage the
enterprise infrastructure and enterprise solutions as appropriate.
Design Issues to Be Resolved
Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:

64 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

U.S. Census Bureau

Question

Expected Date

What tools and test materials are
required to support the integrated
tests (Performance Test Services,
Representative Test Data, etc.)?

April 2017

What is the sourcing approach for each June 2017
capability supporting the 2020 Census?

Cost and Quality
Given the complexity of the 2020 Census, SEI activities have a critical impact on its success. Because
many of the innovations aimed at reducing the cost
of the census rely on IT solutions, the effectiveness
of this operation could have an effect on the overall cost of the 2020 Census.

Milestones —Con.
Date

Activity

2012

Baseline the initial 2020 Census SEI Plans for
each component described in this section.

2013

Create architecture and requirements artifacts
for the 2014 Census Tests.

2014

Initial Baseline PLBR and CAP (to be updated as
design matures).

2015

Establish Baseline 1 of Solution Architecture.
Establish Baseline 1 of PLBR and CAP, which
includes requirements for 2016 Census Test.
Determine the approach for conducting
integrated tests for 2016, 2017, and 2018
Census Tests (Design Decision 1).
Determine tools and test materials required
to support the integrated tests (Performance,
Test Services, Representative Test Data, etc.)
(Design Decision 2).

Impacts of this operation on overall 2020 Census
quality include the following:
ÏÏ Increase quality by setting up robust processes
for system development.

April 2016

Complete deployment of systems supporting
2016 Census Test.

Risks

July 2016

Conduct CDR and TRR for Address Canvassing
Test.

Major concerns for the SEI operation are covered by
the IT-related 2020 Census Program risks listed in
Chapter 6.

Conduct SRR and CDR for 2017 Puerto
Rico Census Test and 2017 Census Test and
establish Baseline 2 of PLBR, CAP and Solution
Architecture.
August
2016

Conduct SRR and CDR for 2018 End-to-End
Census Test and establish Baseline 3 of PLBR,
CAP and Solution Architecture.
Conduct PRR and complete deployment of
systems supporting Address Canvassing Test.

November
2016

Complete TRRs for 2017 Puerto Rico Census
Test and 2017 Census Test.

January
2017

Complete PRRs and deployment of systems
supporting 2017 Puerto Rico Census Test
and 2017 Census Test address canvassing,
recruiting, training, and self-response releases.
Complete PRRs and deployment of systems
supporting 2017 Census Test recruiting, training
and self-response releases.

April 2017

Complete PRR and deployment of systems
supporting 2017 Puerto Rico Census Test and
2017 Census Test field enumeration release.

June 2017

Conduct SRR and CDR for 2020 Census and
establish Baseline 4 of PLBR, CAP and Solution
Architecture.
Complete TRRs and deployment of systems
supporting the first four 2018 End-to-End
Census Test releases.

U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 65

Lessons Learned

Milestones —Con.
Date

Activity

October
2017

Complete PRRs and deployment of systems
supporting first four releases of the 2018 End-toEnd Census Test.
Conduct TRRs for systems supporting selfresponse and field enumeration releases of the
2018 End-to-End Census Test.

January
2018

Complete PRRs and deployment of systems
supporting self-response and field enumeration
releases of the 2018 End-to-End Census Test.

April 2018

Complete TRR for tabulation/dissemination
release of 2018 End-to-End Census Test.

October
2018

Complete PRR and deployment of systems
supporting tabulation/dissemination for the 2018
End-to-End Census Test.
Conduct TRR for 2020 Census

March
2019

Complete PRR and deployment of systems
supporting the 2020 Census.
Conduct Final Performance Testing.

September Release final, as-built and Operated Solution
2020
Architecture.
Annually

Refresh and reissue strategic program
documentation and the 2020 Census
Operational Plan based on lessons learned, test
results, and other feedback.

5.3.2 Security, Privacy, and
Confidentiality
Detailed Planning Status:

Underway

Purpose
The Security, Privacy, and Confidentiality (SPC)
operation ensures that all operations and systems
used in the 2020 Census adhere to the following
policies and regulations:
•• Appropriate systems and data security.
•• Respondent and employee privacy and
confidentiality.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: There have been no major changes
to this operation.

66 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census
and other reviews, the following recommendations
were made:
•• Ensure IT systems and applications supporting
the 2020 Census have the proper security authorization prior to start of operations.
•• Ensure all 2020 Census accepted IT security
risks are in alignment with the Census Bureau’s
security program policies.
•• Ensure all of the 2020 Census IT system security
risks are monitored by the 2020 Census Risk
Review Board as well as an Information System
Security Officer and the Office of Information
Security.
•• Embed an Office of Information Security security
engineer in the 2020 Census Program to ensure
compliance with the IT security program and
integration with the Census Bureau’s Enterprise
environments.
•• Ensure all employees supporting IT security are
certified in accordance with the Census Bureau’s
IT security program.
Opportunities to Innovate
Opportunities to innovate include the following:
•• Implement an IT Security Program Risk
Management Framework in accordance with
National Institute of Standards and Technology
guidelines.
•• Hire a 2020 Census Chief IT Security Engineer to
support application development, mobile computing, and enterprise systems.
•• Increase staff in the Census Bureau Office of
Information Security to provide penetration testing services and more extensive scanning for
vulnerabilities and configuration management.
•• Align all Privacy Impact Assessments and Privacy
Threshold Assessments to the System Security
Plans.

U.S. Census Bureau

Description of Operation

Privacy and Confidentiality

The SPC operation ensures that all operations and
systems used in the 2020 Census adhere to the
appropriate systems and data security, respondent
and employee privacy and confidentiality policies,
and regulations. Specific requirements are outlined
below.

•• Ensure decennial Privacy Impact Assessments
and Privacy Threshold Analyses are current.

Security
Ensure Compliance with the following laws and
Census Bureau policies:
•• IT Security Program Policy: Ensure all 2020
Census systems meet federal, Department
of Commerce, and Census Bureau IT security
policy requirements as identified in the Census
Bureau IT Security Program Policy and relevant
National Institute of Standards and Technology
documentation.
•• Data Stewardship Policies: Ensure that the 2020
Census complies with the Census Bureau’s Data
Stewardship polices including:

•• Ensure that each system of record has an appropriate System of Record Notice published in the
Federal Register.
•• Establish a System of Record Notice for Device
as a Service technology to be used in the 2020
Census.
•• Align the Privacy Impact Assessments and
Privacy Threshold Assessments to security plans
as part of the accreditation process; work with
training operations to ensure 2020 Census
managers and staff are prepared to notify the
respondents about the purpose and planned
statistical uses of the information collected.
•• Ensure that all people handling or reviewing
Title 13 and Title 26 materials are Special Sworn
Status certified.
•• Ensure Personally Identifiable Information
Incident Handling process is operational.

ºº Control of Personally Identifiable Information
(DS-007).

Work Completed

ºº Record Linkage (DS-014).

The following work has been completed for this
operation:

ºº Respondent Identification (DS-016).
ºº Privacy Impact Assessments (DS-019).

Encryption

ºº Data Breaches (DS-022).

•• Researched securely managing data on mobile
devices using Mobile Application Manager (MAM)
software solution.

•• Ensure that the 2020 Census only collects information necessary for complying with the 2020
Census mission and legal requirements.
•• Ensure all 2020 Census systems have an
Authority to Operate.
•• Ensure each system has a designated
Information System Security Officer.
•• Ensure all 2020 Census Program systems are
covered by the Risk Management Framework,
which includes processes to ensure systems
undergo a security review prior to testing and
a full security assessment prior to obtaining an
Authority to Operate.

Cloud Technology
•• Adopted the “Cloud First” strategy.
•• Examined the requirements of the applications
and underlying infrastructure from a security
compliance perspective.
•• Examined the requirements for hybrid cloud
capabilities to allow flexibility in leveraging cloud technology to meet future program
requirements.
•• Enabled the deployment of cloud-based services.

•• Ensure Appropriate Suitability Screening
Processes are in place.

U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 67

Decisions Made

Milestones

The following decisions have been made for this
operation:

Date

Security Activity

April 2015

99 The 2020 Census will access Title 13 and Title
26 data, including administrative records and
third-party data, remotely using the Virtual
Desktop Infrastructure.

Monitor security of systems used in the 2015
Census Test.

January
2016

Conduct security reviews and assessments on
system releases for the 2016 Census Test.

October
2016

Conduct security reviews and assessments on
system releases for the 2017 Census Test.

March
2017

Release SPC DOP.

October
2017

Conduct security reviews and assessments
on system releases for the 2018 End-to-End
Census Test.

October
2018

Conduct security reviews and assessments on
system releases for the defect resolution testing
and post end-to-end performance testing in
2019.

99 In Decision Memo #1 the Census Bureau decided
to implement the Device as a Service strategy
for provisioning equipment to enumerators
in the 2020 Census. The mobile devices that
will be provisioned to enumerators in the
2020 Census through the Device as a Service
strategy will be managed by an Enterprise
Mobility Management4 (EMM) solution that offers
Mobile Device Management (MDM) and MAM
capabilities.
Design Issues to Be Resolved
There are no remaining design issues to be
resolved for this operation.

5.3.3 Content and Forms Design
Detailed Planning Status:

Underway
DOP Delivered in FY 2016

Cost and Quality

Purpose

Investment in SPC is projected to have minimal
influence on the overall cost and quality of the
2020 Census.

The Content and Forms Design (CFD) operation
performs the following activities:

Risks
The risk listed below is specific to this operation.
In accordance with the Census Bureau’s security
policy, all IT systems must undergo an independent
security assessment and acquire the authorization
to operate prior to operating in the production
environment. In addition, all systems must meet
the Census Bureau’s Risk Management Framework
continuous monitoring requirements. IF an IT
system supporting the 2020 Census encounters an
unexpected configuration change which affects the
system’s security posture, THEN additional security
assessments are required which may result in an
increase in security support costs, an increase in the
system security risk rating, and schedule delays.

4
Both MDM and MAM fall under the umbrella term of Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM). MDM and MAM each perform
different functions. MDM manages device functions such as
connectivity and device policies. MAM typically involves a secure
workspace to manage and protect mobile applications and its
data.

68 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

•• Identify and finalize content and design of
questionnaires and associated nonquestionnaire
materials such as letters, postcards, brochures,
envelopes, flashcards, and field materials.
•• Ensure consistency across data collection modes
and operations, including (but not limited to)
questionnaire content, help text, mailing materials, and field materials.
•• Provide the optimal design and content of the
questionnaires to encourage high response
rates.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: There have been no major changes
to this operation.
Lessons Learned
Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census
studies and reviews, the following recommendations were made:
•• Develop an enterprise repository that includes
questionnaire content and design elements for

U.S. Census Bureau

questionnaires and associated nonquestionnaire
materials.
•• Ensure sufficient time for testing the questionnaire content. Also include testing of associated
nonquestionnaire materials.
•• Consider forms design elements (size, color,
spacing implications, etc.), mode, and language
when finalizing questionnaire content and
design. Also test for successful data capture
before implementation.
•• Conduct comprehensive testing of optimized
content in the usability lab and in a field test to
prevent unanticipated negative impacts on data
quality.
•• Determine if a bilingual initial or replacement
questionnaire in bilingual selected tracts is
beneficial.
Opportunities to Innovate
Opportunities to innovate include the following:
•• Utilize a central, electronic repository of 2020
Census content (questionnaire and associated
nonquestionnaire materials).
•• Create consistent content for automated data
collection instruments needed for Self-Response
and NRFU.
•• Redesign the bilingual paper questionnaires to
flip-style design.
•• Create questionnaires and associated nonquestionnaire materials in languages beyond English
and Spanish.
Description of Operation
The CFD operation is responsible for identifying
and finalizing the content and design of questionnaires and associated nonquestionnaire materials.
To support the 2020 Census, the CFD operation
will ensure content consistency across data collection modes and operations, as question wording
varies depending on mode of data collection. The
CFD operation is responsible for creating, refining,
and finalizing instrument specifications for all data
collection modes—Internet, paper, CQA (the telephone), and NRFU (in-person interview). This is a
significant departure from the 2010 Census, which
primarily relied on paper for data collection.
The goal is to finalize the content of the questionnaire and associated nonquestionnaire materials for

U.S. Census Bureau

the 2020 Census so that the 2020 Census topics
can be submitted to Congress by April 2017, with
the final questionnaire wording submitted by April
2018.
Specific activities of the CFD operation include the
following:
•• Developing instrument specifications for all
data collection modes: Internet, CQA, Paper, and
NRFU
•• Pretesting questionnaire content (e.g., cognitive
testing, focus groups) prior to making final decisions on questionnaire topics and wording.
•• Finalizing content development and design of
questionnaires across all modes: Internet, CQA,
Paper, and NRFU.
•• Finalizing content development and design of
associated nonquestionnaire materials deployed
during enumeration including letters, postcards,
envelopes, inserts, notice of visit, and confidentiality notice.
•• Optimizing questionnaire designs for each mode
and all supporting materials, in alignment with
systems specifications.
•• Ensuring questionnaire content and supporting
materials are accurate, appropriate, consistent,
inviting, and easy to understand across self and
nonresponse data collection modes.
Research Completed
The following research has been completed for this
operation:
•• Qualitative Research on Content:
ºº Conducted qualitative research on alternative questionnaire wording for the following
topics: race and Hispanic origin, relationship,
within-household coverage.
•• Findings: Informed questionnaire wording
(for content variations) tested in the 2015
National Content Test and other Research
and Testing Phase testing.
ºº Conducted expert review of paper questionnaire design and inclusion of write-in fields
for all race categories.
•• Findings: Informed layout of paper questionnaire design for the 2015 National
Content Test.

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 69

•• Usability and Systems Testing:
ºº Conducted usability testing of automated
data collection instruments (Internet, NRFU).
•• Findings: Informed final instrument layout and navigation for 2014, 2015, and
2016 Census Tests and the 2015 National
Content Test.
ºº Conducted testing on data capture of paper
questionnaire responses.
•• Findings: Informed paper questionnaire
layout for the 2014, 2015, and 2016
Census Tests and the 2015 National
Content Test.
ºº Conducted 2014 Census Test (relationship
response categories).
•• Findings: Continue testing new relationship
response categories.
ºº Conducted 2015 Census Tests (content and
questionnaire design).
•• Findings: Coverage questions added to
respondent burden (based on observations
of field operations and respondents’ reactions to questionnaire content).
•• 2015 National Content Test (content and questionnaire design):
ºº Finalized content to be tested during the
2015 National Content Test.
ºº Developed content specifications for Internet
data collection instrument.
ºº Developed English and Spanish bilingual
paper questionnaires (10 versions: eight for
stateside, two for Puerto Rico).
ºº Developed Computer Assisted Telephone
Interview instrument specifications for
the 2015 National Content Test Race and
Coverage Reinterview.
•• 2016 Census Test (content and questionnaire
design):
ºº Finalized content to be tested during the
2016 Census Test.
ºº Developed content specifications for Internet
and NRFU data collection instruments.
ºº Developed bilingual paper questionnaires
and associated nonquestionnaire materials

70 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

in English/Spanish, English/Chinese, and
English/Korean.
Decisions Made
The following decisions have been made for this
operation:
99 Flip-style bilingual paper questionnaires will be
used for household enumeration.
99 Coverage questions will be streamlined to
reduce respondent burden while maintaining
data quality (based on 2014 and 2015 Census
Test field observations).
Design Issues to Be Resolved
Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:
Question

Expected Date

What is the 2020 Census Paper Capture workload, questionnaire size and
shape?

October 2016

What are the final content topics for the
2020 Census?

December 2016

What is the paper questionnaire layout September 2017
for respondents living in residences
other than households (e.g. group quarters and transitory locations)?
What is the final questionnaire wording
for the 2020 Census?

December 2017

What are optimal designs of
August 2018
questionnaires (including size and page
layout) and nonquestionnaire materials
for the 2020 Census?

Cost and Quality
Investment in CFD is projected to have minimal
influence on the overall cost of the 2020 Census.
Impacts of this operation on overall 2020 Census
quality include the following:
ÏÏ Internet questionnaire design is anticipated to
improve the quality of self-response.
ÏÏ Automated NRFU instrument is anticipated to
improve quality of response (under review).
Risks
The risks listed below are specific to this operation:

U.S. Census Bureau

Changes in the content of the 2020 Census questionnaire may be requested after the content has
been finalized in 2017. IF changes are approved
for the final 2020 Census questionnaire content in
2017 or later, THEN the English and non-English
material will need to be redesigned and reprinted,
requiring additional time in the schedule and
potentially delaying deliverables.

Milestones

Changes in the content of the 2020 Census questionnaire may be requested after the content has
been finalized in 2017. IF there are significant
additions to the content of the questionnaire,
THEN the number of pages in the paper questionnaire will exceed the 16 page limit for serialization.

August 2015

Changes in the content of the 2020 Census questionnaire may be requested after the content has
been finalized in 2017. IF there are significant
additions to the content of the questionnaire,
THEN the increased number of pages in the paper
questionnaire will increase the postage cost (from
letter to flat rate).

Date

Activity

May 2015

Complete cognitive testing of paper
questionnaire content for 2015 National
Content Test (English, Spanish).
Complete cognitive testing of paper questionnaire content and associated nonquestionnaire materials in multiple languages.
Complete cognitive testing of Internet
questionnaire content for 2015 National
Content Test for English and Spanish.
Start conducting the 2015 National Content
Test.

October 2015

Complete the 2015 National Content Test
(data collection).
Final questionnaire content for the 2016
Census Test: Race, Relationship, Coverage
Baselined instrument specifications for the
2016 Census Test.

February 2016 Complete cognitive and usability testing of
Chinese and Korean Internet and NRFU
instruments and associated nonquestionnaire
materials.
June 2016

Receive analysis of 2015 National Content
Test results.
Cognitive testing of possible additional topics
(e.g., tribal enrollment).

August 2016

Receive results from cognitive test of possible
additional topics (e.g., tribal enrollment).

September
2016

Release the CFD DOP.

October 2016

Analysis of the 2016 Census Test results.
Finalize questionnaire content for the 2017
Census Test.
Baselined instrument specifications for the
2017 Census Test.

April 2017

Submit 2020 Census topics to Congress.

October 2017

Finalize questionnaire content for the 2018
End-to-End Census Test.
Baselined instrument specifications for the
2018 End-to-End Census Test.

April 2018

Submit 2020 Census question wording to
Congress.

October 2018

Analyze the 2017 Census Test results.

May 2019

Finalize 2020 Census paper questionnaires
for print.
Finalize 2020 Census questionnaires design
and layout across all modes.

March 2020

U.S. Census Bureau

Deploy 2020 Census questionnaires across
all modes.

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 71

5.3.4 Language Services
Detailed Planning Status:

Underway
DOP Delivered in FY 2016

Purpose
The Language Services (LNG) operation performs
the following activities:
•• Assess and support language needs of nonEnglish speaking populations.
•• Determine the number of non-English languages
and level of support for the 2020 Census.
•• Optimize the non-English content of questionnaires and associated nonquestionnaire materials across data collection modes and operations.
•• Ensure cultural relevancy and meaningful
translation of 2020 Census questionnaires and
associated nonquestionnaire materials.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: There have been no major changes
to this operation.
Lessons Learned
Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census
studies and reviews, the following recommendations were made:
•• Conduct further research on language selection
criteria.
•• Conduct cognitive testing earlier in the decade
to allow for high quality translation of questionnaires and nonquestionnaire materials.
•• Optimize non-English materials to ensure cultural relevance for intended audiences.
•• Allow Internet responses in English and other
languages.
•• Test a Spanish version of the questionnaire on
the Internet.
Opportunities to Innovate
Automated data collection instruments available in
multiple languages.
Description of Operation
The LNG operation is responsible for assessing
language needs of the nation and identifying ways
to reduce language barriers to enumeration for

72 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

respondents of Limited English Proficiency. To support the 2020 Census, the LNG operation will determine the number of non-English languages and
level of support and optimize the non-English content of questionnaires and associated nonquestionnaire materials. The operation will ensure cultural
relevancy and meaningful translation of these materials across data collection modes and operations.
To achieve the goal of reducing language barriers to
enumeration, the LNG operation supports the 2020
operations by providing data collection instruments
in non-English languages, optimizing the format of
bilingual paper questionnaires, and enhancing the
content of all non-English mailing and field materials—such as questionnaires, letters, postcards,
the notice of visit, and the confidentiality notice—
through pretesting to ensure question wording and
messages are consistent and culturally relevant. To
achieve the goals of assisting and creating multiple
modes of collecting information from non-English
speaking respondents, the LNG operation conducts
research on language needs and trends and relies
on socio/psycholinguistic approaches to provide
language operations and assistance and to identify,
create, and refine non-­English materials for Limited
English Proficiency respondents. The operation also
includes a National Advisory Committee Language
Working Group for National Advisory Committee
members and subject matter experts to jointly
strategize on language operations for the 2020
Census.
Specific activities of the LNG operation include the
following:
•• Determining the number of non-English languages and level of support during the 2020
Census.
•• Optimizing the content of non-English questionnaires for each data collection mode, as
appropriate, for LEP populations.
•• Ensuring culturally and functionally appropriate
questionnaire design and content across translations (e.g., through pretesting).
•• Optimizing mailing strategies to: (1) ensure
non-English speakers receive the same message as English speakers prior to going online;
(2) determine whether non-English speakers
respond differently to number and ordering of
contacts than English speakers; and (3) determine whether or not adding multi-language

U.S. Census Bureau

public use forms increases participation by
non-English speakers.
•• Providing language assistance guides in multiple
languages, including American Sign Language,
Large Print, and Braille.
Research Completed
The following research has been completed for this
operation:
•• Qualitative Research on Non-English Content:
ºº Tested for accuracy and cultural appropriateness of translated questionnaire content for
the following languages: Spanish, Chinese,
Korean, Vietnamese, Russian, Arabic.
•• Findings: Informed questionnaire wording
for 2015 National Content Test and other
mid-decade testing.
•• In-House Review of Materials:
ºº Conducted expert review of field materials in
non-English languages.
•• Findings: Informed translated content of
Notice of Visit for the 2015 Census Test;
Revised Language Identification Flashcard
to include Chinese-spoken dialects.
•• Language Needs Assessment:
ºº Assessed current language needs using
American Community Survey (ACS) data.
•• Findings: Informed non-English support
for 2015 and 2016 Census Tests, 2015
National Content Test, and 2017 Census
Test.
•• Research on Translation Technology:
ºº Conducted research on translation machines
(e.g., Google Translate).
•• Findings: Machine translations generally
show severe structural, grammatical, and
contextual errors and should not replace
human translations.
•• Usability and Systems Testing:
ºº Conducted usability testing of Spanish automated data collection instruments (Internet,
NRFU).

U.S. Census Bureau

•• Findings: Informed final instrument layout
and navigation for the 2014, 2015, and
2016 Census Tests and the 2015 National
Content Test.
ºº Conducted usability testing of Chinese and
Korean automated data collection instruments
(Internet, NRFU).
•• Findings: Informed final instrument layout
and navigation for the 2016 Census Test.
ºº Conducted testing on data capture of Spanish
paper questionnaire responses.
•• Findings: Informed paper questionnaire
layout for the 2014, 2015, and 2016
Census Tests and the 2015 National
Content Test.
•• Field Testing of Non-English Instruments and
Materials—2016 Census Test:
ºº Conducted testing of data collection instruments (Internet, CQA, paper, NRFU) and
mailing/field materials in Spanish, Chinese,
and Korean.
•• Findings: Forthcoming.
Decisions Made
The following decisions have been made for this
operation:
99 Flip-style bilingual paper questionnaires will be
used instead of the swimlane style.
99 The LNG Operation will utilize a National
Advisory Committee Language Working Group
for early engagement on language assistance
plans for the 2020 Census.
99 Supported languages proposed by the LNG operation were included in the Request for Proposal
released in January 2016. Supported languages
will be revised on an ongoing basis, as needed.
Design Issues to Be Resolved
Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:
Question

Expected Date

What are the number of non-English
languages and level of support needed
for the 2020 Census?

September 2017

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 73

Cost and Quality
Investment in LNG is projected to have minimal
influence on the overall cost of the 2020 Census.

Milestones
Date

Activity

March 2016

Deploy Internet and NRFU instruments in
Spanish, Chinese, and Korean for the 2016
Census Test.

Impacts of this operation on overall 2020 Census
quality include the following:
ÏÏ Automated data collection instruments in
non-English languages anticipated to improve
quality of responses from non-English speaking
respondents.
ÏÏ Culturally appropriate, translated questionnaires
and associated nonquestionnaire materials
anticipated to improve quality of responses of
non-English speaking respondents.
Risks
The risks listed below are specific to this operation:
The Internet data collection instrument is currently
available in four languages. IF the Internet data collection instrument is not developed for additional
languages, THEN there will not be Internet self-response options outside the four languages.

Deploy bilingual paper questionnaire and
associated nonquestionnaire materials in
Spanish, Chinese, and Korean for the 2016
Census Test.
September
2016

Release the LNG DOP.

2016–2019
(ongoing)

Conduct qualitative research on data
collection instruments and materials in
additional languages.

September
2017

Determine number of non-English languages
and level of support for the 2020 Census.

March 2018

Deploy Internet instrument in additional nonEnglish languages for the 2018 End-to-End
Census Test. Languages include Vietnamese,
Russian, Arabic, and Tagalog.

March 2020

Deploy 2020 Census non-English data
collection instruments and materials.

Any changes to the finalized 2020 Census content
will impact all non-English content. IF the final
English content changes after April 2018, THEN
there will not be adequate time in the schedule to
translate, design, and produce non-English questionnaires for the 2020 Census.

74 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

U.S. Census Bureau

5.4 FRAME
The operations in this area have the goal of developing a high-quality geospatial frame that serves
as the universe for the enumeration activities.
This area consists of three operations: Geographic
Programs, LUCA, and Address Canvassing. Each is
described below.

5.4.1 Geographic Programs

shipping, and handling of paper maps and paper
listings by the Census Bureau and its program
participants.
•• Update the MAF through partnership programs
in order to increase the Census Bureau’s ability
to geocode addresses from the USPS Delivery
Sequence File (DSF).
Opportunities to Innovate
Opportunities to innovate include the following:

Detailed Planning Status:

Underway
DOP Delivered in FY 2016

Purpose
The Geographic Programs (GEOP) operation provides the geographic foundation in support of the
2020 Census data collection and tabulation activities within the Master Address File/Topologically
Integrated Geographic Encoding and Referencing
(MAF/TIGER) System. The MAF/TIGER System
(software applications and databases) serves as
the national repository for all of the spatial, geographic, and residential address data needed for
census and survey data collection, data tabulation,
data dissemination, geocoding services, and map
production.
Components of this operation include:
•• Geographic Delineations.
•• Geographic Partnership Programs.
•• Geographic Data Processing.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: There have been no major changes
to this operation.
Lessons Learned
Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census
studies and reviews, the following recommendations were made:

•• Use of varied data sources (e.g., imagery and
third-party data) to validate and augment the
MAF/TIGER System throughout the decade:
ºº As part of the Geographic Support System
Initiative (GSS-I) the Census Bureau has
obtained address and road center line data
from state and local partnerships and has
updated the MAF/TIGER System with these
data since 2013.
ºº Ongoing investigation of potential use of
third-party data sources.
•• Development of a modular, multimode,
Geographic Update Partnership Software (GUPS)
to streamline partners’ participation.
•• Delineation of Basic Collection Units (BCUs) to:
ºº Eliminate operation specific Assignment Area
delineations.
ºº Incorporate data and information not previously used in delineation such as predominant housing unit characteristics (e.g., single
unit, group quarters, and mobile homes).
Description of Operation 
The GEOP operation includes components of the
2020 Census that are geographic in nature. The
components of the GEOP project fall into three
general categories as shown in Figure 30:
•• Geographic Delineations.

•• Consider consolidation of field operations, and
Type of Enumeration Area (TEA) values used to
support field operations.

•• Geographic Partnership Programs.

•• To the greatest extent possible, attempt geographic reconciliation activities of boundaries on
an ongoing basis throughout the decade.

Geographic Delineations

•• To the greatest extent possible, geographic
extracts and updates should be made in an
electronic form to reduce the production,

U.S. Census Bureau

•• Geographic Data Processing.

The Geographic Delineation component of the
GEOP determines, delineates, and updates the
geographic area boundaries for 2020 Census data
collection and data tabulation. Census data collection relies on the delineation of various geographic
areas, known as “collection geography,” to support
2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 75

Geographic
Delineations
•

•

•
•

Type of Enumeration
Area (TEA)
development and
delineation
Basic Collection Unit
(BCU) development
and testing
Delineation of Special
Land-Use Areas
Field management
area delineation

Geographic
Partnership Programs
•
•

•
•

Boundary and Annexation
Survey (BAS)
Participant Statistical Areas
Program/Tribal Statistical
Areas Program (PSAP/TSAP)
Boundary Validation Program
(BVP)
Public-Use Microdata Areas
(PUMAs)

Geographic Data
Processing
•

•
•
•

Augmentation of
MAF/TIGER with
addresses from
administrative records
and third party data
MAF/TIGER Extract
Support
Geographic Data
Processing
Geographic Area
Reconciliation Program

Figure 30: Summary of Geographic Programs Components

the capture of data during Census activities. This
includes both the delineation of the methods used
to enumerate households and the definition of field
management areas. The following collection geography is delineated during the 2020 Census:
•• Type of Enumeration Area: In an effort to
ensure the most cost effective and efficient
process to enumerate households, every block
in the United States is assigned to one specific
TEA. The TEA reflects the methodology used to
enumerate the households within the block. The
TEA assignment utilizes a variety of information
to identify the most cost effective enumeration
approach for all of the United States, District of
Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the Island Areas.
•• Basic Collection Unit (BCU): BCU serves as the
smallest unit of collection geography for all 2020
Census listing operations. The BCU replaces both
the collection block and assignment area geographies used for the 2010 Census.
•• Special Land Use Area: A key component of
collection geography is the delineation of land
areas that may require unique field treatment
or tabulation. This includes military areas,
group quarter areas (e.g., correctional facilities and colleges and universities), and public
lands. The main purpose of the special land
use delineation is to improve tabulation block
boundaries, to allow field operations to manage
special land use areas in the field effectively,
to assist in maintaining the GQ address list,
to allow for public lands to be removed from

76 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

In-Field Address Canvassing (see Section 5.4.3)
and other field operations, and to maintain
relationships between these areas and other
geographic entities such as incorporated places
and American Indian Areas.
•• Field Management Area Delineation: This
component of collection geography includes
delineation of geographic areas, other than BCUs
and TEA, which are necessary to manage and
accomplish fieldwork for the 2020 Census. In
past censuses this has included Crew Leader
Districts, Field Operation Supervisor Districts,
and Area Census Office boundaries.
Census results are dependent on the delineation
of various geographic areas to both tabulate and
report person and household statistics. The delineation of these geographic areas, known as “tabulation geography” is based on input from partnership
programs (such as the Participant Statistical Areas
Program/Tribal Statistical Areas Program [PSAP/
TSAP] program), or internally defined tabulation
criteria, such as the Urbanized Area delineation.
After rules are defined or tabulation geographies
are proposed by partners, the tabulation geography is delineated in the MAF/TIGER System through
a series of batch and interactive delineations and
then followed by a series of data integrity validations, renumbering, and certification steps. Once
the tabulation geographic areas are certified, they
are loaded into the MAF/TIGER database and used
for the tabulation of statistical data and as the base
for various geographic data products that support

U.S. Census Bureau

the 2020 Census. Tabulation geography planned
for the 2020 Census includes:
•• American Indian Areas
•• Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Areas
and Related Statistical Areas
•• Counties
•• County Subdivisions
•• Census Designated Places
•• Census Tracts
•• Block Groups
•• Blocks
•• Congressional Districts
•• State Legislative Districts
•• Voting Districts
•• School Districts
•• Traffic Analysis Zones
•• Zone Improvement Plan Code Tabulation Areas
•• Urban Areas
These geographies are used to tabulate and
disseminate data from the Decennial Census, the
ACS, and other censuses and surveys, and are used
outside of the Census Bureau by other government
agencies in program administration and in determining program eligibility and fund allocation.
Geographic Partnership Programs
Prior to the 2020 Census, the Census Bureau will
conduct geographic partnership programs to make
the address list as up-to-date as possible and
ensure complete coverage of all housing units.
The Partnership Programs also help define statistical geographic area boundaries that will provide
meaningful data from the 2020 Census. Following
are the 2020 Census Geographic Partnership
Programs:5
•• Boundary and Annexation Survey (BAS): An
ongoing survey for collecting and maintaining
information about the inventory of the legal
boundaries for, and the legal actions affecting
the boundaries of, counties and equivalent
governments, incorporated places, Minor Civil
Divisions, Consolidated Cities, Urban Growth
Areas, Census Areas of Alaska, Hawaiian
5
Components of the RDP and the LUCA are also Geographic
Program Partnership Programs, but they are covered in other
sections of this document.

U.S. Census Bureau

Homelands, and federally recognized legal
American Indian and Alaska Native areas (including the Alaska Native Regional Corporations).
This information provides an accurate identification and depiction of geographic areas for
the Census Bureau to use in conducting the
decennial and economic censuses and ongoing
surveys such as the ACS.
•• Participant Statistical Areas Program/
Tribal Statistical Areas Program: Programs
that allow designated participants, following
Census Bureau guidelines, to review and suggest
modifications to the boundaries of block groups,
census tracts, Census County Divisions, and
Census Designated Places. Participants can also
propose new Census Designated Places based
on specific criteria. The 2020 Census PSAP
includes all tribal statistical boundaries, which
were administered through the TSAP in the 2010
Census, combining the two programs. The TSAP
geographies are Oklahoma Tribal Statistical
Areas, Tribal Designated Statistical Areas, State
Designated Tribal Statistical Areas, tribal census
tracts, tribal block groups, statistical tribal subdivisions, Alaska Native Village Statistical Areas,
and for administrative purposes, one legal area,
state reservations.
•• Boundary Validation Program: The intent of
the Boundary Validation Program is to provide
the Highest Elected Official a last opportunity
to review the entity boundary, and any address
range breaks where the boundary of their jurisdiction intersects a road, before the tabulation
of census data.
•• Public Use Microdata Areas: Geographic units
used for providing statistical and demographic
information. Public Use Microdata Areas do not
overlap and are contained within a single state.
Geographic Data Processing
The Geographic Data Processing component
of GEOP includes all activities that relate to the
extract, update, and maintenance of the features,
boundaries and addresses in the MAF/TIGER
System. Geographic data captured as part of the
2020 Census, including address updates, structure
coordinate locations, boundaries, and roads data
will be processed to ensure that the MAF/TIGER
System is up to date. Following are the major geographic data processing activities that will occur in
the 2020 Census:
2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 77

•• Frame Development includes the receipt and
processing of various address records from
sources such as the USPS, state and local governments, and third-party data sources. These
data help ensure accurate address coverage
within the 2020 Census Frame.
•• MAF/TIGER Extract Support includes activities related to preparing extracts or services
enabling 2020 Census systems access to
addresses from the MAF/TIGER System, as well
as activities related to the production of spatial
extracts or services for use in various field data
collection instruments and control systems and
printing of paper.
•• Geographic Data Processing includes activities related to extract from and update to the
features, boundaries and addresses within the
MAF/TIGER System. The MAF/TIGER updates
include any changes to the features, addresses,
or boundaries that result from 2020 Census data
collection operations or geographic partnership programs. The geographic data processing
activities establish benchmarks from the MAF/
TIGER System by taking a snapshot of the database at various points during the decade. Each
benchmark becomes the foundation on which
future updates are applied. These benchmarks
support the collection, tabulation, and dissemination of census and survey information and
for providing geocoding services and geospatial
data products.
•• Geographic Area Reconciliation Program
includes editing and reconciliation of boundaries
within the MAF/TIGER System. This reconciliation resolves boundary and feature discrepancies provided by separate partnership programs
at different points in time or updates prior to
release of 2020 Census tabulation products.

ºº Findings: Demonstrated that public lands
data will be useful in the delineation of 2020
Census TEAs and collection geography.
•• Post Census analysis of 2010 Census
Assignment Area definitions.
ºº Findings: Helped lay the foundation for
establishing a consistent assignment unit—
the BCUs.
Decisions Made
The following decisions have been made for this
operation:
Geographic Delineations:
99 BCUs will be used beginning in the 2016
Address Canvassing Test.
99 Special Land Use Areas and public lands
will be used in the delineation of collection
geographies.
99 The Statistical Areas Program (PSAP/TSAP) will
be used in the delineation of 2020 Census tabulation geography.
99 The 2020 Census will include delineation of:
ºº Tabulation geography (Blocks, Block Groups,
Tracts, etc.).
ºº Zone Improvement Plan Code Tabulation
Areas.
ºº Traffic Analysis Zones.
ºº Urban Areas as defined by the 2020 Census
Urban Area Delineation Program.
99 The following are the Type of Enumeration Areas
(TEA) required for the 2020 Census.
ºº TEA 1 = Self Response
ºº TEA 2 = UE
ºº TEA 4 = Remote Alaska

Research Completed

ºº TEA 5 = Military

The following research has been completed for this
operation:

ºº TEA 6 = Island Areas

•• Research conducted and completed within the
initial phases of the GSS-I program:
ºº Findings: Demonstrated that administrative
records from local governments are a valuable
source of address and spatial information.

Geographic Partnership Programs:
99 The geographic programs conducted in the
2010 Census will occur in the 2020 Census (the
approach for adding new construction is yet to
be determined).
99 The GUPS will support:

•• Research on use of public lands data:

78 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

U.S. Census Bureau

ºº All geographic partnership programs (i.e.,
BAS, PSAP/TSAP, Boundary Validation Program,
and Public Use Microdata Areas).
ºº Redistricting Data Program
ºº Local Update of Census Addresses
ºº Count Question Resolution
99 Partnership programs will offer limited paper
materials.
99 Data received from partnership programs will be
processed from a central location.
Geographic Data Processing:
99 Enterprise solutions will be used to capture relevant geographic data.
99 Imagery will be available as a backdrop in field
listing and field enumeration instruments.
99 The MAF/TIGER System will leverage a ServiceOriented Architecture for dissemination products
and tools.
99 The USPS DSF will continue to be used as the
primary source of address updates for the MAF/
TIGER System.
99 Frame development will include the receipt and
processing of administrative records and thirdparty data sources.
99 Boundary reconciliation within the MAF/TIGER
System will be ongoing.
99 MAF/TIGER will interact with other systems
using service oriented architecture
99 MAF/TIGER is the source for all data collection
and field management applications.
Design Issues to Be Resolved
Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:

Question

Expected Date

In what 2020 Census operations will
addresses and features be updated
and added? What are the expectations
for the capture and availability of field
updates? Available in real time? Available with the timeframe of the operations? Available for the next operation?
Available for the final tabulation?

August 2017

How will the MAF/TIGER System be
used in support of reengineered field
operations? For example, what are the
data input and output processing and
timing requirements and the workflows
needed to support field data collection
operations?

October 2017

Cost and Quality
Investment in GEOP is projected to have minimal
influence on the overall cost of the 2020 Census.
Impacts of this operation on overall 2020 Census
quality include the following:
ÏÏ Address and spatial data in the MAF/TIGER
System are validated using multiple data
sources.
ÏÏ Address and spatial data in the MAF/TIGER
System are updated continuously.
ÏÏ Ongoing reconciliation of boundaries across programs, such as the BAS and the RDP, will result
in higher quality tabulation boundaries.
Risks
Using attribution in BCUs increases their benefits
and usefulness. IF attribution related to address
coverage risk, optimal contact and enumeration
strategy, and production rate and workload cannot
be applied to the Basic Collection Unit, THEN the
ability for Basic Collection Unit to act as a planning
tool and to be dynamically assigned in the field is
limited.
The GUPS contract states there will be a Web-based
and stand-alone version of GUPS. IF a Web-based
version of GUPS is not developed, THEN it will significantly add to the resources required to update
partnership programs for the 2020 Census.

U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 79

Milestones —Con.
Date

April 2014
March 2016
June 2016

Activity

Date

Activity

Geographic Delineation Programs

September
2016

Release the Geographic Data Processing
DOP.

June 2019

Initiate Conducting Initial Basic Collection
Unit (BCU) Delineation.

Deliver Address Canvassing In-Field
Universe.

January 2020

Initiate Conducting Initial Type of Enumeration
Area (TEA) Delineation.

Deliver 2020 Census Initial Universe (Internet
Self-Response, UE).

June 2020

Initiate Geographic Area Reconciliation
Program.

July 2020

Complete 2020 Census Field Operations
Updates (Addresses, Mapspots, and
Features).

September
2020

Deliver Final Tabulation Geographic Products.

September
2022

Complete Geographic Data Processing.

Initiate Development of Tabulation Block
Criteria.

August 2016

Initiate Delineation of Field Offices.

September
2016

Release the Geographic Delineation
Programs DOP.

January 2017

Complete Delineation of Field Offices.

December
2017

Initiate Delineation of Field Management
Areas.

April 2019

Update and Finalize BCUs.

July 2019

Update and Finalize 2020 TEA Delineation.

September
2020

Complete Delineation of Field Management
Areas.
Geographic Partnership Programs

December
2015

Initiate Delivery and Maintenance of GUPS.

September
2016

Release the Geographic Partnership
Programs DOP.

October 2016

Open Geographic Partnership Support Desk.

August 2017

Complete 2017 BAS.

August 2018

Complete 2018 BAS.

May 2019

Complete Participant Statistical Areas
Program (PSAP) Delineation.

August 2019

Complete 2019 BAS.

February 2020 Complete Participant Statistical Areas
Program Verification.
August 2020

Complete 2020 BAS.

August 2022

Complete Boundary Validation Program
(BVP).

September
2022

Complete Public Use Microdata Area.
Complete Delivery and Maintenance of
GUPS.
Close Geographic Partnership Support Desk.
Geographic Data Processing

December
2015

Milestones —Con.

Initiate Geographic Data Processing.

80 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

5.4.2 Local Update of Census
Addresses
Detailed Planning Status:

Underway
DOP Delivered in FY 2016

Purpose
The Local Update of Census Addresses (LUCA)
operation provides an opportunity for tribal, federal, state, and local governments to review and
improve the address lists and maps used to conduct the 2020 Census. This operation is required
by the Census Address List Improvement Act of
1994 (Public Law (P.L.) 103-430).
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: There have been no major changes
to this operation.
Lessons Learned
Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census
studies and reviews, the following recommendations were made:
•• Provide program materials (i.e., address lists
and maps) in standard, off-the-shelf commercial
software formats.
•• Simplify the process for small (6,000 or fewer
housing units), lower-level governments (such as
minor civil divisions and places).

U.S. Census Bureau

•• Explain the definition and use of addresses and
housing units better, so that participants will
understand why post office boxes and rural
route numbers are not in scope for the Census
Bureau’s LUCA Program.

•• Census Bureau validates the updates via a clerical review, automated address matching, and
Address Canvassing.

Opportunities to Innovate

•• Governmental entities can appeal the Address
Canvassing validation outcomes.

Considering recommendations from the 2010
Census and the 2020 Census Research and Testing
Phase, and the design of a reengineered 2020
Census, opportunities to innovate include the
following:
•• Reduce the complexity of the LUCA Program as
compared with the 2010 Census program.
•• Eliminate the full address list submission
options that were available in 2010 Census
LUCA in order to:
ºº Reduce the number of deleted LUCA records
during verification activities.
ºº Reduce the burden and cost of processing
addresses and LUCA address validation.
ºº Provide early access to the address count list,
detailing the count of every address in each
block.
ºº Provide partners with automated tools for
geocoding and reviewing their address list.
Description of Operation
The LUCA operation provides the opportunity
for tribal, federal, state, and local governments
to review and comment on the Census Bureau’s
address list and maps to ensure an accurate and
complete enumeration of their communities. The
Census Address List Improvement Act of 1994 (P.L.
103-430) authorized the Census Bureau to provide
individual addresses to designated local officials of
tribal, federal, state, and local governments who
agreed to conditions of confidentiality in order
to review and comment on the Census Bureau’s
address list and maps prior to the decennial census. The basic process for LUCA includes:
•• Census Bureau provides address list and maps
to the governmental entities.
•• Governmental entities review and add, delete, or
change address records or features.
•• Census Bureau incorporates the updates to MAF/
TIGER System.

U.S. Census Bureau

•• Census Bureau provides feedback to the governmental entities.

Research Completed
The following research has been completed for this
operation:
•• The LUCA Program Improvement Project completed their recommendations for the 2020
Census LUCA operation. The research focused
on improving the LUCA operation with research
by the following four research areas (2020
Census LUCA Program Recommendations
4/13/2015):
ºº Looking back at previous LUCA and related
programs.
•• Findings: Simplify the 2020 Census LUCA
program as the 2010 Census LUCA program was too complicated.
ºº Validating LUCA records without Address
Canvassing.
•• Findings: It is possible to validate LUCA
addresses in an office environment.
ºº Utilizing GSS-I for LUCA.
•• Findings: Data and tools used for the GSS-I
should be used and repurposed for the
LUCA program.
ºº Focus Groups.
•• Findings: Focus group participants agreed
with the proposal to remove the full
address list submission options for the
2020 Census LUCA program.
•• As part of the 2020 Census R&D efforts staff
evaluated the 2010 LUCA and 2010 lessons
learned and conducted a series of focus groups
with former LUCA participants. This effort
resulted in 12 major recommendations for the
2020 Census LUCA operation. (Note: These
recommendations are described in more detail
in the 2020 Census LUCA Project Improvement
Report):
1. Continue the 2010 Census LUCA Program
improvements that were successful:
2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 81

ºº Continue to provide a 120-day review
time for participants.
ºº Continue the 6-month advance notice
about the LUCA program registration.

6. Provide the address list in more standard file
formats so that lists are easier to load into
common software packages.

ºº Continue a comprehensive communication program with participants.

7. Include an in-house verification of LUCA submitted addresses to align with the reengineered Address Canvassing.

ºº Continue to provide a variety of LUCA
media types.

8. Utilize and modify existing GSS-I tools and
data to validate LUCA submission.

ºº Continue to improve the Partnership
Software application.
ºº Continue state participation in the LUCA
program.
2. Eliminate the full address list submission
options that were available in 2010 LUCA.
This will:
ºº Reduce the number of deleted LUCA
records in field verification activities.
ºº Reduce the burden and cost of processing addresses and LUCA address validation.
3. Reduce the complexity of the LUCA Program
as compared with the 2010 Census program.
4. Include census structure coordinates in the
census address list and allow partners to
return their structure coordinates as part of
their submission:
ºº Benefits participants and the Census
Bureau in the review of materials
because it enables more information
about each address to be considered
in both the participants review and the
Census Bureau’s validation of the submitted addresses.
5. Provide ungeocoded United States Postal
Service Delivery Sequence File addresses to
state and county partners in LUCA materials:
ºº Provides more complete data for participants to review.
ºº May result in participants being able
to geocode previously ungeocoded
addresses for the Census.
ºº Should reduce the number of duplicate addresses submitted by LUCA
participants.

82 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

9. Encourage governments at the lowest level
to work with larger governments to consolidate their submission.
10. Eliminate the Block Count Challenge, as previously this did not result in useful information for the Census to determine specifically
what addresses were missing from a block.
11. Eliminate the option for participants to use
an asterisk (*) for multiunits submitted without unit designations.
12. Encourage LUCA participants to identify
E-911 Addresses used for mailing, location,
or both addresses so that Census has more
information available during MAF update.
Decisions Made
The following decisions have been made for this
operation:
99 Conduct a comprehensive communication program with LUCA participants.
99 Include census structure coordinates in the
census address list and allow partners to return
their structure coordinates as part of their
submission.
99 Provide ungeocoded addresses to state and
county partners in LUCA materials.
99 Provide the address list in more standard file formats so that lists are easier to load into common
software packages.
99 Encourage governments at the lowest level to
work with larger governments to consolidate
their submissions.
99 Provide a variety of LUCA media types.
99 Simplify the 2020 Census LUCA program and
make it compatible with the GSS-I and Address
Canvassing.

U.S. Census Bureau

99 Utilize administrative records and third-party
data to improve validation process.
99 Use the GUPS to support automated exchange of
information for LUCA participants.
99 Validation of LUCA submissions will occur primarily during In-Office Address Canvassing, with
minimal validation occurring early in the In-Field
Address Canvassing operation.
99 The Census Bureau will provide an option for
partners to access registration materials online
and return them via email. We will accept
scanned signatures, but not E-signatures.
99 LUCA will instruct participants to provide mailing address, location address or both. All data
will be used to match to the Census Bureau’s
MAF.
99 The strategy for late decade GSS activities
during LUCA is to continue GSS partner file activities through the 2020 Census and beyond. GSS
is an ongoing program.
Design Issues to Be Resolved
Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:

independently validate submitted addresses
prior to adding them to the MAF.
Risks
To protect Title 13 data on computer-readable
materials, all local government LUCA liaisons
and LUCA reviewers are required to sign a
Confidentiality Agreement and abide by the Census
Bureau’s security guidelines. However, lessons
learned from previous censuses show that not all
stakeholders reviewing the Title 13 materials possess the skills necessary to meet IT requirements.
IF participants are required to take additional
efforts to meet the Census Bureau’s IT Title 13
requirements, THEN there needs to be adequate
support in a help desk environment for responding
to IT Title 13 issues. 
The Census Bureau needs to work with the Office of
Management and Budget to determine the requirements for the LUCA Appeals Office. IF the LUCA
Appeals Office is not planned in coordination with
the Office of Management and Budget, THEN the
Census Bureau will be required to play a larger role
in the development of the LUCA Appeals Office.
Milestones

Question

Expected Date

To what extent can administrative
records and third-party data be used to
validate addresses submitted by LUCA
participants?

June 2017

Will there be a separate New
Construction Program or will the
GSS-I Program continue to collect new
construction addresses for the 2020
Census?

June 2017

What is the 2020 Census LUCA
Appeals process?

October 2018

Date

Activity

September
2016

Release the LUCA DOP.

February 2017 Mail Advance Notice Package.
July 2017

Mail Invitation Package.

February 2018 Mail Review Materials.

Cost and Quality
Investment in LUCA is projected to have minimal
influence on the overall cost of the 2020 Census.
Impacts of this operation on overall 2020 Census
quality include the following:

October 2018

Complete Initial Processing of LUCA
submissions for delivery to Address
Canvassing.

June 2019

Complete Address Canvassing validation of
LUCA addresses.

August 2019

Deliver Feedback Materials.

March 2020

Complete the processing of LUCA Appeal
addresses.

September
2021

Complete LUCA.

ÏÏ Removing the full address list submission
options, thereby reducing the number of
addresses that need to be validated.
ÏÏ Use of administrative records and third-party
data to validate incoming addresses from
tribal, federal, state, and local governments to
U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 83

5.4.3 Address Canvassing
Detailed Planning Status:

Underway
DOP Delivered FY 2016

Purpose
The Address Canvassing (ADC) operation serves
two purposes:
•• Deliver a complete and accurate address list and
spatial database for enumeration.
•• Determine the type and address characteristics
for each living quarter.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: There have been no major changes
to this operation.
Lessons Learned
Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census
studies and reviews, the following recommendations were made:
•• Continuously update the maps and address lists
throughout the decade, supplementing these
activities with Address Canvassing at the end of
the decade.
•• Allow more time in the schedule to fully develop
and test the listing instrument.
•• Improve the Address Canvassing training to
emphasize working from the ground to the
Handheld Computer.
Opportunities to Innovate
Opportunities to innovate include the following:
•• One hundred percent Address Canvassing conducted In-Office.
•• Target 25 percent of living quarters for In-Field
Address Canvassing.
•• Use of automation and data (imagery, administrative records, and third-party data) for In-Office
Address Canvassing.
•• Ongoing MAF Coverage Study to validate
In-Office Address Canvassing procedures, measure coverage, and improve In-Field Address
Canvassing data collection methodologies.
•• Use of reengineered field management structure
and approach to managing fieldwork, including new field office structure and new staff
positions.
84 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

Description of Operation
The Census Bureau needs the address and physical
location of each living quarter in the United States
to conduct the census. During Address Canvassing,
the Census Bureau verifies that its master address
list and maps are accurate so the tabulation for all
housing units (HUs) and Group Quarters (GQs) is
correct. A complete and accurate address list is the
cornerstone of a successful census.
The Census Bureau has determined that while there
will be a full Address Canvassing of the nation in
2020, a full In-Field Address Canvassing of the
nation is no longer necessary. Advancements in
technology have enabled continual address and
spatial updates to occur throughout the decade as
part of the In-Office Address Canvassing effort.
This has made it possible to limit In-Field Address
Canvassing to only the most challenging areas. The
scope of the ADC operation for the 2020 Census
includes:
•• In-Office Address Canvassing: Process of using
empirical geographic evidence (e.g., imagery,
comparison of the Census Bureau’s address list
to partner provided lists) to assess the current
address list. Also removes geographic areas
from the In-Field Address Canvassing workload
based on the availability of administrative data
sets (e.g., military lands, national forests) and
the method of enumeration planned for the
2020 Census (e.g., UE). Detects and identifies
change from high quality administrative and
third-party data sources to reduce the In-Field
Address Canvassing workload. Determines the
In-Field Address Canvassing universe.
ºº In-Office Address Canvassing assesses the
extent to which the number of addresses—
both HUs and GQs—in the census address list
is consistent with the number of addresses
visible in current imagery.
ºº A follow-up process seeks to research and
update areas identified with growth, decline,
undercoverage of addresses, or overcoverage
of addresses from the comparison of the two
different vintages of imagery and counts of
addresses in the MAF.
•• In-Field Address Canvassing: Process of doing
a dependent listing in the field to identify where
people live, stay, or could live or stay. Field staff
compare what they see on the ground to the

U.S. Census Bureau

existing census address list and either verify or
correct the address and location information,
adding addresses to the list as necessary. Field
staff also classify each living quarter (LQ) as a
HU or GQ.
•• Quality Assurance: Process of reviewing the
work of field and office staff. Both In-Field
Address Canvassing and In-Office Address
Canvassing work will be validated using quality
assurance techniques.
•• MAF Coverage Study: An ongoing field activity
that validates In-Office procedures, measures
coverage, improves In-Field data collection
methodologies, and updates the MAF on a continuous basis.
Research Completed
The following research has been completed for this
operation:
•• September 2014: Released the Address
Canvassing Recommendation Report.
ºº Findings: A recommendation was made to
not walk every block and implement the
reengineered Address Canvassing (In-Field
and In-Office).
•• February 2015: Completed the 2015 Address
Validation Test, which consists of the MAF Model
Validation Test and the Partial Block Canvassing
Test.
ºº Findings:
•• The statistical models were not effective at
identifying specific blocks with many adds
or deletes.
•• The statistical models were not effective
at predicting national totals of MAF coverage errors.
•• PBC was successfully implemented as an
alternative field data collection methodology; future work will determine how the
PBC method impacts cost and quality.
•• Imagery Review successfully identified
areas requiring updates; future research
is needed to refine the process and determine impacts on quality.
Decisions Made
The following decisions have been made for this
operation:
U.S. Census Bureau

99 The ADC operation consists of:
ºº In-Office Address Canvassing.
ºº In-Field Address Canvassing.
ºº Quality Assurance.
ºº MAF Coverage Study.
99 Administrative records and third-party data
sources will be used to validate addresses within
each block.
99 GQ will be identified and classified during
Address Canvassing.
99 Geographic areas (e.g., living quarters and
feature) which are included in downstream operations will no longer have to be canvassed in the
field (e.g., UE and Remote Alaska).
99 At most 25 percent of the living quarters will be
canvassed in the field.
99 Production Address Canvassing will begin
September 2015.
99 Address Canvassing provides training for both
production and quality assurance processes for
in-office work.
99 Address Canvassing relies on automated training
for production and quality assurance processes
for in-field work.
99 Address Canvassing updates the Census
Bureau’s address list using a dependent canvass
(from ground to list).
99 Address Canvassing validates and collects coordinates for every structure with a living quarter.
99 The MAF Coverage Study will be conducted
throughout the decade.
99 In-Office Address Canvassing creates the universe for In-Field Address Canvassing.
99 In-Office Address Canvassing will review public
lands.
99 Geographic areas designated for In-Office
Address Canvassing can move to the In-Field
Address Canvassing universe and vice versa.
99 In-Field Address Canvassing can identify additional in-field work.
99 Statistical modeling will not be used in Address
Canvassing.
99 Imagery will be available on the Listing and
Mapping Instrument to use during In-Field
Address Canvassing.

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 85

99 Address Canvassing will validate LUCA
submissions.
99 Validation of LUCA submissions will occur primarily during In-Office Address Canvassing, with
minimal validation occurring early in the In-Field
Address Canvassing operation.
99 The Census Bureau will do a full block canvassing in the 2020 Census.
99 Address Canvassing will leverage the same capabilities developed for NRFU for In-Field Address
Canvassing including automated payroll, routing
to assignments and various alerts.
99 Ungeocoded addresses will be worked via the
In-Office Address Canvassing operation. See
pages 24-26 of the 2020 DOP for the Address
Canvassing Operation for details on the process.
99 Coordinates captured for features and living
quarters will be collected using available technology. Metadata will be collected and provided
for use in improving the spatial accuracy if
deemed necessary.
99 Spatially accurate feature data will not be captured in the Field. Field staff will identify where
features are missing and report that back to
HQ for processing. HQ has access to satellite
imagery and other source material which will
allow for an accurate insertion into the TIGER
database. This decision is based on expert opinion and experience.
Design Issues to Be Resolved
Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:
Question

Expected Date

How will Quality Assurance be
handled?

January 2017

What are the business processes for
handling Transitory Locations during
Address Canvassing?

January 2017

Will the Census Bureau be able to
meet the 25 percent In-Field Address
Canvassing goal without sacrificing
quality?

January 2017

Cost and Quality
Investment in ADC is projected to influence (reduce
 or increase ) the 2020 Census overall costs in
the following ways:

86 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

ÐÐ Reduction in the amount of In-Field Address
Canvassing and associated infrastructure by
implementing In-Office Address Canvassing.
ÐÐ Use of additional sources of administrative
records and third-party data to validate the
frame.
In addition:
ÏÏ ADC is expected to require additional people,
process activities, data, technology, and facilities
to support In-Office Address Canvassing and the
resolution of ungeocoded responses.
Impacts of this operation on overall 2020 Census
quality include the following:
ÏÏ Continuous in-field improvement process to:
ºº Test in-field methodologies.
ºº Verify in-office methodologies.
ºº Update MAF with results.
ÏÏ Use of additional sources of administrative
records and third-party data to validate the
frame.
ÐÐ Missed changes in address list resulting from
new ADC approach.
Risks
In-Office Address Canvassing is a new approach for
the 2020 Census, and there are concerns that some
local governments may believe an In-Field Address
Canvassing may yield a greater “quality” canvassing than In-Office Address Canvassing, and they
may be concerned about the lack of census jobs
within their jurisdiction because of a decreased
In-Field Address Canvassing. IF the Census Bureau
is unable to gain stakeholder acceptance for the
proposed Address Canvassing methodology, THEN
the workload for In-Field Address Canvassing may
increase dramatically.
The LUCA operation provides addresses to the
Address Canvassing workload that need to be validated. The redesigned LUCA operation is intended
to resolve more addresses and lessen the potential
for increased In-Field Address Canvassing work.
IF LUCA provides addresses to In-Office Address
Canvassing that are unresolvable at a higher than
expected rate, THEN there will be an increased
workload for In-Field Address Canvassing.

U.S. Census Bureau

•• Reminder cards or letters or both.

Milestones

•• Questionnaire mailing packages.

Date

Activity

August 2015

Release Address Validation Test Results.

September
2015

Begin 2020 Census Address Canvassing
(In-Office).

December
2015

Release ADC DOP.

April 2016

Begin MAF Coverage Study (In-Field).

October 2016

Begin Address Canvassing Test (In-Field).

February 2017

Begin In-Field Address Canvassing for 2017
Puerto Rico Census Test.

August 2017

Begin In-Field Address Canvassing for 2018
End-to-End Census Test.

Lessons Learned

August 2019

Begin In-Field Address Canvassing for 2020
Census.

Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census
studies and reviews, the following recommendations were made:

5.5 RESPONSE DATA
The Response Data area includes all operations
associated with the collection of responses, management of the cases, and initial processing of the
data. This area consists of 12 operations that are
described in the following sections:
1.

Forms Printing and Distribution

2.

Paper Data Capture

3.

Integrated Partnership and Communications

4.

Internet Self-Response

5.

Non-ID Processing

6.

Update Enumerate

7.

Group Quarters

8.

Enumeration at Transitory Location

9.

Census Questionnaire Assistance

10. Nonresponse Followup
11. Response Processing
12. Federally Affiliated Americans Count Overseas

5.5.1 Forms Printing and Distribution
Detailed Planning Status:

Underway

Purpose
The Forms Printing and Distribution (FPD) operation prints and distributes the following paper
forms to support the 2020 Census mailing strategy
and enumeration of the population:
•• Internet invitation letters.
U.S. Census Bureau

•• Materials for other special operations, as
required.
Other materials required to support field operations are handled in the Decennial Logistics
Management or Field Infrastructure operations.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: Questionnaire mailing will now
include all nonresponding households in the mail
universe.

•• Use USPS tracing data to monitor large scale
inbound and outbound census mailings.
•• Provide a comprehensive 2020 Census forms
list to be used by the contractor for printing
planning.
•• Identify an owner for every field on the
questionnaires.
Opportunities to Innovate
Opportunities to innovate include the following:
•• Shifting from paper questionnaires to the
Internet as the primary response mode to the
2020 Census, thus reducing the number of
questionnaires that will be processed through
PDC operation.
•• Using paper questionnaires for the enumeration
of Internet nonrespondents and targeted areas
or populations with low Internet usage.
Description of Operation
The FPD operation is responsible for the printing
and distribution of mailed Internet invitations,
reminder cards or letters, and questionnaire mail
packages in multiple languages as determined by
the Language Services operation.
•• The contact strategy will include printing and
mailing of paper invitations and reminder cards
or letters.
•• Paper questionnaires will be printed and mailed
initially to some portion of the population and to
non-responding households in the mail universe.
2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 87

•• Printing and mailing will be contracted through
the Government Publishing Office.
•• A serialized barcode will be printed on each
sheet of a questionnaire to ensure all pages for a
household are properly captured.
•• The questionnaires for non-responding households will be addressed in near real time to
minimize distribution to households who
have engaged in the digital or other nonpaper
response channels.
Research Completed
The following decisions have been made for this
operation:
•• Multiple studies on the use of USPS tracing:
ºº 2010 Census Paper: Optimizing Integrated
Technologies and Multimode Response to
achieve a Dynamic Census, February 29,
2012.
ºº 2010 Census Assessment: 2010 Census
Postal Tracking Assessment, April 2, 2012
ºº Cost assessment for the PDC check-in
operation.
•• Findings:
ºº USPS tracing data are cost-effective and
accurate.
ºº Postal tracing services are deemed reliable and can be used on a nationwide
scale in lieu of check-in.
Decisions Made
The following decisions have been made for this
operation:
99 Paper questionnaires, in at least English and
Spanish, will be printed and mailed to some
portions of the population as part of the initial
contact strategy.

Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:
Question

Expected Date

What is the process for addressing "on
demand" questionnaires?"

June 2017

What other census operations have
paper printing requirements (e.g.,
UE, Puerto Rico and Island Areas
Censuses, GQ enumeration)?

October 2017

Cost and Quality
Investment in FPD is projected to have minimal
influence on the overall cost of the 2020 Census.6
Impacts of this operation on the overall 2020
Census quality include the following:
ÏÏ Robust printing quality assurance measures
have a direct positive impact on the quality of
data from paper data capture.
Risks
The printing products and address files needed
to support the 2020 Census need to be finalized
in time so that subsequent planning and development for the printing operation can take place. IF
printing products and address files are not finalized on schedule, THEN the printing operation will
be unable to plan print contracts and production in
the most fiscally responsible way, resulting in extra
mailing costs and schedule delays.
The final design for the 2020 Census paper questionnaire needs to be within the established USPS
thresholds in order to take advantage of mailing
discounts. IF the final 2020 Census questionnaire
design pushes the weight, size, or shape of a mailing piece over established USPS thresholds, THEN
the Census Bureau will be unable to maximize use of
USPS mailing discounts, adding extra mailing costs.

99 Printing and mailing of 2020 Census invitation
letters, reminder postcards, and questionnaires
will be contracted out through Government
Publishing Office.
99 USPS barcodes will be used for various postal
services, such as tracing and identification of
vacant or other undeliverable addresses.
Design Issues to Be Resolved

88 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

6
Although the number of printed questionnaires for mailing
is expected to be lower in the 2020 Census as compared to the
2010 Census, other factors contribute to unknowns related to
the total cost of printing. These include booklet questionnaires,
multiple mailings of nonquestionnaire materials, and a dynamic
universe for questionnaire printing and mailing with printing
occurring later than it would have with a bulk printing process.

U.S. Census Bureau

•• Realistic and timely contingency planning is
essential in order to properly estimate the paper
data capture workload.

Milestones
Date

Activity

October 2016

Receive final contact strategies from the
Internet Self-Response operation.
Receive design concepts for questionnaires
and other mailing materials from the CFD
operation.

•• Use postal tracing to monitor large-scale
inbound and outbound mailings.
•• Barcode serialization is an essential automated
quality component to data capture operations.

Define the printing and mailing workload
estimates.

Opportunities to Innovate

March 2017

Release the FPD DOP.

Opportunities to innovate include the following:

October 2018

Refine the printing and mailing workload
estimates.

January
2017–March
2019

Start print contract planning.

•• Reduction in PDC operations and associated
infrastructure due to Internet Self-Response and
automated field operations.

June 2019–
April 2020

Implement printing, addressing, and mailing
of Internet invitations, reminder cards or
letters and paper questionnaire packages.

Start USPS mailing planning.

5.5.2 Paper Data Capture
Detailed Planning Status:

Underway

Purpose
The Paper Data Capture (PDC) operation captures
and converts data from 2020 Census paper questionnaires. This operation includes:
•• Mail receipt.
•• Document preparation.
•• Scanning.
•• Optical Character Recognition.
•• Optical Mark Recognition.
•• Key From Image.
•• Editing and checkout.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: There have been no major changes
to this operation.
Lessons Learned
Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census
studies and reviews, the following recommendations were made:
•• A timely and comprehensive forms list is
required.
•• Every field on a questionnaire must have an
owner.

U.S. Census Bureau

•• Use of in-house systems Integrated Capture and
Data Entry (iCADE) for paper data capture.
•• USPS tracing data used to identify questionnaires
prior to arrival at the processing center. This
information will be used to reduce follow-up
workloads.
Description of Operation
The PDC operation is responsible for the capture
and conversion of data from paper questionnaires. Paper forms delivered by the USPS are
processed by the National Processing Center (NPC).
Questionnaires go through several steps as shown
in Figure 31. Note that questionnaire images are
archived. The paper questionnaires themselves
are stored until verification that data are received
by Headquarters and then they are destroyed per
security regulations.
The PDC operation is driven largely by the timing
of the questionnaire mail out, volume of forms
received, timing of the nonresponse workload universe cut, and any priority capture requirements
needed for the 2020 Census. Data are captured
from the paper forms in the most efficient manner
possible, and both data and images of the forms
are maintained. The data are sent to the Response
Processing operation area for further work. The
images are sent to the Archiving operation.
Mail returns are identified using USPS postal tracing
to indicate that a form is en route to the processing
office. Upon receipt at the processing office, mail
return questionnaires will be processed in First-InFirst-Out order, unless otherwise specified.
The document preparation area removes mail
returns from the envelopes and prepares them for
2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 89

Receive
questionnaires
via United States
Postal Service
(USPS)

Remove paper
questionnaires
from envelopes

Prepare
questionnaires
for scanning

Perform
KFI operations

Use software
to perform OCR
and OMR on
images

Scan
questionnaires
to create images

Send data to
Headquarters

Send images
to archive

Send paper
questionnaires
to destruction

Figure 31: Paper Data Capture Flow
scanning. Damaged forms are transcribed to new
forms of the same type and a new barcode label
(same ID) is affixed to the new form. Booklet forms
have the binding (spine) removed.
The questionnaires are delivered to scanning to
begin the data capture process. All questionnaires
are scanned by iCADE (no key from paper). Once
scanned, the physical paper forms move on to the
checkout operation. Forms await confirmation that
the data have been received at Headquarters (see
Response Processing in Section 5.5.11).

•• Conducted Improving Operational Efficiency
technical evaluation project:
ºº Expanding the use of iCADE system to support the 2020 Census.
•• Findings: iCADE has the capability to be
the paper capture solution for the 2020
Census.
•• Multiple studies on the use of USPS tracing:
ºº 2010 Census Paper: Optimizing Integrated
Technologies and Multimode Response to
achieve a Dynamic Census, February 29, 2012.

Scanned images are sent forward for further
processing using the iCADE system where OMR
and OCR are performed. Data fields with low
confidence OMR and OCR results are sent to the
KFI process. Both data and images are maintained
(data are sent to response processing and images
are archived). Once all data have been received at
Headquarters, the questionnaires can be checked
out to ensure each form has been fully captured.
These forms are then eligible for destruction.

Decisions Made

Research Completed

The following decisions have been made for this
operation:

The following research has been completed for this
operation:
90 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

ºº 2010 Census Assessment: 2010 Census
Postal Tracking Assessment, April 2, 2012.
ºº Cost assessment for the PDC check-in
operation.
•• Findings: USPS tracing data are a costeffective and accurate alternative to a
check-in operation for the 2020 Census.

99 iCADE is the planned paper capture system for
the 2020 Census.
U.S. Census Bureau

99 Paper questionnaires will be mailed to targeted
areas or populations with low Internet usage as
part of the initial contact strategy and to Internet
nonrespondents.
99 All questionnaires are booklets that require
separation.
99 USPS tracing data will be used to identify
questionnaires prior to arrival (no laser sorter
check-in operation).
99 All questionnaires will be scanned by iCADE (no
key from paper).
99 The 2010 Census target quality levels will be
used for OMR (99 percent), OCR (97 percent) and
KFI (99 percent).
99 There will be two paper data capture centers.
Design Issues to Be Resolved
Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:
Question

Expected Date

Which operations will use paper
questionnaires as a contingency in the
event that the Internet Self-Response,
NRFU and other operations cannot be
executed as planned?

October 2016

What other operations have paper data
capture requirements (e.g., UE, Puerto
Rico, and GQ)?

October 2017

Cost and Quality
Investment in PDC is projected to influence (reduce
 or increase ) the 2020 Census overall costs in
the following ways:
ÐÐ Use of an enterprise solution iCADE for paper
data capture.

↔↔The possible use of a Spanish OCR engine on
English fields will have quality implications for
paper data capture.
Risks
In order to make informed decisions regarding
paper capture facilities and equipment, timely
guidance must be provided on the workloads
for questionnaire capture. IF guidance regarding
questionnaire capture workloads is not provided on
time, THEN paper capture facility and equipment
decisions will be negatively impacted.
The size of the final 2020 Census questionnaire
affects the cost of processing paper forms as it
determines the number of form faces that must be
managed. IF the final 2020 Census questionnaires
is in a booklet format, THEN additional equipment
and storage space may be needed to accommodate
the format, adding time, cost, and complexity to
the paper data capture process.
The Census Bureau is considering significant innovations to conduct the 2020 Census. These innovations (e.g., enterprise IT solutions, data collection
via the Internet and mobile devices) are expected
to drastically reduce the need for paper for many
of the operations. IF the innovations being developed to reduce the use of paper for the 2020
Census do not get implemented as planned, THEN
operations may need to be fully or partially paperbased, which will require a more robust solution
than currently planned, resulting at a minimum in
additional cost and schedule delays.
Milestones
Date

Activity

October 2016

Develop paper data capture NRFU plan.

ÐÐ Provision of a low-cost response mode (other
than the Internet) to increase self-response rates.
ÐÐ Use of postal tracing to reduce field operation follow-up workloads for NRFU and UE and
therefore the need for a larger equipment footprint used for a traditional check-in operation.
Impacts of this operation on overall 2020 Census
quality include the following:

Develop paper data capture contingency
planning guidance.
December 2016 Release the PDC DOP.
October 2017

Design other operations that may require
paper data capture.

March–
August 2020

Conduct PDC operation.

Plan to maintain the same quality level as the 2010
Census for OCR, OMR, and KFI.

U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 91

5.5.3 Integrated Partnership and
Communications
Detailed Planning Status:

Underway
DOP Delivered in FY2016

Purpose
The Integrated Partnership and Communications
(IPC) operation communicates the importance of
participating in the 2020 Census to the entire population of the 50 states, the District of Columbia,
and Puerto Rico to:
•• Support Field recruitment efforts for a diverse,
qualified Census workforce.
•• Engage and motivate people to self-respond,
preferably via the Internet.
•• Raise and keep awareness high throughout the
entire 2020 Census to encourage response.
•• Effectively support dissemination of Census data
to stakeholders and the public.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: There have been no major changes
to this operation.
Lessons Learned
Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census
studies and reviews, the following recommendations were made:
•• Integrate Census Bureau subject matter experts
into all phases of the 2020 Census IPC Program.
•• Improve coordination of communications among
the Decennial, Field, and Communications
Directorates and others.
•• Align timing, funding, and design decisions
between the development of the IPC Program Plan
and the Census Bureau’s operational milestones to
effectively support all phases of the 2020 Census.
•• Establish more specific program metrics for
the IPC Program to assist in evaluation and
assessment.
Based on the lessons learned from the 2015
Census Test studies and reviews, the following
recommendations were made:
•• Prioritize minimizing break-offs from the landing page of the online survey instrument.

92 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

•• Create tailored, customizable, and changeable
landing pages in the online survey instrument
for each audience that also captures the “look
and feel” of advertisements.
•• Use digital advertisements to push decennial
census response and raise awareness.
•• Use digital advertisements and communications and the Internet specifically to reach and
increase response from young, single, mobiles.
•• Perform additional research and testing to determine the appropriate balance between advertisements for a general audience and hard-to-survey
audiences.
•• Integrate the “look and feel” of mail materials with other communications including
advertisements.
•• Perform additional research to test which
communication channels and messages most
increase awareness.
•• Perform additional research to test the use
of messages targeted to specific audiences
via addressable media outlets, such as digital
advertising.
Opportunities to Innovate
Opportunities to innovate include the following:
•• Microtargeted messages and placement for
digital advertising, especially for hard-to-count
populations.
•• Advertising and partnership campaign adjusted
based on respondent performance.
•• Texting and emailing to motivate self-response.
•• Expanded predictive modeling to determine the
propensity to respond.
•• Expanded use of social media to encourage
response.
•• Localized advertising to encourage response.
Description of Operation
Inspiring every household in the country to complete the census is an enormous, increasingly complex, and unparalleled challenge. With an increasingly diverse population and a drop in public
participation, an effective communications strategy
is critical to the success of the census.
The IPC Program must reach every household in the
nation, delivering the right messages to the right
U.S. Census Bureau

audiences at the right time. It must allocate messages and resources efficiently, ensuring consistent
messaging, as well as look and feel, across all public-facing materials across communication efforts as
well as operations.
An IPC Program contractor will be engaged to support the 2020 Census Program from recruitment
through data dissemination. At a minimum, the
Program will offer the following components:
•• Partnership, including both regional and national
efforts.
•• Advertising, using print, radio, digital, television, and out-of-home.
•• Social media, to include blogs, Facebook,
Twitter, and etc.
•• Statistics in Schools.
•• Rapid Response.
•• Earned media.
•• Thank you campaign.
•• Public relations.
Together these eight major components of the
IPC operation will communicate the importance
of participating in the 2020 Census to the entire
population.
Research Completed
The following research has been completed for this
operation:

•• The 2015 Census Test of Digital Advertising and
Other Communications
ºº Measured the effects of digital advertising
and communications techniques on increasing self-response rates. The test assessed
various levels and types of digital advertising (e.g., social media ads, keyword search
ads, and display ads), as well as the use of
recorded influencer phone calls on increasing
self-response.
ºº Simulated a decennial census environment
through traditional advertising (e.g., television, radio, and print ads) and included
a partnership program for outreach and
information dissemination through the entire
Designated Market Area.
•• Findings: Results from this test show
considerable promise for the use of digital
and targeted digital advertising as a primary means to increase awareness about
the 2020 Census, motivate respondents
and connect them directly to the online
response instruments, and to reach
hard-to-survey populations. Finally, the
influencer phone calls were less successful
at encouraging response, and attempting
to use prominent local figures to deliver
the messages had no affect either. Overall,
partnership activities were successful.
•• Findings: 2015 Census Test of Advertising
and Partnerships Report due December
2016.

ºº Promote “Notify Me,” allowing individuals to
provide contact information to receive future
email and text message notifications when it
is time to participate in the test.

Decisions Made

ºº Measured the effects of different mailing
contact strategies including mail that encouraged potential respondents to preregister for
reminder emails or texts and a postcard sent
to residents who had yet to submit a form.

99 The 2020 Census will use partnerships to communicate the importance of the 2020 Census to
the U.S. population and encourage self-response.

•• Findings: “Notify Me” is not a successful
contact strategy as designed and tested
with a very low percentage of mail panel
responding.
•• Findings: 2015 Optimizing Self-Response
Test Report due December 2016.

U.S. Census Bureau

The following decisions have been made for this
operation:

99 The 2020 Census will use digital advertising and
social media targeting.
99 The 2020 Census will use texting and emailing
to motivate self-response.
99 The 2020 Census will use traditional advertising
methods, including the use of local advertising.

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 93

99 An online portal will be developed that will allow
for posting and downloading materials, providing online fulfillment, and sharing experiences.
99 IPC Internet kiosks will be made available in
public spaces for respondents to complete their
Census questionnaire online.
Design Issues to Be Resolved
Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:
Question

Expected Date

What are the components and
materials required for implementing
the Integrated Partnership and
Communication (IPC) operation?

March 2017

What is the approach for audience and
market segmentation models?

April 2017

What metrics will be used to evaluate
the success of the IPC operation as
well as each individual component?
Microtargeted digital advertising?
Automated telephone messaging by
local influencers? Providing donated
thank you incentives to respondents?
Social media? Email?

April 2017

When and how will the CQA as a
response mode be communicated to
the public?

April 2017

the IPC operation is unable to leverage new communication channels to encourage the public to
complete the 2020 Census, THEN messages may
not get to some segments of the population, resulting in lower self-response rates.
Milestones
Date

Activity

August 2016 Award the IPC contract.
September
2016

Release the IPC DOP.

October
2016

Kick off the IPC contract.

October
2016

Release the 2020 Census Community
Partnership and Engagement Program Plan.

May 2017

Release the Integrated Partnership and
Communication Plan.

June 2017

Start the 2020 Census Partnership program.

5.5.4 Internet Self-Response
Detailed Planning Status:

Underway

Purpose

Cost and Quality
Investment in IPC is projected to influence (reduce
 or increase ) the 2020 Census overall costs in
the following ways:
ÐÐ A campaign aimed at promoting the Internet as
the primary response option.
Impacts of this operation on overall 2020 Census
quality include the following:
ÏÏ Increase in overall self-response rates.
ÏÏ Potential increase in self-response from traditional hard-to-count populations.
ÏÏ Ability to adjust advertising using real-time
metrics.
Risks
The IPC operation may not be able to use newly
emerged communication channels as it may be too
late to incorporate these new technologies. In addition, internal policies may not be flexible enough
to accommodate new communication channels. IF
94 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

The Internet Self-Response (ISR) operation performs the following functions:
•• Maximize online response to the 2020 Census
via contact strategies and improved access for
respondents.
•• Collect response data via the Internet to reduce
paper and NRFU.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: There have been no major changes
to this operation.
Lessons Learned
Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census
studies and reviews, the following recommendations were made:
•• Determine optimal contact strategies for eliciting responses to the 2020 Census for Internet
and response modes.
•• Optimize the instrument for mobile devices
to provide for better user experiences and to
improve overall response rates.

U.S. Census Bureau

•• Determine if a bilingual initial or replacement
questionnaire in bilingual selected tracts is
beneficial.
Opportunities to Innovate
Opportunities to innovate include the following:
•• Internet Data Capture:
ºº Real-time edits.
ºº Ability to capture unlimited household size
entries.
ºº Multiaccess methods across different technologies (e.g., computers, smart phones,
tablets).
ºº Online questionnaires available in multiple
languages.
•• Mail contact strategy tailored to demographic or
geographic area, designed to encourage Internet
self-response and tied to the messaging from
the Integrated Partnership and Communication
operation.
Description of Operation
Two significant pieces of the program reside in
this operation: Internet Self-Response and Contact
Strategies.
Internet Self-Response
The Census Bureau estimates that 47 percent of
U.S. households in mailout areas will respond via
the Internet. High Internet response is critical for
cost savings and major efforts are underway to
minimize the amount of self-response via telephone, paper questionnaire, and in-person visits.
Internet response was not available in previous
decennial censuses and therefore represents a substantial innovation for the enterprise. The Census
Bureau recognizes that the Internet response option
is not feasible or acceptable to the entire population. Therefore, alternate modes will be provided
for respondents to complete their 2020 Census
such as the paper methods used in the past.
Planning and development activities to support
self-response have focused on two primary areas:
optimizing the respondent experience and maximizing data quality. Each is discussed below.
Ensuring a positive experience for users is one way
to facilitate high rates of Internet self-response.
The overall experience includes factors such as
U.S. Census Bureau

usability, convenience, speed, and the general
“look and feel” of a Web site. To meet this broad
range of expectations, respondents will be offered
multiple avenues to complete their census online.
The questionnaire Web site will be optimized for
use on mobile devices. This provides a higher
level of convenience as well as ensures the broadest access possible to those without traditional
Internet service.
Internet questionnaire screens must be easy
to complete and responses must be processed
quickly to eliminate wait time between screens.
Additionally, all systems developed to support
Internet Self-Response must have the capacity to
handle the anticipated response loads and provide
security protections for Title 13 data.
The option to respond online must be available to
those without personal Internet access. Through
the Census Bureau’s planned partnership and other
community-level efforts, free-standing or mobile
devices will be available for use by the public, and
assistance will be provided to those who cannot
complete the form themselves. Additional information on the Census Bureau’s IPC Campaign is
described in section 5.5.3.
Similarly, language needs must be addressed. The
Census questionnaire will be available for Internet
completion in English, Spanish and other languages
as determined by the prevalence of the need.
Additional information on the Language Services
program is described in section 5.3.4.
Internet Self-Response should also lead to
improvement in overall data quality. The Internet
self-response application will include preprogrammed edit checks to identify user error prior
to submission. Real-time or post hoc respondent
validation checks are also possible with Internet
respondents.
To further improve data quality, assistance will be
available to respondents who are having difficulty
completing their 2020 Census online through
CQA agents who will facilitate successful submissions of questionnaires and reduce the number of
incoming telephone calls for assistance. Additional
guidance will be available in static form on the
Census Bureau or 2020 Census Web site, including step-by-step guides and Frequently Asked
Questions for completing the Census.

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 95

Contact Strategies

Research Completed

All attempts by the Census Bureau to make direct
contact with individual households are referred to
as “contact strategies.” These are complementary
but distinct from the community-level outreach
described under the IPC operation. Types of contact
strategies include invitation letters, postcards, and
questionnaires mailed to households.

The following research has been completed for this
operation:

Each type or mode of contact may be used for
multiple purposes: advance notification of upcoming contact, invitation to participate in the 2020
Census, reminder prompting to nonresponders,
or to complete the questionnaire in an alternative
mode.
Prior to the 2010 Census, research yielded distinct attitudinal segments or messaging mindsets.
Research was also conducted and continues to
be refined with cluster analysis of mail return
rates from the 2010 Census and the ACS with
demographic, housing, and economic variables to
understand and plan for response propensities.
A primary objective of the 2020 Census is for a
majority of respondents to complete their Census
questionnaire online. Communication of this objective to individual households is the purpose of the
Census Bureau’s contact strategies. The Census
Bureau is looking to develop a contact approach
that produces an “actionable” response on the part
of the respondent.
One approach termed “Internet push” has been
developed to encourage respondents to use the
Internet. Currently this model includes the mailing
of a letter inviting respondents to complete the
questionnaire online, two follow-up reminders, and
if necessary, a mailed hard-copy questionnaire. All
correspondence will contain a telephone number
for respondents to call to complete the questionnaire over the telephone.
This approach, however, may not be appropriate
for all respondent types, and the Census Bureau is
actively working to understand the optimal contact
strategies for different segments of the population; the Census Bureau is exploring variations on
the timing, mode, and frequency of contacts on
response. Research is underway to understand
whether these nontraditional methods of contact
are acceptable and produce the intended results.

96 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

•• ACS Internet Self-Response Research.
ºº Findings:
•• People living in areas with lower Internet
usage and accessibility require paper or
telephone questionnaire assistance or
both.
•• Certain messaging strategies are more
effective in motivating self-response.
•• 2012 National Census Test tested contact strategy and Internet option.
ºº Findings:
•• Initial contact to invite participation,
followed by two reminder prompts as
needed, and subsequent mailing of a paper
questionnaire was a promising strategy
(Internet push).
•• Advance letter was not shown to improve
response rates.
•• Telephone assistance needed for respondents without Internet access.
•• 2014 Census Test tested “Notify Me” mailed invitation, contact strategies, and Internet option.
ºº Findings:
•• Neither email nor automated voice messages showed a significant impact on
response rates.
•• Low participation rate for “Notify Me” component, but high questionnaire completion
rate among those who preregistered.
•• The 2015 Optimizing Self-Response Test offered
an Internet response option, including real-time
non-ID processing, and again tested the “Notify
Me” option, along with advertising and partnerships support.
ºº Findings:
•• The total response rate was 47.5 percent,
and the Internet response rate was 33.4
percent.
•• An additional 35,249 Internet responses
from housing units not selected in mail
panels as a result of advertising and promotional efforts.

U.S. Census Bureau

•• “Notify Me” again had low participation.
•• A new postcard panel, designed to test
how housing units not originally included
in the sample would respond to an invitation after being exposed to advertising,
generated response of approximately 8
percent.
•• 2015 National Content Test.
ºº Findings:
•• The total self-response rate was 51.9 percent, and the Internet response rate was
35.6 percent.
•• Adding a fifth mailing, a reminder sent
after the paper questionnaire, significantly
increased response rates.
•• Sending the first reminder sooner by a
few days prompted quick responses, thus
reducing the size of the third mailing.
•• In low responses areas, the “choice” strategy of sending a paper questionnaire in
the first mailing, is effective.
•• Providing the letters in English and
Spanish, rather than just English with a
Spanish sentence, elicits more Spanish
language responses.
•• Small-scale opt-in email testing experimented
with email messaging, including subject lines,
timing of delivery, and look and feel.
ºº Findings:
•• A text-based email out-performed graphical emails.
•• Short email subject lines that include the
“10-minute” burden and the “U.S. Census
Bureau” name seem to perform better than
other subject lines, especially those including the word “Help” as the first word in the
subject line.
•• Longer email content with “Dear Resident”
and signature of the Director email outperformed a shorter email invitation without
the greeting and signature.
•• Response rates did not differ by link type
(whether the full Uniform Resource Locator
(URL) or “Click here”) with this population.
•• The time of day the email is sent did
not appear to have a big impact on the
response rate.
U.S. Census Bureau

•• Respondents prefer a mailed invitation,
including a link to respond over all other
options.
Decisions Made
The following decisions have been made for this
operation:
Internet Self-Response:
99 An Internet self-response option will be provided
for the 2020 Census.
99 Invitation letters and mailed materials will
encourage people to respond using a unique
Census identifier; however, the 2020 Census
will allow people to respond without a unique
Census ID.
99 The Census Bureau will offer Internet questionnaires in a small number of languages other
than English and Spanish, including those
requiring non-Roman characters. The languages
selected will be based on national prevalence
rates of low-English proficiency households and
the available technology.
99 The Census Bureau will not provide a mobile
application for Internet Self-Response.
Contact Strategy:
99 An advance letter will not be used; the first
letter will be an Internet push letter inviting
response to the Census to most of the housing
units. We will provide a paper questionnaire
(including bilingual forms) for populations
where Internet access and usage prompts us to
offer Internet Choice (questionnaire and Internet
invitation) and for whom language assistance
optimizes self-response.
99 The 2020 Census will offer alternative response
options to respondents without Internet access.
99 Messaging will be coordinated with the IPC
Campaign.
99 A formal “Notify Me” option will not be offered.
99 Respondents will receive direct contacts inviting
their participation in the Census. Contacts may
include some of all of the following: postcard
mailings, letter mailings, emails, text messages,
prerecorded telephone messages, questionnaire
mailings, and in-person visits by an enumerator.
99 Respondents more likely to respond online
will receive the “Push” mailing strategy, where
2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 97

they will receive invitations to respond online.
Those who do not respond online will receive
reminders to respond, and a paper questionnaire
before Non-Response Followup (NRFU) begins.
Respondents least likely to respond online (as
determined by modeling response likelihood,
using ACS data in the planning database tool
and FCC Internet connectivity data), will receive
the “Choice” mailing strategy. The Choice
strategy consists of receiving an invitation to
respond online, but with a paper questionnaire
in the first mailing. Respondents will then
receive reminders to respond either online or via
the questionnaire they received earlier. Those
who do not respond will receive another paper
questionnaire before NRFU begins. Anyone that
does not either respond online or with a paper
return will be sent a final reminder to respond
before NRFU begins.
99 The Census Bureau will not use USPS barcode
scanning technology to optimize the respondent
access to Internet.
99 The Census Bureau looked into the benefits and
risk associated with using contact frame and will
not be using it to reach respondents via email
and text message.

Question

Expected Date

What is the printing and mailing
October 2016
workload as part of the Optimizing SelfResponse contact strategy and NRFU
Operation?
In what languages will Internet selfresponse be available?

September 2017

What type of Internet form design will
October 2017
facilitate high quality self-response data
collection in GQ?
What are the response rate projections
for all self-response modes?

October 2017

What is the timing for the various
mailings?

October 2018

Cost and Quality
Investment in ISR is projected to influence (reduce
 or increase ) the 2020 Census overall costs in
the following ways:
ÐÐ Reduced amount of self-response via paper
questionnaire
ÐÐ Increased self-response, which will decrease the
NRFU workload.
In addition:

Other Self-Response:

ÏÏ Internet Self-Response is expected to increase
the workload for CQA.

99 Text messaging will not be used as a data collection mode.

Impacts of this operation on overall 2020 Census
quality include the following:

99 Housing units from whom an Internet questionnaire is not received will be mailed a paper
questionnaire.

ÏÏ Increase in overall self-response rates.
ÏÏ Real-time edits to respondent data.

Design Issues to Be Resolved

ÏÏ More complete self-response for large
households.

Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:

ÏÏ Potential increase in self-response from traditionally hard-to-count populations.
Risks
Major concerns for the ISR operation are covered by
the 2020 Census Program risks listed in Chapter 6.

98 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

U.S. Census Bureau

•• Involve NPC throughout the life cycle of the
2020 Census Non-ID Process.

Milestones
Date

Activity

January 2016

Decide on the use of mobile applications as a
self-response mode.

March 2016

Begin the 2016 Census Test.

September
2016

Release the IIP.

December
2016

Release the ISR DOP.

Opportunities to innovate include the following:

March 2017

Begin the 2017 Census Test.

•• Public can respond anytime, anywhere without a
unique Census ID.

March 2020

Begin 2020 Census Internet Self-Response
data collection.

September
2020

End 2020 Census Internet Self-Response
data collection.

5.5.5 Non-ID Processing
Detailed Planning Status:

Underway
DOP Delivered in FY 2016

Purpose
The Non-ID Processing (NID) operation is focused
on making it easy for people to respond anytime,
anywhere to increase self-response rates. The
operation accomplishes this by:
•• Providing response options that do not require a
unique Census ID.
•• Maximizing real-time matching of non-ID respondent addresses to the Census living quarters
address inventory.
•• Accurately assigning nonmatching addresses to
census blocks.
•• Conducting validation of all non-ID responses.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: There have been no major changes
to this operation.
Lessons Learned
Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census
studies and reviews, the following recommendations were made:
•• The automated and manual non-ID processes
should be planned and developed in parallel,
rather than sequentially, as was done when preparing for the 2010 Census NID operation.

U.S. Census Bureau

•• The delivery of addresses from non-ID processing that require independent verification should
occur on a flow basis during self-response and
NRFU rather than at the end of these operations.
Opportunities to Innovate

•• Mechanism to increase self-response from traditionally hard-to-count populations.
•• Real-time matching and geocoding of responses.
•• Use of administrative records and third-party
data to validate non-ID responses.
•• Use of administrative records and third-party
data to validate and augment respondent-provided address data.
Description of Operation
During the self-response phase, the NID operation
will allow respondents to complete a questionnaire
without a Census identification code (non-ID).
By collecting the address from the respondent
and then matching it real-time to the MAF/TIGER
System, the Census Bureau will attempt to get the
ID and confirm the geographic information with the
respondent. The address collection interface facilitates obtaining complete and accurate data from a
non-ID response.
Key capabilities of non-ID are:
•• Address standardization and a feedback loop
with the respondent to confirm the address data
they provide.
•• Automated address matching during the
response.
•• Automated address geocoding during the
response.
•• Respondent address geocoding real time via a
map interface.
•• Response validation; both during the response,
as well as via back-end processing.
•• For non-ID cases not matched in real time, use
of administrative records and third-party data to
supplement respondent-provided address data,

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 99

followed by an additional address matching
attempt.
•• Manual matching and geocoding when automated Non-ID Processing has not determined an
acceptable match or geocode.
Research Completed
The following research has been completed for this
operation:
•• 2013 National Census Contact Test:
ºº Findings: The use of administrative records
and third-party data was effective in enhancing non-ID addresses to allow for a match to
the MAF/TIGER System.
•• 2014 Census Test on NID.
ºº Findings:
•• The address collection interface in the
Internet instrument yielded a much greater
proportion of higher quality address data
from non-ID responses than in 2010.
•• Use of administrative records and thirdparty data matching improved the overall
address matching rate.
•• There was no significant benefit to applying the administrative record matching
process to all non-ID responses. Therefore,
the use of administrative records and
third-party data matching should follow an
initial matching attempt using the MAF/
TIGER System.
•• 2015 Optimizing Self-Response Test
ºº Findings:
•• When a non-ID respondent address
matches to a record in the Census address
inventory, rules can be applied for accepting the geocode or subjecting it to further
verification. These rules can account for
the source of the geocode, whether or not
coordinates were collected in the field for
the address location.

100 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

•• Respondents geocoded accurately only
about one third of the time. However,
before making a recommendation on the
use of the map interface during self-response, results from 2015 testing will
be compared with those from the 2016
Census Test.
•• Use of administrative records and thirdparty data continued to result in an
increase in the match rate for non-ID cases
compared to the Census living quarters
address inventory during automated
processing.
Decisions Made
The following decisions have been made for this
operation:
99 The 2020 Census will offer a non-ID option for
self-response and telephone agent-assisted
response.
99 The 2020 Census Internet self-response instrument and the CQA interviewer instrument will
utilize capabilities and requirements for the
address collection interface as specified for
non-ID responses, as used in the 2014 and 2015
Census Tests.
99 The non-ID work flow will include real-time
matching and geocoding, post real-time processing that will utilize administrative records
and third-party data, and manual (interactive)
matching and geocoding.
99 Non-ID respondents can help confirm the
location of their living quarters descriptive
information (i.e., cross streets) provided to the
NID operation. This method, which has been
tested during the 2015 and 2016 Census Tests,
will enable the Census Bureau to associate the
respondents address with the correct block for
tabulation purposes.

U.S. Census Bureau

Design Issues to Be Resolved
Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:
Question

Expected Date

How will administrative records and
third-party data be used to improve
matching in Non-ID Processing?

September 2017

At what proportion did office resolution
confirm the existence and location of
nonmatching addresses?

September 2017

What will be the estimated workload of
post-capture Non-ID Processing?

September 2017

What methodology will be used to
conduct Non-ID response validation?

September 2018

If the proportion of Non-ID responses
September 2018
increases in the 2020 Census, can
the Census Bureau accommodate the
corresponding increase in workload for
downstream operations such as manual
matching and geocoding or address
verification (office and field-based)?
What is the expected scale of the 2020
Census Non-ID workload?

September 2018

Cost and Quality
Investment in NID is projected to influence (reduce
 or increase ) the 2020 Census overall costs in
the following ways:

and is geocoded can be considered a complete
response. In other words, it would not be necessary to manually match/geocode the respondent
address or to send an enumerator to the housing unit if the non-ID case can be fully resolved
during the response. IF the IT infrastructure is not
adequately scaled to support real-time Non-ID
Processing, THEN fewer addresses from non-ID
responses will be matched in real time, negatively
affecting the speed at which cases are removed
from additional automated processing, the clerical
processing workload, or NRFU workload.
The option of submitting a non-ID response via the
Internet instrument could potentially lead to an
increase in fraudulent responses, as well as new
methods of committing fraud. A final solution that
will implement identity validation during self-response has not been determined. IF the 2020
Census Program is unable to determine prior to the
2020 Census an acceptable means of conducting
fraud detection using multiple methods to identify
suspect patterns of returns, THEN an individual or
group may be able to use Internet self-response,
including non-ID Internet self-response, as a means
of defrauding the Census Bureau and calling into
question the legitimacy of the 2020 Census results.
Milestones

ÐÐ Increased self-response rates.

Date

Activity

ÐÐ Improved coverage through self-response.

April 2015

Impacts of this operation on overall 2020 Census
quality include the following:

Deliver real-time address matching and
geocoding for the 2015 OSR Test.

April 2016

Deliver real-time processing in the cloud,
manual matching and geocoding at the NPC,
and utilize multiple respondent validation
methods for the 2016 Census Test.

September
2016

Release the NID DOP.

April 2017

Deliver all components for the 2017 Census
Test, and include functionality for Puerto Rico
addresses.

April 2018

Conduct the 2018 End-To-End Census Test.

April–
July 2020

Conduct the 2020 Census Non-ID
Processing.

August 2021

Complete the 2020 Census Non-ID
Assessment Report.

ÏÏ May increase self-response from traditionally
hard-to-count populations.
ÏÏ May increase overall self-response rates, which
can contribute to higher quality for the overall
census.
Risks
The primary reason for conducting real-time
Non-ID Processing is to provide respondents the
opportunity during the response to resolve non-ID
cases that are not matched or not geocoded or
both. Any non-ID case that is successfully matched
to a valid record in the census address inventory

U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 101

5.5.6 Update Enumerate
Detailed Planning Status:

Opportunities to Innovate
Underway

Purpose
The Update Enumerate (UE) operation is designated to occur in geographic areas where the
Census Bureau has identified unique challenges.
UE combines listing methodologies with enumeration methodologies. In the UE operation, field staff
update the address and feature data and enumerate respondents in person. The primary functions
of UE include:

Opportunities to innovate include the following:
•• Combine enumeration methodologies from the
2010 Update Leave, Remote Update/Enumerate,
and UE Operations.
•• Use a single device for both listing and
enumeration.
•• Use a reengineered field management structure
and approach to managing fieldwork, including a new field office structure and new staff
positions.

•• Determining the type and address characteristics for each living quarter.

•• Link the Notice of Visit form to the address
with a unique ID that the respondent can use to
self-respond and that will link the enumeration
data to the updated address data collected in
the field.

•• Enumerating respondents at housing units
within the UE geographic areas for which a 2020
Census response was not received.

•• Reuse processes and procedures from In-Field
Address Canvassing and NRFU to the extent
feasible.

UE can occur in geographic areas that:

•• Encourage those housing units in a UE area with
a mailable address toward self-response before
the operation begins to reduce the enumeration
workload for UE.

•• Verifying and updating the address list and feature data for tabulation of the 2020 Census.

•• Do not have city-style addresses.
•• Do not receive mail through city-style
addresses.
•• Receive mail at post office boxes.
•• Have been affected by natural disasters.
•• Have high concentrations of seasonally vacant
housing.
•• Have unique challenges associated with
accessibility.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release:
The components and the business process model
for the UE Operation are defined and are presented in the Description of Operations section:
UE Production, UE Followup, UE Listing Quality
Control, and UE Reinterview.
Lessons Learned
Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census
studies and reviews, the following recommendations were made:
•• Determine ways to closely track the fieldwork
during the Update and Leave field operation in
order to monitor any falsification or procedural
issues that may arise during production.
102 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

In addition, the following operational design
assumptions result in an innovative UE operation:
•• UE utilizes a reengineered field management
structure.
•• UE utilizes integrated automated listing and
enumeration tools and systems to facilitate data
collection.
•• UE collects coordinates (latitude and longitude)
for each structure with a living quarter.
•• UE utilizes automated systems and logistics to
monitor cost and progress.
•• UE areas will not have an In-Field Address
Canvassing.
•• The Notice of Visit form will provide both the
2020 Census Uniform Resource Locator (URL)
and the phone number for CQA.
•• UE will employ real-time or near-real time data
processing.
•• UE will be able to assign a final housing unit
status of vacant.

U.S. Census Bureau

Description of Operation
The UE operation is comprised of the following
components: UE Production, UE Followup, UE
Listing Quality Control (QC), and UE Reinterview.
In addition to the field operation, the current plans
for the UE operation include mailing out an invitation package to housing units with a mailable
address to generate self-response before the operation begins. If a household self-responds, the UE
enumerator will not enumerate at that house while
listing the geographic area. This is a cost savings
to UE since the enumerator will not have to spend
time collecting the enumeration at self-responding
households.
UE Production
The UE enumerators visit every place where people
could live or stay, comparing what they see on
the ground to the existing census address list and
either verifying or correcting the address and location information. Much like Address Canvassing,
enumerators classify each living quarter (LQ)
as a housing unit (HU), a Group Quarter (GQ), a
Transitory Location (TL), or as nonresidential. If
the LQ is not classified as a HU, it is either reassigned into the appropriate enumeration operation or removed from the list for enumeration. At
each housing unit that has not yet responded, an
enumerator will attempt to conduct an interview.
If someone answers the door, the enumerator will
provide a Confidentiality Notice and ask about the
address in order to verify or update the information, as appropriate. The enumerator will then ask
if there are any additional LQs in the structure or
on the property and collect or update that information, as appropriate. The enumerator will then
interview the respondent using the questionnaire
on the mobile device, which securely collects and
transmits respondent data. If no one is home at a
nonresponding housing unit, the enumerator will
leave a Notice of Visit inviting a respondent for
each household to go online with an ID to complete
the 2020 Census Questionnaire. The Notice of Visit
will also include the phone number for CQA if the
respondent has any questions or would prefer to
provide a response on the phone.
UE Followup
The UE operation will have a UE Followup component for those households that were not enumerated on the first visit and that have not responded
U.S. Census Bureau

via the Internet or CQA. UE Followup will use the
same contact strategies, business rules, and enumeration application as NRFU.
UE Listing Quality Control
The UE operation will use the same methodology
for the Listing Quality Control that the Address
Canvassing Operation uses. The QC enumerator
compares what is on the ground to the work of
the production enumerator and verifies or updates
the listing work as necessary. If the production
enumerator’s work passes, then the QC assignment
is complete. If the production enumerator’s work
does not pass, then the QC enumerator begins a
full canvass of the production enumerator’s work.
Research being done on alternate QC designs for
Address Canvassing also applies to the listing
portion of UE. Alternatives include using external
sources to confirm data collected in the field and
collecting and analyzing paradata to help develop
models, which can focus the QC sample on known
problem areas.
UE Reinterview
A sample of cases enumerated via UE or UE
Followup will be selected for UE Reinterview. This
helps pinpoint possible cases of enumerator falsification. The Reinterview can take place in the field
or on the telephone.
The UE operation will take full advantage of all of
the innovations associated with the reengineered
field operations, including the use of a handheld
device to collect the data, automated training,
automated administrative processes, the operational control system, and streamlined staffing
structures.
Research Completed
Research that directly supports this operation has
not yet been completed.
Decisions Made
The following decisions have been made for this
operation:
99 GQ will not be enumerated during the UE
Operation. Those cases will be flagged and enumerated via the GQ Operation.
99 Transitory Locations will not be enumerated
during the UE Operation. Those cases will be
2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 103

flagged and enumerated via the Enumeration at
Transitory Location Operation.
99 When the enumerator adds a new address, the
system will create an ID in real-time. This will be
tested in the 2017 Census Test.
99 The UE Operation will attempt to contact respondents via mail. This will be tested in the 2017
Census Test.
99 The UE Operation will use the same Notice of
Visit contact as the NRFU Operation.
99 The UE Operation will use the same business
rules implemented for the Address Canvassing
Operation. For example, UE will add, delete,
verify, move, etc.
99 UE enumerators will leave a Notice of Visit
form. The Notice of Visit form does not ask the
household to update their address online. If the
respondent goes online to respond, he or she
will follow the business process established
for Self Response which allows the respondent
to provide their address. This address may be
updated from what the Census Bureau has on
record.
99 UE address and map updating will occur during
daylight hours. If during daylight hours, a
respondent is home and willing to respond, the
enumerator will capture that data at that time. If
no one is home, the follow up enumeration will
occur using the same business rules established
for NRFU.
99 UE enumerators will conduct all follow up enumeration; follow up enumeration will not be the
responsibility of the NRFU Operation. Neither the
UE Operation nor the NRFU Operation will make
outbound phone calls.
Design Issues to Be Resolved
Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:

104 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

Question

Expected Date

Are there any geographic areas where
a paper questionnaire should be left
in lieu of the notice of visit form (i.e.
Puerto Rico)?

January 2017

Can administrative records and thirdparty data be used to validate units in
Quality Control?

October 2017

What is the cost/benefit to only visiting
the living quarter once?

October 2017

How will Remote Alaska be handled?

December 2017

How are Census IDs from the address
list associated with or linked to the
notice of visit forms?

December 2017

Cost and Quality
Investment in UE is projected to have minimal influence on the overall cost and quality of the 2020
Census.
Risks
By this point in the decade, planning for all major
2020 Census operations should be underway.
Budget reductions in FY 2013 through FY 2016
delayed planning for UE. IF planning efforts are not
initiated at the start of FY 2017, THEN there may
not be sufficient time to implement innovations
related to the UE operation.
Limited resources are in place to design and
develop the necessary systems and instrument(s)
to conduct both production and Quality Control
(QC) listing in the field for UE. IF priorities are not
set appropriately for QC design and development,
THEN a statistically sound QC program may not be
implemented and an outgoing level of quality for
data cannot be ensured for UE.
It is essential that in-field production assignments
for UE be closed out on time at the end of each
assignment period so that the schedule stays on
course with minimal delays in completing the
MAF update process and all other future activities.
IF there are significant delays in completing the
in-field production assignments for UE, THEN this
will affect the start date of the MAF update process, which may contribute to substantial delays
in future schedule activities and downstream
activities.

U.S. Census Bureau

•• Integrate GQ frame validation and enumeration
data collection methodologies.

Milestones
Date

Activity

April 2016

Begin detailed planning of UE.

March 2017

Send Self-Response Mail Packages in UE
Areas for the 2017 Census Test.

March 2017

Send Self-Response Mail Packages in UE
Areas for the 2017 Puerto Rico Census Test.

March 2017

Release the UE DOP.

April 2017

Begin UE for 2017 Census Test.

April 2017

Begin UE for 2017 Puerto Rico Census Test.

March 2018

Send Self-Response Mail Packages in UE
Areas for the 2018 End-to-End Census Test.

April 2018

Begin UE for the 2018 End-to-End Census
Test.

January 2020

Begin UE for the 2020 Census in Remote
Alaska.

March 2020

Send Self-Response Mail Packages in UE
Areas for 2020 Census.

April 2020

Begin UE for 2020 Census.

July 2020

End UE for 2020 Census.

•• Research and test automation to collect GQ
data to reduce data capture and processing
time, which incorporates tracking and linkage
capabilities (eliminates manual transcription of
administrative records and third-party data onto
paper instrument).
•• Explore ways to reduce the number of visits
on military installations. (Research and test the
enumeration of military personnel through the
use of administrative records and third-party
data.)
•• Maintain consistent answer categories
regarding the question on having a usual
home elsewhere on all census data collection
instruments, the Individual Census Report, and
Shipboard Census Report.
•• Conduct outreach to professional organizations
such as education, health care, and tribal organizations as part of the 2020 Census GQ planning.
Opportunities to Innovate

5.5.7 Group Quarters
Detailed Planning Status:

Opportunities to innovate include the following:
Recently Begun

Purpose
The 2020 Census Group Quarters (GQ) Operation
will:
•• Enumerate people living or staying in group
quarters.
•• Provide an opportunity for people experiencing
homelessness and receiving service at a service-based location, such as a soup kitchen, to
be counted in the Census.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1. Operational
Plan Release: There have been no major changes
to this operation.
Lessons Learned
Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census
studies and reviews, the following recommendations were made:

U.S. Census Bureau

•• Use of an integrated approach, including
administrative records and third-party data and
Address Canvassing (In-Field and In-Office) to
improve the GQ frame.
•• Use of multiple modes of enumeration, including
electronic exchange of client-level data, and
automated field listing and enumeration.
•• Integration of GQ Validation and enumeration in
all field operations that allow for accurate classification of living quarters.
•• Staff could train in multiple operations for
increased efficiency.
•• Use of both in-office and in-field methods for
enumeration.
Description of Operation
Before the enumeration at group quarters can
occur, the Census Bureau must validate the GQ
frame. This validation activity is part of the 2020
Census Address Canvassing operation.

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 105

The 2020 Census GQ operation consists of these
components:
•• GQ Advance Contact (known as GQ
Advance Visit in the 2010 Census): For the
2020 Census, this will primarily be an in-office
function (although some in-field work may be
required in limited areas), which includes:
ºº Verifying the group quarters’ name, address
information, contact name, and phone
number.
ºº Collecting an expected Census Day population count, addressing concerns related to
privacy, confidentiality and security.
ºº Inquiring whether the group quarters has a
data file that can be transmitted electronically
to the Census Bureau for enumeration.
ºº Obtaining an agreed-upon date and time to
conduct the enumeration.
•• In-Office Advance Contact will be performed
by leveraging available Census Bureau systems
to communicate with the GQ point of contact to
gather required information for GQ enumeration.
•• GQ Enumeration: This includes enumeration
of all group quarters through in-field visits or
administrative records data.
The Residence Rule and Residence Situations for
the 2020 Census will determine what is considered
a group quarters. The following types of enumeration will be included in the GQ Enumeration
operation:
•• General GQ Enumeration: Enumeration of
people living in group living arrangements in
living quarters that are owned or managed by
an entity or organization providing housing or
services for the residents (e.g., college residence
halls, residential treatment centers, skilled
nursing facilities, group homes, correctional
facilities, workers’ dormitories, and domestic
violence shelters).

Planned data collection modes for GQ
Enumeration include:
ºº In-Office GQ Enumeration mode:
•• Electronic Administrative Records (eADRec)
enumeration:

Electronic Administrative Records (eADRec) involves the electronic transfer of
client-level data from systems maintained

106 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

by group quarters administrators that will
be transferred to a standardized Census
Bureau system that will accept electronically transmitted data in multiple formats.
ºº In-Field GQ Enumeration modes include:
•• In-Person interview using the automated
mobile device.
•• Self-Enumeration—In the 2010 Census,
this method was offered only to medical
facilities and correctional facilities. A GQ
administrator or point of contact is sworn
in and trained to collect the response data
from the GQ residents/clients.
•• Drop Off/Pick up paper questionnaires.
•• Pick up paper administrative records and
transcribe data into the automated mobile
device.
•• Service-Based Enumeration: Enumeration of
people experiencing homelessness or utilizing
transitional shelters, soup kitchens, regularly
scheduled mobile food vans, and targeted nonsheltered outdoor locations.
ºº The planned modes of data collection for
Service-Based Enumeration are:
•• In-Person interview using automated
mobile device.
•• Pick-up Paper administrative records to be
used as a supplemental tool to ensure data
collection of the entire facility on Census
Day—Transitional shelters only.
•• Military GQ Enumeration: Enumeration of
people living in group quarters on military
installations, defined as a fenced, secured area
used for military purposes and the enumeration
of people residing on U.S. military ships at the
time of the 2020 Census. A military vessel is
defined as a United States Navy or United States
Coast Guard vessel assigned to a homeport in
the United States.
ºº The mode of enumeration for Military
Quarters is through Electronic Administrative
Records (eADRec).
•• Maritime Vessel (Shipboard) Enumeration:
Enumeration of people living on U.S. maritime
vessels in operation at the time of the 2020
Census. A maritime vessel is defined as a United
States Flag vessel that is a commercial vessel
registered and operated under the laws of the
U.S. Census Bureau

United States, owned and operated by United
States citizens, and used in the commercial trade
of the United States.
ºº Data collection will be managed by staff at
the NPC using 2010 Census procedures.
Research Completed
•• Issued Federal Register Notice on May 20, 2015,
requesting public comment on the 2020 Census
Residence Rule and Residence Situations. Expect
to publish the final 2020 Census Residence Rule
and Residence Situations in late 2016.
•• Ongoing partnership with the Department of
Defense’s Defense Manpower Data Center to
discuss 2020 Census goals and objectives for
enumerating personnel living on stateside military installations.
ºº Findings:
•• Census Bureau received a sample of
administrative records from one military
installation.
•• Defense Manpower Data Center identified
military installations for administrative
record testing.
•• Conducted a small-scale data collection test at
several service-based locations (soup kitchens,
regularly scheduled mobile food van stops, and
transitional shelters).
ºº Findings:
•• An automated data collection device successfully replicated the content of the GQ
paper questionnaire.
•• There are minimal challenges associated
with the use of an automated instrument
for enumerating persons at service-based
locations (soup kitchens, regularly
scheduled mobile food vans, transitional
shelters), which are equal to the challenges of the use of a paper data collection
instrument.

U.S. Census Bureau

Decisions Made
The following decisions have been made for this
operation:
99 The GQ frame development and validation will
be integrated with the Address Canvassing
operation.
99 The GQ operation will allow an individual to
self-respond and self-identify the group quarters
type for the facility in which he or she resides.
99 An electronic data exchange of group quarters
and client-level administrative records or thirdparty data will be part of the GQ methodology.
99 The Census Bureau will design a standardized
system that will accept electronically transmitted administrative records or third-party data in
multiple formats.
99 During field enumeration operations, newly
identified group quarters will be validated and
enumerated using a combination of in-office and
in-field methodologies.
99 Current goals for various types of group quarters include the following:
ºº Enumerate 75 to 80 percent of people
residing in group quarters through in-office
methodologies (i.e., electronic transfer of
administrative records or third-party data and
Internet self-response) and the remainder in
the field.
ºº Enumerate military group quarters using
administrative records and third-party data.
99 Administrative records will be pursued for transitory shelters. All other service based locations;
such as soup kitchens and mobile food vans,
will be done without administrative records.
Design Issues to Be Resolved
Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 107

Question

Expected Date

How will varying administrative
records or third-party data formats be
processed?

December 2017

What is the impact on quality and
productivity of field staff if they
are required to conduct multiple
operations?

December 2017

What varying computing capabilities
and multiple formats for administrative
records and third-party data can be
integrated into a standardized Census
Bureau system for processing?

August 2018

What is the optimal linkage
methodology to ensure self-response
data are linked to the correct group
quarters?

December 2018

How much in-field GQ Enumeration will
be required?

December 2018

How will quality assurance be handled? December 2018
How will field reengineering concepts
be used for integrating group quarters
with multiple housing unit enumeration
operations (e.g., NRFU and UE)?

integrated housing unit and group quarters functionality, THEN field staff may have to visit certain
group quarters more than once.
The person record of the group quarters must link
to the address of the group quarters. IF each person record cannot be linked to the group quarters
at the same address, THEN the count of people
residing at each group quarters would not be
accurate.
The GQ operation is not in scope for the 2017
Census test or the 2017 Puerto Rico Census Test.
IF the first opportunity to test the GQ operation
(systems, processes, procedures, and staffing) is
in the 2018 End-to-End Census Test, THEN there
may not be an opportunity to include any changes
or improvements for the GQ operation in the 2020
Census.
Milestones

December 2018

Cost and Quality
Investment in GQ is projected to have minimal
influence on the overall cost of the 2020 Census.

Date

Activity

December
2015

Conduct Electronic Transfer Capability
Survey—Stateside.

June 2015

Conduct Electronic Transfer Capability
Survey—Puerto Rico.

February 2017 Conduct the 2017 Census Test (Conduct GQ
Advance Contact).

Impacts of this operation on overall 2020 Census
quality include the following:

April 2017

ÏÏ Electronic transfer of administrative records and
third-party data reduces transcription errors.

Conduct the 2017 Electronic Administrative
Records Data Transfer Census Test—Puerto
Rico.

June 2017

Release the GQ DOP.

ÏÏ Administrative records and third-party data
may provide more comprehensive demographic
information.
ÐÐ Administrative records and third-party data may
provide less current data than data received
through in-field Enumeration.
Risks
The enterprise data collection device for listing and
enumerating housing units should also be capable
of listing and enumerating group quarters. IF the
enterprise data collection device does not have

108 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

February 2018 Conduct the 2018 End-to-End Census Test.
February 2020 Conduct GQ Advance Contact.
March 2020

Conduct Service-Based Enumeration.

April 2020

Conduct GQ Enumeration.

5.5.8 Enumeration at Transitory
Locations
Detailed Planning Status:

Recently Begun

Detailed planning for this operation has recently
begun. The narrative that follows represents
the Census Bureau’s early planning efforts on

U.S. Census Bureau

the operational design for the 2020 Census
Enumeration at Transitory Locations operation.

•• Use in-person enumeration as the primary mode
of data collection.

Purpose

•• Have Quality Assurance infused throughout
workload management and data collection.

The Enumeration at Transitory Locations (ETL) operation enumerates individuals in occupied units at
transitory locations who do not have a Usual Home
Elsewhere. Transitory locations include recreational
vehicle parks, campgrounds, racetracks, circuses,
carnivals, marinas, hotels, and motels.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1. Operational
Plan Release: There have been no major changes
to this operation.
Lessons Learned
Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census,
the following recommendations were made:
•• Automate the questionnaire and all related
sources of paradata used to record contact
details during an interview.
•• Learn more about the living situations of people
counted in the ETL operation.
•• Clearly define and identify transitory locations,
as well as procedures on how to list transitory
units appropriately in operations that feed the
ETL universe.
•• Conduct intercensal testing of the ETL
population.
Opportunities to Innovate
Opportunities to innovate include the following:
•• Use of reengineered field management structure,
staff positions, and approach to managing
fieldwork.
•• Use of automation and technology for data
collection.
Description of Operation
The goal of the ETL operation is the enumeration of
individuals in occupied units at transitory locations
who do not have a Usual Home Elsewhere.
The ETL operation will:
•• Use automation to facilitate data collection and
streamline operations.
•• Use reengineered staffing and management of
the field operation.

U.S. Census Bureau

Research Completed
The 2020 ETL operation will implement a similar
design and methodologies as those used in the
2010 Census. While enhancements will be pursued, the planning and design of the 2020 Census
ETL operation is about the operational implementation rather than research into new or different
methodologies.
Assumptions Made
Based on planning of other operations, the following assumptions have been made:
•• The 2020 Census ETL operation will include a
Quality Assurance function.
•• The 2020 Census ETL operation will utilize
automated tools and systems to facilitate the
enumeration of transitory locations.
•• The 2020 Census ETL operation will leverage
the approaches to field office structure and management of field assignments resulting from the
Field Reengineering efforts.
•• The 2020 Census ETL operation will use adaptive design (routing and dynamic case management) to allocate resources efficiently.
Although no specific decisions for the design of
the 2020 Census ETL Program have been made, the
operational design of the ETL operation is dependent on understanding the operational design and
timing for other operations, such as ADC, GQ, UE,
LUCA, and Field Infrastructure (e.g., the number of
field offices, staffing structures).
Decisions Made
The following decisions have been made for this
operation:
99 The goals and objectives of the ETL field operation is to enumerate individuals at occupied
units at transitory locations who do not have
a usual home elsewhere. The ETL operation is
designed to enumerate eligible populations that
inhabit transitory locations such as Recreational
Vehicle (RV) parks, campgrounds, hotels, motels

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 109

(including those at military sites), marinas, racetracks, circuses, and carnivals.
99 We will follow an approach similar to the
approaches used in NRFU, UE, etc. which will
involve a comprehensive approach to quality.
All cases will be subject to edits within the automated data collection application, will be subject
to various checks within the Operational Control
System, and, as needed, the chance at being
selected for a “reinterview” involving telephone
re-contact followed by in-person recontact for
those cases not successfully reached by phone,
etc.
Design Issues to Be Resolved
Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:
Question

Expected Date

What does success for the 2020
September 2017
Census ETL Program look like and how
is it measured?
Given other aspects of the 2020
Census design, what is the operational
timing for the 2020 Census ETL
Program?

September 2017

What is the impact of self-response via
the Internet and Non-ID processing on
ETL?

September 2017

Are there administrative records or
third-party data sources that could be
used for the frame development by
type?

September 2017

before the 2020 Census, THEN the operation may
encounter unforeseen operational issues, potentially increasing cost and reducing data quality.
A complete and accurate address frame is required
to implement an efficient ETL operation. The ETL
frame development and validation will be integrated with the Address Canvassing operation
along with efforts from ongoing geographic update
operations and other 2020 Census operations. IF
the address frame does not contain all the instances
of the types of living quarters covered by the ETL
operation, THEN some living quarters may not get
enumerated by the ETL operation and the people
living at those transitory locations may not get
included in the final 2020 Census population count.
Milestones
Date

Activity

October 2015

Initiate the 2020 Census ETL Integrated
Product Team.

September
2018

Release the ETL DOP.

March 2020

Begin 2020 Census ETL enumeration.

April 2020

Conclude 2020 Census ETL enumeration.

April 2021

Issue 2020 Census ETL operational
assessment.

5.5.9 Census Questionnaire Assistance
Detailed Planning Status:

Underway
DOP Delivered in FY 2016

Cost and Quality

Purpose

Investment in ETL is projected to have minimal
influence on the overall cost and quality of the
2020 Census.

The Census Questionnaire Assistance (CQA) operation has two primary functions:

Risks
The risks below are specific to this operation:
One of the lessons learned from the 2010 Census
ETL operation is the importance of field testing. IF
field testing of the ETL operation is not conducted

110 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

•• Provide questionnaire assistance for respondents by answering questions about specific
items on the Census form or other frequently
asked questions about the Census;
ºº Tier 1: Provide telephone assistance via an
Interactive Voice Response (IVR).

U.S. Census Bureau

ºº Tier 2: Provide real-time assistance over the
telephone or other electronic channels (Web
chat and email) via CQA agents.
•• Provide an option for respondents to complete a
Census interview over the telephone.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: There have been no major changes
to this operation.

•• IVR capability for the 2020 Census Jobs Line.
•• Outbound telephone calls made by agents to
respondents for quality follow-up.
•• Outbound telephone calls made by agents
to respondents for NRFU quality assurance
component.
•• Outbound telephone calls made by agents
to respondents for UE quality assurance
component.

Lessons Learned

Scope and Timing of 2020 Census CQA includes:

Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census
studies and reviews, the following recommendations were made:

•• Multichannel contact center with a central command functionality.

•• CQA operation requires very specialized contact
center personnel throughout the development
and operational cycles.

ºº Voice channel (telephone via IVR and agents).
ºº Nonvoice channels (Web chat and email).
•• Staffing of contact center.

•• CQA operations needs to be synchronized with
the IPC Program.

•• Training of contact center staff.

•• Agent desktop applications need to have the
ability to easily update FAQ content so that all
relevant information is in one place.

•• Assistance for individuals with special needs
(visual or hearing impaired).

Opportunities to Innovate

•• Assistance for individuals receiving experimental forms.

Opportunities to innovate include the following:
•• Integration with the Internet questionnaire
development team to deliver assistance via Web
chat and email.
•• Speech and text analytics to determine what is
trending in real-time across CQA.
Description of Operation
The main objectives of CQA are to assist Internet
and paper self-respondents by answering questions
coming from telephone, Web chat, and email. CQA
will provide support for:
•• A toll-free telephone number for respondents
to call for help completing the 2020 Census
questionnaire.

•• Assistance in multiple languages.

•• Assistance for individuals in Puerto Rico.

•• Utilization of an IVR system.
•• Integration with the Internet questionnaire
development team to deliver assistance.
•• Integration with the hiring and recruiting team
to assist with 2020 Census Jobs Line.
•• Determination of expected call volumes
(inbound and outbound), Web chat, and email—
including timing of peak volumes and a rollover
plan for unanticipated volumes.
Research Completed
The following research has been completed for this
operation:
•• Market Research:

•• IVR to resolve basic questions from respondents
calling on the telephone to limit the need for
additional agents.

ºº Conducted vendor meetings to benchmark
contact center industry and identify best
practices.

•• Respondent questions on the Internet via realtime Web chat functionality.

ºº Released a Request for Information to identify
industry capabilities.

•• Callers (inbound) to complete the 2020 Census
questionnaire over the telephone (with and without a unique Census ID).

U.S. Census Bureau

•• Findings: Most large contact center providers have the capacity to provide all services
identified in the Request for Information.
Small businesses do not have the facilities,
2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 111

staff, or experience to meet the full range
of services and size required by CQA.
However, the Census Bureau will specify
small business goals within the Request
for Proposal and allow the contact center
service providers and system integrators
to determine how to best meet the small
business goals.
•• Call Workload Modeling:
ºº Looked at call data from the 2010 Census,
the ACS, the 2014 Census Test, and the 2015
Optimizing Self-Response Census Test to
assist in forecasting workload for the 2020
Census.
•• Findings: The mailing strategy of pushing
respondents to answer the Census on the
Internet has created an increase in assistance calls, specifically related to lack of
Internet access and technical issues.
Decisions Made
The following decisions have been made for this
operation:
99 CQA will use an acquisition with the Request for
Proposal release date of November 2015.
99 CQA will complete interviews by telephone.
99 CQA will provide respondent assistance relating
to specific items on the questionnaire.
99 CQA will handle calls relating to general questions on 2020 Census processes and frequently
asked questions.
99 CQA telephone number will be provided in
selected materials.
99 The contractor will be required to provide an
adaptive infrastructure (e.g., staffing levels
and communications capabilities) that can be
adjusted on demand as data collection occurs.
99 The contract will include options to provide flexibility to support future operations or capabilities that have not yet been fully defined or both.
99 The 2020 Census CQA will utilize and integrate
nonvoice channels, such as Web chat, email, and
texting to support in-bound questions.
99 The Request for Proposal will require the vendor
to develop the application that the agents use
to respond to calls, including the data collection
instrument to complete the questionnaire.

112 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

99 CQA will not mail paper questionnaires to people who call to request them, but they will refer
people to materials on the Web site or collect the
interview.
99 CQA agents will be available to provide assistance and complete 2020 Census questionnaires
for all specified languages.
99 CQA will assist individuals with special needs
(visual- or hearing-impaired).
99 CQA will not collect 2020 Census questionnaire
information via text, email text, or Web chat.
99 CQA will not accept emails with PDF attachments, faxes, or Internet uploads of completed
2020 Census questionnaire. Respondents will be
directed to mail their responses.
99 CQA will not support centralized outbound
calling for NRFU production cases. (NRFU
quality assurance component is still under
consideration.)
99 CQA will include the ability to offer respondents
an option to check on the status of the questionnaire they submitted.
99 CQA will handle calls about technical issues
(e.g., Internet problems, lack of access to
Internet) by offering to complete the 2020
Census questionnaire instead of offering technical assistance to respondents.
99 The CQA will offer a Web chat functionality to
provide assistance to respondents while completing their questionnaire on line.
99 The Request for Proposal (RFP) included preliminary service level and quality standards.
99 The language requirements were specified in the
RFP.
99 The Census CQA will not utilize an IVR as a
data collection mode to complete questionnaire
items.
99 The CQA will include a Quality Outbound
Operation.
99 Mailing Strategy models were included in the
RFP released in January 2016. The mailing strategy will be iteratively revised and refined on an
ongoing basis, as needed.
99 CQA is handling centralized outbound calling for
NRFU and UE quality assurance component.

U.S. Census Bureau

Design Issues to Be Resolved
Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:
Question

Expected Date

When do CQA operations start and
end? By component?

January 2018

Will CQA take calls to support field
enumerators who are having language
issues?

January 2018

Cost and Quality
Investment in CQA is projected to influence (reduce
 or increase ) the 2020 Census overall costs in
the following ways:
ÐÐ Increased self-response rates.
ÐÐ Decreased NRFU workload.

or takes longer than anticipated for multiple IT
systems, THEN the contractor may miss the opportunity to participate in the 2017 Census Test and
2017 Puerto Rico Census Test.
The staff working on the CQA operation must
undergo a security background check before they
can be brought on board. IF the Census Bureau
is unable to process a large number of contact
center agents and support staff through security
background checks in a short time frame for CQA,
THEN the contractor may not be appropriately
staffed to handle the anticipated workload.
Milestones
Program milestone dates for 2020 Census CQA will
be determined after contract award. For acquisition
purposes, the major milestone dates are:

ÐÐ Reduced quantities of paper questionnaires.

Date

Activity

In addition:

January 2016

ÏÏ Internet Self-Response is expected to increase
the workload for CQA.

Release Request for Proposal for 2020 CQA
acquisition.

July 2016

Award contract for 2020 CQA.

September
2016

Release the CQA DOP.

April 2017

Participate in 2017 Census Test.

April 2018

Participate in 2018 End-to-End Census Test.

January–
September
2020

Conduct CQA operations.

September
2020-June
2021

Conduct CQA Post Production Analysis and
Close-out

Impacts of this operation on overall 2020 Census
quality include the following:
ÏÏ Increase in overall self-response rates.
ÏÏ Real-time edits to respondent data.
Risks
Adequate staffing is required in order to properly
manage the contract supporting the CQA operation. IF adequate program management staff is not
in place for the CQA operation for the 2018 Endto-End Census Test, THEN the contract may not be
managed properly due to the scope and complexity
of the operation.
Adequate funding for the contract supporting the
CQA operation is needed to ensure the contractor
can work continuously. IF adequate funding for
CQA is not allocated in a timely fashion, THEN the
contractor may need to stop work, which would
lead to delays in the delivery schedule.
In order to participate in the 2017 Census Test
and 2017 Puerto Rico Census Test, the systems
involved need to be approved by security oversight
and receive certification. The contractors working
on the CQA operation cannot be brought on board
until the approval has been given. IF approval and
certification from security oversight is not received
U.S. Census Bureau

5.5.10 Nonresponse Followup
Detailed Planning Status:

Underway

Purpose
The Nonresponse Followup (NRFU) Operation
serves two purposes:
•• Determines housing unit status for nonresponding addresses that do not self-respond to the
2020 Census.
•• Enumerates households that are determined to
have a housing unit status of occupied.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: There have been no major changes
to this operation.

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 113

Lessons Learned

Description of Operation

Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census
studies and reviews, the following recommendations were made:

For the 2020 Census, the NRFU operation will be
dramatically different from the NRFU operation
conducted in the 2010 Census. The Census Bureau
will implement a NRFU operational design that utilizes a combination of the following:

•• Traditional enumeration and management of
workload, as implemented in the 2010 Census,
is no longer viable in an era of an ever-evolving,
demographically, culturally, and technologically
diverse nation.
•• Reduce the maximum number of NRFU contact
attempts.
•• Include the use of a handheld enumeration
device that would have the ability to track when
an enumerator opens a case.
•• Explore additional sources and criteria for
inferring occupancy status and population size
of housing units from administrative records or
third-party data.
•• Avoid having to add late-planned operations and
procedures.
Opportunities to Innovate
Opportunities to innovate include the following:
•• Use of administrative records and third-party
data to remove vacant housing units from the
NRFU workload.
•• Use of administrative records and third-party
data to remove occupied housing units from the
NRFU workload.
•• Use of a manager interview for multi-unit dwellings to determine vacancy status of units prior
to the first NRFU visit.
•• Use of a reengineered field management structure and approach to managing fieldwork.
•• Use of a variable contact strategy and stopping
rules to control the number of attempts made
for each address.
•• Assignment and route optimization.
•• Automated training for field staff.
•• Automation of the field data collection.
•• Automation of administrative functions, such as
recruiting, onboarding, and payroll.
•• Use of Device-as-a-Service as an alternative to
traditional procurement methods for smartphone and tablet devices used in the operation.
•• Reengineered quality assurance approach.
114 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

•• Administrative records and third-party data
usage to reduce the workload.
•• Reengineering of staffing and management of
field operations.
•• Use of adaptive design methodologies.
•• Automation to facilitate data collection.
After giving the population an opportunity to
self-respond to the 2020 Census, addresses
for which the Census Bureau did not receive a
self-response will form the initial universe of
addresses for the NRFU operation. Prior to any
fieldwork, vacant addresses will be removed from
the NRFU workload using administrative records.
Undeliverable-As-Addressed information from
the USPS will provide the primary administrative
records source for the identification of vacant units.
Addresses will also be removed from the workload, throughout the course of the NRFU operation,
as self-responses are received. Addresses may
be added to the NRFU workload from other census operations, such as addresses from the LUCA
Appeals process and addresses received through
the Non-ID Processing operation that require a
field visit for final resolution.
After an initial attempt to contact nonresponding
housing units, the NRFU workload will be further reduced through the removal of cases where
administrative records and third-party data are
available and usable to enumerate the occupied
housing units. The NRFU operational design will
use administrative records and third-party data to
enumerate occupied housing units where it makes
sense and is feasible. Examples of sources of
administrative records and third-party data used to
enumerate occupied housing units include Internal
Revenue Service Individual Tax Returns, Internal
Revenue Service Information Returns, and Center
for Medicare and Medicaid Statistics Medicare
Enrollment Database.
Addresses removed from the NRFU workload as
either vacant or occupied will receive a final mailing that encourages occupants to self-respond to
U.S. Census Bureau

the 2020 Census. After each phase of the administrative records modeling, those addresses that
are determined to be vacant will immediately be
mailed a final letter encouraging self-response; for
those addresses that are determined to be occupied and are incomplete after one personal visit
attempt, a final letter encouraging self-response
will be mailed within seven days.
The NRFU operation will use a reengineered field
management structure and approach to managing
fieldwork, which includes:
•• Using a new field structure, including field staff
roles and staffing ratios.
•• Using automation for:
ºº Optimization of daily enumerator
assignments.
ºº Near real-time operations information for
decision making.
ºº Enhanced operational control system.
ºº Payroll submission and approval processing.
ºº Training of enumerators and managers.
On a daily basis, based on an enumerator’s home
location, work availability, the availability and location of NRFU workload, and other operational business rules, the enumerator will be assigned NRFU
addresses. The enumerator will work the addresses
in a prescribed order to determine the Census Day
status of the housing unit, and when occupied,
enumerate the housing unit. Enumerators will
use an automated data collection application on a
handheld device to record the Census Day housing
unit status and to enumerate occupied housing
units. If a respondent is not at home, a notice of
visit will be left directing the respondent to the
Internet or CQA to self-respond.
Unlike the 2010 Census, the 2020 Census NRFU
operation will use an adaptive design methodology, which includes a variable contact strategy,
decisions about when proxy responses are acceptable, and stopping rules to control the number
of attempts made for each address. The number
of contacts may vary by geographic area. Fewer
attempts will be made in some geographic areas,
whereas more attempts will be made in others with
the goal of achieving a consistent response rate
across all geographic areas (and within geographic
areas for key demographic characteristics).

U.S. Census Bureau

When a number of NRFU addresses share the same
street address, such as an apartment building or
condo unit, the cases will be grouped together
as a multi-unit manager visit. In this interview,
the enumerator will ask the building manager to
identify which units were occupied, vacant, or not
a housing unit on Census Day. Units identified as
vacant or not a housing unit will be enumerated
as such, reducing the number of enumerator visits
and respondent burden.
The 2020 Census NRFU operational design will
infuse quality throughout the workload management and data collection processes. Examples of
aspects of the NRFU operation designed to maintain or improve quality:
•• Use of real-time paradata and editing capabilities will increase accuracy and quality check
data.
•• Use of a Best Time to Contact model in assigning
work will increase the likelihood of finding
respondents at home.
•• Capabilities available through an enhanced operational control system with real-time supervisory
alerts will provide early opportunities to identify
and take corrective action in defined situations.
In addition, the NRFU operation will include a
reinterview component designed to deter and
detect enumerator falsification. The details of this
component are in development and could include a
combination of approaches such as use of paradata
and fieldwork.
Research Completed
The following research has been completed for this
operation:
•• The 2013 Census Test (Philadelphia, PA)
explored methods for using administrative
records and third-party data to reduce the NRFU
workload:
ºº Findings:
•• The Census Bureau was able to remove
approximately 8 percent of vacant units
and 31 percent of occupied units prior to
NRFU using administrative records and
third-party data.
•• The use of administrative records and
third-party data and the implementation
of an adaptive design case management
2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 115

approach have the potential to reduce
costs.
•• The 2014 Census Test (Montgomery County, MD
and Washington, DC) built upon the results of
the 2013 Census Test specific to administrative
records and third-party data usage to reduce the
NRFU workload:
ºº Findings: A high self-response rate of 65.9
percent resulted in a NRFU universe of 46,247
housing units. The Census Bureau was able to
identify approximately 4 percent of the NRFU
cases as vacant and 55 percent of NRFU cases
as occupied based on administrative records
and third-party data.
•• The 2014 Human-in-the-Loop Simulation
Experiment (SIMEX).
ºº Findings:
•• The field management structure can be
streamlined and ratios increased.
•• Messaging and alerts within the operational control system provide real-time and
consistent communication.
•• The enhanced operational control system
or MOJO is intuitive—users were able to
use the system with a small amount of
up-front training.
•• Smart phones were usable by all people—
even those with little technology experience were able to adjust and adapt.
•• The 2015 Census Test (Maricopa County, AZ)
explored the reengineering of the roles, responsibilities, and infrastructure for conducting field
data collection. It also tested the feasibility of
fully utilizing the advantages of planned automation and available real-time data to transform
the efficiency and effectiveness of data collection operations. The test continued to explore
the use of administrative records and third-party
data to reduce the NRFU workload and tested
the technical implementation of a Bring Your
Own Device (BYOD) option.
ºº Findings:
•• A high self-response rate of 54.9 percent
resulted in a NRFU universe of 72,072
housing units. The Census Bureau was
able to identify approximately 12 percent
of the NRFU cases as vacant and 20
percent of NRFU cases as occupied based
116 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

on administrative records and third-party
data.
•• Successfully removed vacant housing units
and enumerated occupied housing units
using administrative records and thirdparty data.
•• A combination of automated online
training and classroom training enabled a
reduction in the overall number of training
hours, compared with the 2010 Census
NRFU operation, from 32 to 18 hours.
•• Management of the field data collection utilizing new roles, responsibilities, and staffing ratios were successfully implemented.
•• Entry of enumerator work availability,
workload optimization, and electronic payroll were effective and efficient.
•• Use of a BYOD option did not generate any
observable concerns from respondents.
Please see decisions made section.
•• The 2016 Census Test (portions of Los Angeles
County, CA, and Harris County, TX) was our
first opportunity to operationally test our new
‘manager visit’ procedures for enumeration of
multiunit structures. We also tested different
supervisor to enumerator staffing ratios, and
incremental improvements and updates to the
field data collection software that guided an
enumerator through the interviews. Finally, this
test allowed us to continue our evaluation of
the use of administrative records modeling to
reduce the NRFU workload, with the new addition of a postcard mailout to any cases removed
from the NRFU workload in this way. Findings
are underway and will be forthcoming.
Decisions Made
The following decisions have been made for this
operation:
99 The NRFU operation will consist of production
and quality assurance components.
99 The NRFU operation will utilize automated tools
and systems for:
ºº Recruiting, onboarding, and training.
ºº Time and attendance and payroll.
ºº Case load management.
ºº Data collection.

U.S. Census Bureau

º Cost and progress monitoring.
9 The NRFU operation will utilize a reengineered
field management and staffing structure.
9 Administrative records and third-party data will
be used to identify vacant units.
9 Administrative records and third-party data will
be used to enumerate nonresponding housing
units, as appropriate.
9 A contact attempt will be made prior to using
administrative records or third-party data for
enumeration of occupied units.
9 A final letter, encouraging self-response, will be
mailed to NRFU cases that are removed from the
workload based on the administrative records
modeling.
9 Telephone contact attempts from a central
location (i.e., CQA) will not be part of the initial
NRFU contact strategy.
9 All administrative records and third-party
data will be used in compliance with data use
agreements.
9 The core set of administrative records and thirdparty data to support the 2020 Census NRFU
operations include the following:
º Internal Revenue Service Individual Tax
Returns.
º Internal Revenue Service Information Returns.
º Center for Medicare and Medicaid Statistics
Medicare Enrollment Database.
º Indian Health Service Patient Database.
º Social Security Number Identification File.
º USPS DSF.
º USPS Undeliverable-As-Addressed Information.
º Targus Federal Consumer File.
º 2010 Census Data.
º ACS Data.
9 Detailed agreements with each data provider for
the core administrative record and third-party
data sources are established. The agreements
document details such as delivery cycles, duration of agreements and renewal cycles, etc. Each
agreement includes text that allows the data
to be used by the Census Bureau for statistical
purposes including activities that support the
Decennial Census Program

U.S. Census Bureau

99 Statistical modeling will be used for determination of housing unit status
99 Decentralized telephone contacts for the purposes of making and keeping appointments will
be incorporated into the NRFU contract strategy.
Decentralized telephone contacts will not be
incorporated as an initial contract strategy
99 Fieldworkers will enumerate adds found during
NRFU. The Census Bureau will not utilize realtime Non ID processing for this process
99 Administrative Records and Third-party data
will be stored and accessed through a repository known as PEARSIS. CAES will access data
in PEARSIS to support administrative records
modeling for the NRFU operation. The DRPS will
provide the response processing capabilities to
identify and ingest administrative records and
third-party data for the purposes of providing
case status (vacants) and census responses
(occupied.)
99 The Census Bureau will build upon the approach
used in the 2016 Census Test involving an
upfront Manager Visit to ascertain the unit
status for nonresponding addresses in the NRFU
workload.
Design Issues to Be Resolved
Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:
Question

Expected Date

To what extent can the Census Bureau September 2016 *
minimize the error associated with use
of administrative records and third-party
data for the removal of vacants and
occupied housing units?
When are proxy responses used in the
NRFU operation?

September 2016

What is the final field management
staffing structure (including staffing
ratios) for the NRFU operation?

September 2016

What is the final approach for the use of September 2016
variable contact strategies and stopping
rules to balance the goal of reducing
the number of attempts against having
consistent response rates across demographic groups and geographic areas?
What does the reengineered NRFU
October 2016
operation require from Paper Data
Capture? Will there be priority capture
requirements for NRFU? Is the universe
cut schedule different?

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 117

Design Issues to Be Resolved—Con.

Cost and Quality

Question

Expected Date

How will any field verification of
unmatched but geocoded Non-ID
response be integrated into the NRFU
operation?

September 2017

Investment in NRFU, which includes the use of
administrative records and third-party data and
reengineered field operations, is projected to influence (reduce  or increase ) the 2020 Census
overall costs in the following ways:

Given potential for infusing quality
throughout the NRFU systems and
procedures, what is the operational
design for the NRFU quality assurance
component?

September 2017

ÐÐ Reducing field workload by:

To what extent and how will vacant
addresses and addresses found to not
exist, discovered during the In-Field
NRFU, be verified?

September 2017

ºº Using administrative records and thirdparty data to reduce the number of contact
attempts.

To what extent and how can a lastresort data collection be implemented
within the controlled environment that
exists with the reengineered workload
optimization and management
capabilities?

September 2017

ºº Using administrative records and third-party
data to enumerate nonresponding housing
units.

What are the business rules for
optimizing case assignments?

September 2017

Given other aspects of the 2020
Census operational design, what is the
operational timing for the 2020 Census
NRFU operation?

September 2017

What are the sources that contribute
to the NRFU universe (e.g., LUCA
Appeals, late DSF adds, nonresponding UE addresses, etc.)?

September 2017

What are the best enumerator
performance indicators?

September 2017

What is the final set of administrative
records and third-party data (including
state-level data sources) that are
necessary to support the 2020 Census
NRFU operation?

September 2018

For each of the final administrative
record and third-party datasets, what is
the allowable use, required timing, and
acquisition approach for the data?

September 2018

ºº Using administrative records and third-party
data to remove vacant living quarters from
the NRFU workload.

ºº Removing self-responses on a near-real-time
basis.
ºº Interviewing managers of multi-unit buildings
to identify and remove vacant units from the
NRFU workload.
ÐÐ Improving productivity of field staff by:
ºº Streamlining staffing structure through the
use of automation.
ºº Automating and optimizing the assignment
process.
ºº Using language information from the planning
database to match enumerator language skills
to neighborhood language needs.
ºº Using administrative records and third-party
data to determine the best time of day for
contact attempts.
ÐÐ Reducing the reinterview workload through a
reengineered quality assurance approach.
ÐÐ Reducing the number of hours devoted to classroom training through the use of online training.

* The 2020 Census Operational Plan is current as of August 31,
2016.

118 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

U.S. Census Bureau

Impacts of this operation on overall 2020 Census
quality include the following:
ÏÏ Use of an improved contact strategy to increase
the likelihood of self-response.
ÏÏ Use of an automated data collection application
for conducting NRFU.
ÏÏ Use of real-time paradata and editing capabilities
to validate and quality check data.
ÏÏ Use of Best Time to Contact model in the assignment optimization to increase the likelihood of
finding respondents at home.
ÏÏ Use of Notice of Visit to push to self-response.
ÏÏ Use of follow-up postcard mailing to push to
self-response in the case of administrative
records and third-party data vacant removal and
occupied removal.
ÐÐ Use of administrative records and third-party
data to remove vacant and occupied housing
units from the NRFU workload may impact housing unit coverage.
ÐÐ Use of administrative records and third-party
data to reduce the number of contact attempts
may decrease the quality of responses.
↔↔Use of new or revised methodologies will
change results in ways not yet determined.
↔↔Use of adaptive design protocol and proxy rules
may impact the quality of response data in ways
not yet determined.
Risks
The risks listed below are specific to this operation:
Many aspects related to the NRFU operational
design and the infrastructure necessary to support

U.S. Census Bureau

it are based on workload assumptions. A key input
to those workload assumptions is the self-response
rate. IF the 2020 Census self-response rate falls
below expectations, THEN the initial NRFU workload will be higher than expected and the infrastructure to support an increased field data collection volume may be insufficient.
The NRFU workload will be impacted by other
operations that are striving to develop and improve
the coverage and quality of the address frame used
for the 2020 Census. IF there is an increase in the
NRFU operational workload due to the results of
the upstream address frame operations, THEN the
expected cost savings from the NRFU operation
may not be realized.
Technical innovations such as assignment optimization are key elements to the operational design
for conducting NRFU. IF any aspect of the planned
technical innovations does not perform as expected,
THEN the operational design for NRFU may fail.
Technical innovations are expected to reduce the
cost of the NRFU operation, but the cost of the
operation can be greatly impacted by economic
conditions beyond the Census Bureau’s control. IF
economic conditions are not favorable at the time
of the 2020 Census, THEN the costs to implement
the NRFU operation may prevent the expected cost
savings from being realized.
The utilization of administrative records and thirdparty data to reduce the NRFU workload is a foundational tenet on which the 2020 Census Program
expects to realize cost savings. IF the Census
Bureau is unable to use administrative records and
third-party data as planned, THEN increased costs
will be incurred to conduct NRFU.

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 119

Milestones
Date

Activity

November 2013

Begin NRFU for 2013 Census Test.

August 2014

Begin NRFU for 2014 Census Test.

November 2014

Conduct 2014 SIMEX.

May 2015

Begin NRFU for the 2015 Census Test.

September 2015

Determine preliminary NRFU Design.

May 2016

Begin NRFU for 2016 Census Test.

September 2016

Determine strategy for use of
administrative records and third-party data
in NRFU.

December 2016

Release the NRFU DOP.

May 2017

Begin NRFU for 2017 Puerto Rico Census
Test.

April 2018

Begin NRFU for 2018 End-to-End Census
Test.

April 2020

Begin NRFU data collection for the 2020
Census.

August 2020

End NRFU data collection for the 2020
Census.

August 2021

Issue operational assessment of the 2020
Census NRFU operation.

5.5.11 Response Processing
Detailed Planning Status:

Underway

Purpose
The Response Processing Operation (RPO) supports
the three major components of the 2020 Census:
predata collection activities, data collection activities, and post data collection activities:
Specifically, the operation supports the following:
•• Create and distribute the initial 2020 Census
enumeration universe of living quarters.
•• Assign the specific enumeration strategy for
each living quarter based on case status and
associated paradata.
•• Create and distribute workload files required for
enumeration operations.
•• Track case enumeration status.
•• Run post data collection processing actions in
preparation for producing the final 2020 Census
results.

Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: Scope of the operation now includes
translation of non-English/Spanish response data
and fraud detection.
Lessons Learned
Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census
studies and reviews, the following recommendations were made:
•• Make response data available as soon as possible to the data review teams in order to facilitate
a more thorough review.
•• Include more staff members from more areas in
the Primary Selection Algorithm determination
process. This will result in broader expertise for
design planning, rather than limiting to a small
team of mathematical statisticians or analysts.
•• Make user testing of the Quality Control
program component part of the schedule for
residual coding, to facilitate development of procedures and training of data coding staff.
Opportunities to Innovate
Opportunities to innovate include the following:
•• Use of enterprise-developed tools to facilitate intelligent business decisions prior to and
during data collection:
ºº Interface with all printing systems for production of paper products.
ºº Serve as the overall integration “manager” of
response data collection, including Internet,
telephone, and paper data capture.
ºº Create models based on established business
rules to determine the appropriate course of
enumeration action for cases (e.g., person
visit, use of administrative records and thirdparty data, or imputation) and assign each
case to the specific mode for data collection.
•• Expanded use of administrative records and
third-party data in post-data collection processing activities to support improved data
coverage.
•• Expand the use of automated technology,
communications monitoring, and improved
computational modeling and data analytic techniques to provide early warnings of potentially
fraudulent returns.

•• Check for invalid or potential fraudulent returns.
120 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

U.S. Census Bureau

Description of Operation
Predata Collection Activities
During predata collection activities, the Response
Processing operation applies criteria to create the
initial 2020 Census enumeration universe, which
includes address and geographic attributes for all
known living quarters within the boundaries of
the United States including Puerto Rico. The initial
enumeration universe is used to support early census operations, such as assigning and managing
specific contact strategies for each living quarter
based on defined criteria.
Data Collection Activities
For data collection activities, the Response
Processing operation starts with receiving and
managing updates to the initial 2020 Census
universe. These updates come from various
address frame update operations including Address
Canvassing, LUCA, and some Geographic Programs
activities. The results from the address updates
establish a revised 2020 Census enumeration
universe. The Response Processing operation uses
this universe to control and track questionnaire
response data. As responses are received, cases
containing a Census ID are designated as received
in the universe. Cases returned without Census
IDs are sent to the Non-ID Processing operation for
matching and geocoding. All cases are returned
to the Response Processing operation and those
that were successfully resolved are removed from
further enumeration follow-up.
For nonresponding cases, the Response Processing
operation supports the NRFU operation by facilitating administrative records modeling techniques to
determine the most effective and efficient enumeration strategy, including removal of vacant and
deleted cases prior to follow-up, provision of a
“best time to contact” recommendation to be used
by the operational control system, and removal
of cases from the workload based on established
“stopping rules” to maximize efficiency in the NRFU
operation.
Additionally, the response processing operation
provides response collection support to UE operations, GQ operations, and ETL operations. In

U.S. Census Bureau

general, the activities include creating and managing the enumeration workloads and follow-up
universes, as well as the enumeration and, as applicable, address listing quality control functions.
Post Data Collection Activities
The RPO supports post-data collection activities by
preparing the data for tabulation. As the data are
received, write-in responses (i.e., hand-written race
and ethnicity responses provided when respondents do not select an option from the questionnaire) are coded for tabulation purposes. Coding
is conducted by both automated and computer-assisted manual processes. In addition, checks
are run to detect potentially fraudulent returns.
Response Processing applies computer-based
person matching software to unduplicate multiple responses for the same person across census
records. Then, a Primary Selection Algorithm is
run to establish the single enumeration record
for a case when multiple responses are received.
Following the Primary Selection Algorithm, count
imputations are applied and missing data resolved
to fix discrepancies between household population
counts and person data. This output is called the
Census Unedited File. The Census Unedited File is
used as a data source for coverage measurement
operations and a final independent count review
operation. Finally, the Census Unedited File is the
source used to produce the apportionment counts
delivered to the President of the United States via
the Data Products and Dissemination operation.
The next steps are to perform preliminary and
complex consistency edits, apply Disclosure
Avoidance techniques, and produce a Microdata
Detail File for delivery to the Data Products and
Dissemination operation and then used for creation
of the P.L. 94-171 Census Redistricting Data File
and dissemination of data to the public. As part
of a final closeout, Response Processing prepares
census response data for delivery by the Archiving
operation to the National Archives and Records
Administration (NARA) for the Title 13 prescribed
72-year secured storage.
Figure 32 summarizes the RPO by component.

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 121

Predata Collection Activities
•

Receive address and
geographical input data for all
known living quarters

•

Apply criteria to create the
initial 2020 Census
enumeration universe

•

Assign the specific contact
strategy for each living
quarters based on defined
criteria

Postdata Collection
Activities

Data Collection Activities
•

Receive updates to the initial
2020 Census Universe

•

Create the 2020 Census selfresponse universe

•

Create and distribute workloads to data collection modes
based on modeling results
or specification criteria

•

Apply data codes to write-in
responses to facilitate data
tabulation

•

Identifying potential fraudulent
returns

•

Resolve potential duplicate
responses

•

Identify the return of record
for housing units with multiple
returns

•

Record response data and
enumeration case status

•

Translate non-English and
non-Spanish responses

•

Repair missing or conflicting
data

•

Deliver response data to
Postdata Collection Activities

•

Provide final census results

Figure 32: Response Processing Operation

Research Completed
The following research has been completed for this
operation:
•• The 2014 Census Test evaluated the interface
between the response processing system and
the matching and geocoding system. In addition,
it tested the data file exchange.
ºº Findings: The tests concluded with no major
system or workload-related issues.
•• The 2015 Optimizing Self-Response Test and the
2015 Census Test included processing of non-ID
cases in real time (during response collection for
Internet and telephone data collection modes).
ºº Findings: The tests concluded with no major
system or workload-related issues.
Decisions Made
The following decisions have been made for this
operation:
99 The RPO will use the enterprise-developed
system solutions (Control and Response Data
System and Multimode Operational Control
System) for universe creation, data collection control and management, and final data
processing.
99 The enterprise-developed Concurrent Analysis
and Estimation System and its modeling output
will use established business rules to determine
the appropriate course of enumeration action for
122 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

cases and assign the case to the specific mode
for data collection to improve efficiency and
reduce cost.
99 Administrative records and third-party data
will be used to improve post-data collection
activities, such as coding and editing, primary
selection algorithm, Invalid Return Detection
(IRD), and imputation.
99 The RPO will comply with Title 13 and Title 26
security requirements.
99 Methodology, processes, and systems have
been defined. Methodology will continue to be
adjusted as operational development, integration, and demand models are refined through
conducting and evaluating results from the 2017
and 2018 field tests.
99 The specific use of administrative records and
third party data in support of reducing the field
workload associated with the NRFU operation is
known and has been effectively utilized during
past census tests. In addition, usage of the
records is known regarding address enhancement to improve matching Non-ID responses
through the asynchronous Non-ID process.
Finally, fraud detection’s (including response
validation) use of administrative records and
third party data has been defined. However,
the Census Bureau will continue to adjust as
integrated operations and demand models are

U.S. Census Bureau

refined throughout the conduct and evaluating
the results from the 2017 and 2018 field tests.
99 Character sets have been defined and will continue to be adjusted as integrated operations,
language options, and data architecture are
refined throughout conducting and evaluating
results from the 2017 and 2018 field tests.
99 Inputs to the response file layout have been
defined and will continue to be adjusted as integrated operations and the data architecture are
refined throughout conducting and evaluating
results from the 2017 and 2018 field tests.
Design Issues to Be Resolved
There are no remaining design issues to be
resolved for this operation.
Cost and Quality
Investment in RPO is projected to influence (reduce
 or increase ) the 2020 Census overall costs
through:
ÐÐ Real-time adjustment of the universe adjusted
based on response status
ÐÐ Use of administrative records and third-party
data (see NRFU).
ÐÐ Flexible, rule-based decisions on most cost-­
effective approach for collecting responses
(expected to reduce in-field workloads).
Impacts of this operation on overall 2020 Census
quality include the following:
ÏÏ Use of administrative records and third-party
data to improve imputation, editing and coding,
primary selection algorithm, and fraud detection
processing.

as part of the 2018 End-to-End Census Test, THEN
there may not be time before the 2020 Census to
validate any solution not in scope for the 2018
End-to-End Census Test.
After the 2018 End-to-End Census Test, time is
required for final operational decisions concerning
content and forms design, self-response contact
strategies, enumeration strategies, and coverage
improvement operations. The final operational
designs will affect response processing for the
2020 Census. IF final operational decisions are not
complete by the end of September 2018, THEN
the Response Processing operation may not be
able to support the other 2020 Census operations
successfully.
Milestones
Date

Activity

March 2015

Establish the development, test,
beta, staging, and production
environments for Response
Processing.

December 2015

Go live to support the 2016
Census Test universe creation and
response tracking.

December 2016

Go live for the 2017 Census Test.

January 2017

Deliver revised 2020 Census
business requirements for RPO.

March 2017

Release the RPO DOP.

September 2018

Deliver final 2020 Census business
requirements for RPO.

October 2019

Create the initial 2020 Census
enumeration universe for early
census operations.

January 2020

Create the 2020 Census
enumeration universe.

Risks

Begin the 2020 Census RPO.

The 2018 End-to-End Census Test is the greatest
opportunity to test the enterprise and non-enterprise system solutions prior to the 2020 Census.
The test allows the system capabilities and system
interfaces to be validated for operational readiness.
IF all systems being utilized for response processing in the 2020 Census are not tested and accepted

U.S. Census Bureau

November 2020

Deliver the 2020 Census Unedited
File for apportionment counts.

February 2021

Deliver the 2020 Census Microdata
Detail File for Tabulation.

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 123

5.5.12 Federally Affiliated Americans
Count Overseas
Detailed Planning Status:

Recently Begun

Detailed planning for this operation has recently
begun. The narrative that follows represents the
Census Bureau’s early planning efforts on the
operational design for the Federally Affiliated
Americans Count Overseas.
Purpose
The Federally Affiliated Americans Count
Overseas (FAA) operation obtains counts by home
state of U.S. military and federal civilian employees stationed or deployed overseas and their
dependents living with them.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: There have been no major changes
to this operation.
Lessons Learned
Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census
studies and reviews, the following recommendations were made:
•• Explore new technology, including an Internet
option for collecting data on the federally affiliated population living overseas.
•• Automate this operation fully.
•• Consider new data fields to identify the residency of the military personnel living overseas.
•• Maintain a strong relationship with the
Department of Defense.
Opportunities to Innovate
Create a secure interactive database for
Department of Defense to submit their enumeration counts.
Description of Operation
For the 2020 Census, overseas is defined as
anywhere outside the 50 states and the District of

124 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

Columbia. Counts are obtained from administrative
records and are used to allocate the federally affiliated population living overseas.
The FAA operation performs the following activities:
•• Compile address list of federal agencies with
personnel overseas.
•• Prepare letters and data collection materials.
•• Request the name of a contact person for
each agency.
•• Obtain agencies’ overseas counts by state.
•• Submit final counts in the apportionment counts.
Assumptions Made
Based on the design from previous censuses, the
following assumptions have been made:
•• Continuously engage and communicate the
Census Bureau’s methodology and procedures
with the Defense Manpower Data Center.
•• Establish an online site for communicating with
participating federal agencies and for collecting responses on a form that can be completed
electronically.
•• Use data from the Department of Defense
Personnel System to enumerate the military and
their dependents and Department of Defense
federal civilian employees overseas in the following order: Home of Record, Legal Residence,
and Last Duty Station.
•• Use the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting
System as an additional source of data to enumerate the military and their dependents and
Department of Defense federal civilian employees overseas.
Early Findings:
•• U.S. Air Force is again using the Home of Record
field for its military personnel, based on a meeting with the Defense Manpower Data Center in
March 2014 to discuss any suggested updates
from the 2010 Census enumeration.

U.S. Census Bureau

Decisions Made

Milestones

No decisions have been finalized for this operation.

Date

Activity

February
2014

Establish contact with Defense Manpower
Data Center.

February
2017

Review final guidelines for counting federally
affiliated Americans living overseas.

March 2018

Obtain Office of Management and Budget
clearance.

May 2018–
February
2020

Design, prepare, send contact letters, count
letters and instructions, and follow-up count
request.

September
2018

Release the FAA DOP.

Cost and Quality

September
2019

Investment in Federally Affiliated Americans Count
Overseas is projected to have minimal influence on
the overall cost and quality of the 2020 Census.

Obtain from the Office of Personnel
Management the most recent Federal Civilian
Workforce Statistics publication.

July 2020

Prepare and review overseas counts.

August 2020

Deliver overseas counts to include in
apportionment count.

Design Issues to Be Resolved
Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:
Question

Expected Date

What other data sources are available
for tabulating the overseas counts?

September 2017

How will the Census Bureau use
electronic transmissions to obtain the
data?

September 2017

Risks
The Federally Affiliated Americans Count Overseas
operation plans to use an external-facing portal
as an automated collection system for the 2020
Census overseas count. IF the external-facing portal does not meet the Census Bureau’s IT security
requirements and cannot be used for the automated collection system, THEN collection methods
used for the 2010 Census may have to be reused
for the 2020 Census overseas count.
The Federally Affiliated Americans Count Overseas
operation plans to use an external-­facing portal
as an automated collection system for the 2020
Census overseas count. IF there is a cybersecurity
incident with the external-facing portal, THEN the
information collected for the Federally Affiliated
Americans Count Overseas operation may be
compromised.

5.6 PUBLISH DATA
Response Processing delivers the edited data to the
Data Products and Dissemination operation to
prepare the final 2020 Census data products. This
operation delivers:
•• Input to the Count Review operation to ensure
the counts appear correct.
•• Apportionment counts to the President of the
United States.
•• State counts to the Redistricting Data
Program for dissemination to the state legislatures so state governments can define the
geographic boundaries for Congressional and
legislative districts.
•• Final counts to the Count Question
Resolution operation so challenges to Census
Counts can be resolved.
•• All response data to the Archiving operation for
public release 72 years after the census.

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2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 125

5.6.1 Data Products and Dissemination
Detailed Planning Status:

Not Started

Detailed planning for this operation has not
started. The narrative that follows represents the
Census Bureau’s preliminary thoughts as of the
release of this document.
Purpose
The Data Products and Dissemination (DPD) operation performs three primary functions:
•• Prepare and deliver the 2020 Census apportionment data for the President of the United States
to provide to Congress by December 31, 2020.
•• Tabulate 2020 Census data products for use by
the states for redistricting.

•• Leveraging new solutions to allow data users
greater flexibility in using 2020 Census data for
research, analytics, application development,
etc. The focus is on user-centric capabilities and
dissemination functionality.
Description of Operation
The DPD operation takes the processed response
data, tabulates, goes through the necessary
Disclosure Avoidance procedures, and prepares it
for delivery to the President, the states, and the
public.
A set of enterprise-level systems will provide
access to data via an interactive Web site, allowing users to access prepackaged data products,
application programming interfaces, and metadata
documentation. These include:

•• Tabulate and disseminate 2020 Census data for
use by the public.

•• CEDSCI dissemination platform.

Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: There have been no major changes
to this operation.

•• Customer Experience Management System.

Lessons Learned
Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census
studies and reviews, the following recommendations were made:
•• Provide an approach to restructure and enhance
data dissemination activities across the entire
agency.
•• Improve customer satisfaction.
•• Expand the Census Bureau’s audience and customer base.
Opportunities to Innovate
Opportunities to innovate include the following:
•• Use of enterprise solutions for preparing the
2020 Census data products and disseminating
the information to the public.
•• Enhancements to existing tabulation systems to
support 2020 Census tabulation as an enterprise
solution.

126 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

•• Tabulation System.

Research Completed
Because detailed planning for this operation has
not yet started, research that directly supports this
operation has not yet been completed.
Assumptions Made
Based on planning of other operations, the following assumptions have been made:
•• The apportionment for the 2020 Census will be
calculated using the method of equal proportions, according to the provisions of Title 2,
U.S. Code. Congress decides the method used
to calculate the apportionment. This method
has been used in every census since the 1940
census.
•• This operation will:
ºº Define data products.
ºº Define metadata.
ºº Generate metadata and mapping for
Application Programming Interfaces.
ºº Generate data products (Apportionment
and Redistricting) and associated data
documentation.

U.S. Census Bureau

Decisions Made

Milestones

No decisions have been finalized for this operation.

Date

Activity

Design Issues to Be Resolved

March 2014

Release the concept of operations for a more
customer-centric, streamlined, and flexible
enterprise solution for data dissemination.

July 2014

Establish the Center for Enterprise
Dissemination Services and Consumer
Innovation.

Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:
Question

Expected Date

Which system will provide the 2020
Census Tabulation solution?

September 2016*

June 2017

Release the DPD DOP.

What will be the mix or array of
standardized data products?

March 2017

September
2018

Deliver final 2020 Census business
requirements to support 2020 Census Data
Product Plan.

How will the Census Bureau develop
the 2020 Census data user interface
through CEDSCI?

April 2019

December
2018–April 1,
2019

Deploy tabulation system and deploy
dissemination platform for production and
release of the P.L. 94-171 Redistricting Data
Prototype.

December
2020

Provide apportionment counts to the
President of the United States.

By April 1,
2021

Complete the release of the P.L. 94-171
Redistricting Data to the states, the District of
Columbia, and Puerto Rico.

May 2021–
September
2022

Deliver 2020 Census statistical data to the
enterprise data dissemination platform for
the release of quick tables and application
programming interfaces.

April 2023

Release final data products.

* The 2020 Census Operational Plan is current as of August 31,
2016.

Cost and Quality
Investment in DPD is projected to have minimal
influence on the overall cost and quality of the
2020 Census.
Risks
The scope of CEDSCI includes providing tabulation
services for the 2020 Census Program starting in
2018. IF the 2020 Census is depending on CEDSCI
to provide tabulation services prior to 2018, THEN
the scope of CEDSCI will be larger than what is
feasible to accomplish.
The 2020 Census Program is dependent on CEDSCI
to develop and deliver a data dissemination system. IF CEDSCI is unable to deliver a dissemination
system for the 2020 Census, THEN a new data
dissemination system will not be available and traditional systems will have to be explored for reuse.

5.6.2 Redistricting Data Program
Detailed Planning Status:

Underway
DOP Delivered in FY 2016

Purpose
The purpose of the Redistricting Data Program
(RDP) is to provide to each state the legally
required P.L. 94-171 redistricting data tabulations
by the mandated deadline of 1 year from Census
Day: April 1, 2021.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: There have been no major changes
to this operation.
Lessons Learned
Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census
studies and reviews, the following recommendations were made:
•• Provision of a prototype product is necessary.
•• The ability to provide legal boundary updates
is needed.

U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 127

•• Delivery of the data prior to public release is
necessary.
Opportunities to Innovate
Opportunities to innovate include the following:
•• Separation of the program’s Block Boundary
Suggestion Project from the Voting District
Project to allow greater external participation.
•• Inclusion of a Boundary and Annexation Survey
(BAS) component to capture and improve underlying geography.
•• Processing at Headquarters and the NPC to
provide states with consistent guidance, to
enhance coordination between BAS and RDP,
and to reduce burden on the Geographic Area
Reconciliation Program.
•• State legislative district updates captured at time
of collection of Congressional district updates
reducing the need for multiple efforts.
Description of Operation
The RDP Operation provides the 50 states, the
District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico with the
opportunity to identify, delineate, and update
geographic boundaries for data tabulation. It
also allows for continuous process improvement
through an evaluation of the program with recommendations for the next cycle that is in an official
publication called “The View From the States.”
The five major components in the 2020 Census
RDP include:
•• Phase 1—Block Boundary Suggestion Project.
•• Phase 2—Voting District Project.   
•• Phase 3—P.L. 94-171 data and geographic support products design and delivery.
•• Phase 4—Collection of changes to Congressional
and State Legislative Districts. 
•• Phase 5—Evaluation of the 2020 Census RDP
and recommendations for the 2030 RDP.

128 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

Research Completed
The following research has been completed for this
operation:
•• January 2015: Released the Designing P.L.
94-171 Redistricting Data for the Year 2020
Census—The View From the States.
ºº Findings:
•• Need for a “one number” Census.
•• Need for a prototype data product.
•• Need for data delivery prior to public
release.
•• Need for GQ data.
•• Need for support products using most
current (2020) geography.
•• Need for tabulation block and voting district data.
•• Need for states to have the option to use
their resident GIS systems for program
participation.
Decisions Made
The following decisions have been made for this
operation:
99 Prototype P.L. 94-171 redistricting data tabulations and geographic support products from the
2018 Census End-to-End Test will be generated
and distributed to official liaisons by April 1st,
2019.
99 Use GUPS as one of the methods for interaction
with and collection of partner updates.
99 Group Quarter (GQ) tabulations by race for the
seven main GQ types will be included as part of
the official P.L. 94-171 redistricting data file.
99 The Block, Block Group, and Tract crosswalk
files can be released prior to the April 1st, 2021
deadline.

U.S. Census Bureau

Design Issues to Be Resolved
Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:
Question

Expected Date

What changes, if any, to the structure
of the P.L. 94-171 redistricting data file
may result from research on changing the separate race and ethnicity
questions to a single question and the
possible inclusion of a Middle Eastern
North African category?

June 2017

Can the Census Bureau produce
Citizen Voting Age Population by Race
tabulations in early 2021 using the new
2020 Census tabulation geography?

March 2019

What IT capabilities and data
distribution methodology will be used
for 2020 (including maps)?

June 2019

Cost and Quality
Investment in RDP is projected to have minimal
influence on the overall cost of the 2020 Census.
Impacts of this operation on overall 2020 Census
quality include the following:
ÏÏ Consistent messaging and guidance to
participants.
ÏÏ Consistent processing of incoming files.
ÏÏ Improvement of incoming file quality due to
expanded participation timeline.
ÏÏ Improvement in underlying geography through
iterated update cycles—update, apply, view,
refine, update.
Risks
The GUPS is a critical tool in ensuring that all states
can participate in the program regardless of their
ownership of Geographic Information System
software. IF the GUPS module being developed for
each phase of RDP is not ready for use by the start
date of the respective phase, THEN participants

U.S. Census Bureau

will have unequal opportunities for participation,
violating the principles of P.L. 94-171.
As part of its mission to provide the states with the
small area tabulations needed to conduct legislative redistricting and to deliver that product within
1 year of Census Day, the Census Bureau produces
a full prototype product and delivers that product
within the same time constraints. This prototype
and process is used to validate both the product
creation, product delivery, and the product suitability. IF the systems for producing products from
the 2018 End-to-End Census Test are not ready,
THEN a P.L. 94-171 prototype product will not be
generated within the timeframe required (before
April 1, 2019) and stakeholders will not be able
review and provide feedback as to the acceptability
of the product in meeting the Census Bureau’s legal
mandate.
Milestones
Date

Activity

July 2014

Submit Federal Register Notice proposing the
2020 Census RDP.

January 2015

Publish “Designing P.L. 94-171 Redistricting
Data for the Year 2020 Census—The View
From the States.”

December
2015–
May 2017

Conduct Phase 1: Block Boundary Suggestion
Project.

September
2016

Release the RDP DOP.

October 2017

Finalize the P.L. 94-171 Prototype Products
Design.

December
2017–
May 2019

Conduct Phase 2: The Voting District Project.

March 2019

Deliver P.L. 94-171 Prototype Products.

November
2020–
March 2021

Conduct Phase 3: Data Delivery for the 2020
Census RDP.

April 1st 2021 Deliver the P.L. 94-171 data (legal deadline).

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 129

5.6.3 Count Review
Detailed Planning Status:

Recently Begun

Detailed planning for this operation has recently
begun. The narrative that follows represents the
Census Bureau’s early planning efforts on the operational design for the 2020 Census Count Review
operation.
Purpose
The Count Review (CRO) operation enhances the
accuracy of the 2020 Census through remediating
potential gaps in coverage by:
•• Implementing an efficient and equitable process
to identify missing housing units.
•• Identifying and correcting missing or geographically misallocated large group quarters and their
population.
•• Positioning remaining count issues for a smooth
transition to the CQR operation.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: The changes shown below represent a maturing of the potential design of the 2020
Census Count Review operation. While most decisions necessary to solidify the design remain to be
made, a narrowing of the options has occurred.
Lessons Learned
Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census,
the following recommendations were made:
•• Planning for the CRO Program needs to begin
earlier in the decennial planning cycle to be
more easily and fully integrated with decennial
census operations.

operational design. With the 2020 Census, there
is an opportunity to fully integrate the operational
design of Count Review with the overall 2020
Census design.
Description of Operation
The operational description provided below is
based primarily on the operational design of the
2010 Census CRO. As was the case in past censuses, the 2020 Census CRO relies heavily on
participation with the Federal State Cooperative for
Population Estimates (FSCPE) Network. Under the
joint-partnership authority, an FSCPE and 2020
Census Working Group was established to explore
opportunities to leverage the knowledge and
experience of the FSCPE network to the benefit of
the 2020 Census Program. This is particularly the
case with the CRO, but also carries to other aspects
of the 2020 Census operational design as well.
Membership of the working group includes representatives from the FSCPE Steering Committee, as
well as Census Bureau subject matter experts.
The CRO consists of the following:
•• A partnership with the FSCPE members for a
housing unit count review. The Housing Unit
(HU) Count review identifies HU addresses the
Census Bureau did not have on its address list
that are potentially missing from the census. In
preparation for the HU Count Review, members of FSCPE from all 50 states, the District
of Columbia, and Puerto Rico will be invited to
participate in the HU Count Review operation.

The FSCPE participants will obtain address and
coordinate data from various sources, with
the historically most common sources being
tax assessor records and Emergency Services
(E911) data. State participants will be required to
provide their HU addresses and GPS coordinate
data in a specified digital format so that these
data can be used in an application that enables
a review and comparison of the state-provided
data to Census Bureau data. Census Bureau staff
will perform quality checks on the data, ensuring
that all records have state and county codes, GPS
coordinates, and are the correct length and type.

The application available to the FSCPE reviewers
will provide information showing the differences
between tallies of the Census Bureau and FSCPE
HUs in a given county, tract, or block. The prescribed review process will focus the reviewers

•• Address-level precision is essential to an effective count review program.
•• Consider working with E911 system, tax
assessor records, and other federal agencies to
develop a common format and address updating
protocol.
•• Have both group quarters and housing unit
address information available during the review.
Opportunities to Innovate
In the 2010 Census, the Count Review operational
design was developed such that the outputs were
not easily integrated with other components of the
130 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

U.S. Census Bureau

on the geographies where the FSCPE counts
showed more HUs than the Census Bureau did.
•• A partnership with the FSCPE members for a GQ
count review focusing on large GQs (missing
and misallocated). The GQ review identifies GQs
missing from the 2020 Census. A secondary
goal will be to identify GQs in the 2020 Census
that were misallocated to the wrong census
block. FSCPE representatives will be asked to
focus first on finding GQs missing from the
2020 Census. The Census Bureau’s GQ count
data will come from a file of the GQ records
enumerated in the 2020 Census available at the
time of the review.
Similar to the 2010 Census, the GQ types
in-scope for the review are expected to include
nursing homes, college housing, military barracks, adult correctional facilities, and workers’
dormitories with populations of 50 or more. The
primary reason these GQ types will be selected
for the review is because they represent more
than 80 percent of the nation’s GQ population
and are the majority of large GQs. Juvenile institutional facilities, medical institutional facilities,
and all other non-institutional facilities will likely
be out of scope for the review. An application
will be available to the FSCPE participants. The
application will allow users to sort tables by
county or by GQ type to look for where the
FSCPE has more GQs than the 2020 Census
does. After a potentially missing GQ is identified, a second research step will be conducted
to determine if the GQ record was under another
GQ type code that was ineligible for the review.
•• Review of the following for systematic or large
anomalies in population and housing units:
ºº Census Unedited File.
ºº Census Edited File.
ºº Microdata Detail File.

(Note: This review is conducted at the Census
Bureau by staff in the Population Division. It is
separate and in addition to a robust review led
by the Decennial Statistical Studies Division.)

The design and schedule for the Count Review
Program will consider the necessary inputs
and outputs to ensure a smooth transition

U.S. Census Bureau

to downstream operations, such as the CQR
operation.
Research (Planning)
The 2020 CRO will implement similar designs and
methodologies to those used in the 2010 Census.
While enhancements will be pursued, the planning
and design of the 2020 Census Count Review is
about the operational implementation rather than
research into new or different methodologies.
There are decisions needed to solidify the operational design for the Count Review, but these do
not fall in a research category.
Assumptions Made
Based on planning of other operations, the following assumptions have been made:
•• The CRO will leverage the knowledge and experience of the FSCPE network.
•• The CRO will leverage existing software and systems to accomplish its goals and objectives.
•• The FSCPE and Census Bureau staff will review
population, housing unit, and group quarters
counts.
Decisions Made
The following decisions have been made for this
operation:
99 Similar to the approach used in the 2010 Census
Count Review operation, there will be two
distinct opportunities for FSCPE knowledge and
experience to remediate potential gaps in coverage associated with missing housing units and
missing or misallocated group quarters. FSCPE
representatives will leverage information from
their respective states along with data and software provided by the Census Bureau to identify
clusters of missing housing units (timing: post
in-field Address Canvassing and before enumeration time frame) and missing or misallocated
GQs in the late summer of 2020.
Design Issues to Be Resolved
Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 131

Question

Expected Date

What are the objectives, scope, and
September 2017
operational timeline of the 2020 Census
Count Review Program?
What does success for the 2020
Census Count Review Program look
like and how is it measured?

September 2017

What is the appropriate level of
geography for conducting housing unit,
group quarters, and population count
review?

September 2017

What is the timing of the Count
Review? Can the Census Bureau
conduct the Count Review in time to
impact the counts?

September 2017

How can Count Review improve the GQ September 2017
universe before enumeration?
What approach will be used for
validating missing housing units
provided by FSCPEs? For example,
fieldwork? Aerial imagery?

September 2017

What approaches will be used for
validating group quarters count
discrepancies?

September 2017

Milestones
Date

Activity

October 2015

Initiate the 2020 Census Count Review
Program Integrated Product Team.

September
2018

Release the CRO DOP.

February
2020

Conduct 2020 Census Housing Unit Count
Review.

August 2020

Conduct 2020 Census GQ Count Review.

November
2020

Conduct 2020 Census Review of Census
Unedited File, Census Edited File, and Microdata Detail File.

August 2021

Issue 2020 Census Count Review Program
Operational Assessment.

5.6.4 Count Question Resolution
Detailed Planning Status:

Cost and Quality
Investments in the CRO is projected to have minimal influence on the overall cost and quality of the
2020 Census.
Risks
The risks listed below are specific to this operation:
Successful upstream 2020 Census operations will
create a sound and accurate base for the Count
Review operation, thereby creating an environment that makes the Count Review workload
manageable for the FSCPE members in the limited
time allotted. IF the upstream operations such as
Address Canvassing and GQ enumeration have
unexpected results, THEN the workload for the
FSCPEs may be more than can be managed within
the operational timeline.
Meeting the goals of the Count Review operation
to remediate potential gaps in coverage is dependent on an active engagement of FSCPE members.
IF FSCPE participation in the 2020 Census Count
Review is low, THEN the potential for disparate
coverage across the states increases.

Not Started

Detailed planning for this operation has not
started. The narrative that follows represents the
Census Bureau’s preliminary thoughts as of the
release of this document.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: There have been no major changes
to this operation.
Purpose
The Count Question Resolution (CQR) operation
provides a mechanism for governmental units to
challenge their official 2020 Census results.
Lessons Learned
Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census,
studies and reviews, the following recommendations were made:
•• Create a milestone schedule and ensure it is
followed.
•• Meet early and often so that all stakeholders involved make decisions up front, before
beginning to program control systems or write
procedures.
•• Make sure planning tasks are completed on time
and everyone is aware of key decisions.
Opportunities to Innovate
No specific opportunities to innovate have been
identified to date for this operation.

132 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

U.S. Census Bureau

Description of Operation

Design Issues to Be Resolved

The CQR operation provides a mechanism for governmental units to challenge the accuracy of their
final 2020 Census counts.

Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:

The CQR operation includes the following
activities:
•• Draft proposed process and rules and publish in
the Federal Register.
•• Finalize process and rules and publish in the
Federal Register.
•• Identify staffing needs and make temporary
appointments and reassignments.
•• Receive, investigate, and respond to all challenges, including correcting errors found within
the established guidelines of the program.
Research Completed
Because detailed planning for this operation has
not yet started, research that directly supports this
operation has not yet been completed.
Assumptions Made
Based on initial discussions, the following assumption has been made:
•• This program will be conducted in a similar
manner to both the 2000 and 2010 Censuses.

Question

Expected Date

What is the approach for addressing
September 2018
unexpected issues related to count
or geographic discrepancies? For
example, in the 2010 Census, there
were some very specific issues with the
way the Census Bureau geocoded Navy
ships in U.S. harbors.
Will the Census Bureau require chalSeptember 2018
lenging governments to provide location
information for each housing unit they
provide on their list?
What types of challenges will be in
scope?

September 2018

What documents and systems will be
needed to research and respond to
challenges?

June 2019

Cost and Quality
Investment in CQR is projected to have minimal
influence on the overall cost and quality of the
2020 Census.
Risks
No risks have been identified to date for this
operation.

Decisions Made
No decisions have been finalized for this operation.

U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 133

Milestones
Date

Activity

January 2017

Begin planning and development of program
schedule, process, and initial Federal Register
Notice.

September
2018

Release the CQR DOP.

May 2020

Publish initial Federal Register Notice
identifying process and types of challenges to
be considered.

March 2021

Publish final Federal Register Notice to
establish process, timing, and types of
challenges in scope for the program.

June 2021

Begin accepting challenges from
governmental units.

2021–2023

Issue revised certified counts as appropriate
and make available on census.gov through
the Census Bureau dissemination system.

June 2023

Deadline for governmental units to submit
challenges.

Sept 2023

End program and issue assessment and
lessons learned report.

5.6.5 Archiving
Detailed Planning Status:

Not Started

Detailed planning for this operation has not
started. The narrative that follows represents the
Census Bureau’s preliminary thoughts as of the
release of this document.
Purpose
The Archiving (ARC) operation performs the following functions:
•• Coordinates storage of the materials and
data and provides records deemed permanent, including files containing the individual
responses to the 2020 Census, to National
Archives and Records Administration (NARA).
•• Provides similar files to the NPC to use as source
materials to conduct the Age Search Service.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: There have been no major changes
to this operation.

•• Make sure staff are regularly reminded of their
records management responsibilities. They need
to understand the distinction between permanent
and temporary records, and the Census Bureau’s
legal obligation to archive permanent records.
•• Start archiving planning (with an interdivisional
team) earlier in the life cycle—suggest FY 2018
at the latest.
•• Keep a log or spreadsheet on the materials
that the records schedule requires to be sent to
NARA, how they will be sent, dates promised,
and actual transfer date.
Opportunities to Innovate
No specific opportunities to innovate have been
identified to date for this operation.
Description of Operation
The Census Bureau must provide copies of the
individual responses to the 2020 Census (including
names and addresses) to the NARA. The specific
format, media, and timing for the delivery is
negotiated between the Census Bureau and NARA.
Because the primary use of this information is for
genealogical searches (to be released no sooner
than 72 years after Census Day), the Census
Bureau may also have to provide a linkage between
the individual response data and the copies of
questionnaires on paper, microfilm, or electronic
images. This operation also provides similar data
to support the Census Bureau Age Search Program
at NPC.
The ARC operation is responsible for the Census
Bureau Record Schedule relating to the 2020
Census. The schedule we establish with NARA is
only intended to encompass records used to capture, process, and tabulate respondent data, and
records used to collect and update address and
map information.
Research Completed
Because detailed planning for this operation has
not yet started, research that directly supports this
operation has not yet been completed.
Decisions Made

Lessons Learned

No decisions have been finalized for this operation.

Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census
studies and reviews, the following recommendations were made:
134 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

U.S. Census Bureau

Design Issues to Be Resolved

5.7 OTHER CENSUSES

Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:

Other Censuses comprises all functions associated
with the decennial censuses for the Pacific Island
Area of American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the
Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin
Islands, collectively known as the Island Areas.
There is one operation in this area: Island Areas
Censuses.

Question

Expected Date

What are the format, media, and timing
for the delivery of individual responses
to NARA?

July 2018

Cost and Quality
Investment in ARC is projected to have minimal
influence on the overall cost and quality of the
2020 Census.
Risks
The risk listed below is specific to this operation:
In the 2010 Census, Congress requested that the
Census Bureau provide all images of the paper
questionnaires to NARA for archiving. IF Congress
or NARA requires that the Census Bureau provide
the paper images, as well as the response data
collected via the Internet and telephone, in a PDF
template with the response data from the 2020
Census, THEN there will be an impact the 2020
Census Architecture design as it relates to data
storage and dissemination.
Milestones

5.7.1 Island Areas Censuses
Detailed Planning Status:

Recently Begun

Detailed planning for this operation has recently
begun. The narrative that follows represents the
Census Bureau’s early planning efforts on the operational design for the 2020 Island Areas Censuses.
Purpose
The purpose of the Island Areas Censuses operation
is to enumerate all residents of American Samoa,
the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands,
Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands; process and
tabulate the collected data; and disseminate data
products to the public.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: There have been no major changes
to this operation.

Date

Activity

Lessons Learned

Annually,
beginning in
2016

Update official records plan performed by
Records Manager for each participating
division.

Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census
studies and reviews, the following recommendations were made:

August 2016

Begin identification and review of all records
that will be generated by or for the 2020
Census.

October 2016 Begin negotiations with NARA to make
preliminary determinations of which records
will be deemed permanent, so must be
archived.
September
2017

Release the ARC DOP.

April 2021

Develop final records schedule with NARA
and submit for approval by Archivist.

July 2022

Begin transfer of permanent records to NARA.

January 2023 Complete transfer of all permanent records to
NARA. Complete destruction of all temporary
records no longer needed by Census Bureau.

U.S. Census Bureau

•• The contracts with the Island Areas’ local
governments need to stipulate the roles and
responsibilities of the census office managers,
the onsite Census Advisors, the officials of the
local governments, and the officials at Census
Bureau headquarters.
•• The Island Areas’ Censuses data collection
operations and data processing needs to be
more in-line with stateside operations and data
processing.
•• The planning phase of the Island Areas’
Censuses should involve data processing staff
who can help create testing strategies.

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 135

Opportunities to Innovate

99 Use a “long-form like” questionnaire.

Use of enterprise solutions optimized for the 2020
Census and the ACS for preparing 2020 Census
Island Areas Censuses data products and disseminating the information to the public.

99 Use the ACS questionnaire with minor wording
changes to accommodate time reference differences, incorporate the final 2020 Census questions except coverage questions and taking into
account Island Area local government concerns
where possible.

Description of Operation
The Census Bureau will conduct the 2020 Census
of the Island Areas through partnerships with
local government agencies in American Samoa,
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands,
Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The Census
Bureau will provide the materials and guidance
to the local government agencies that are then
responsible for recruiting and hiring the staff to
conduct the data collection phase. The data collection phase will consist of:
•• Opening and closing of Island Area Census
Offices.
•• Updating the Address List.
•• Enumerating residents.
•• Follow-up operations.
•• Local Count Review.
•• Shipping completed Census questionnaires and
forms to data processing sites.
Research Completed
Because detailed planning for this operation has
recently started, research that directly supports
this operation has not yet been completed.
Decisions Made
The following decisions have been made for this
operation:
99 Continuously engage and communicate the
Census Bureau’s plans with liaisons in the local
Island Areas’ governments, and with the Office
of Insular Affairs in the Department of Interior.
99 Revise MAF/TIGER system with geospatial
updates from the 2010 Census data, local data,
site visits and satellite imagery.
99 Establish agreements with the local Island
Areas’ governments to conduct the census data
collection.
99 Establish five local census offices: two in the
U.S. Virgin Islands and one in each of the Pacific
Island Areas.
136 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

99 Build and maintain a first-ever MAF for each of
the Island Areas for use in the 2020 Census and
in subsequent censuses.
99 Use stateside systems whenever possible; some
modifications may be needed.
99 Deploy Census Advisors to the local census
offices in 2019 to provide guidance throughout
the data collection process and to report back
to Headquarters (HQ)—one advisor for each
of the Pacific Island Areas (American Samoa,
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands
(CNMI) and Guam), and two advisors for the U.S.
Virgin Islands (one for St. Thomas and St. John,
and one for St. Croix).
99 The four Island Areas will use an UE strategy.
Field enumerators will conduct door-to-door visits to validate and update the address lists, and
to leave paper questionnaires for every living
quarters to complete. Later, the enumerators will
return to collect the completed questionnaires
or to assist the respondents in completing their
questionnaires.
Design Issues to Be Resolved
Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:
Question

Expected Date

What response modes will be used in
the Island Areas and what format will
they be?

September 2017

Which enterprise systems can be used
to support the Island Areas Censuses
operation and what modifications are
needed to these systems?

September 2017

How will the Island Areas questionnaire December 2017
differ from the then current ACS form?

Cost and Quality Measures
Investment in Island Areas Censuses is projected
to have minimal influence on the overall cost and
quality of the 2020 Census.

U.S. Census Bureau

Risks

•• Prepare for the 2030 Census.

The risk listed below is specific to this operation:

This area includes four operations:

For the 2020 Census, automated systems are being
developed for office control functions. IF the Island
Areas Censuses operation has unique requirements
that cannot be allocated to the control systems
under development by the end of December 2016,
THEN a custom control system will have to be
developed, which will increase the cost of the 2020
Census for the Island Areas.

•• Coverage Measurement Design and
Estimation (CMDE): Designs the postenumeration survey, including sampling and estimation.

Milestones
Date

Activity

September
2013

Establish quarterly contact with Island Areas
Censuses government officials.

March 2018

Decide what, if any, stateside systems can
be used for the 2020 Island Areas Censuses
operations.

March 2018

Obtain Office of Management and Budget
clearance for data collection materials.

June 2018

Finalize plans for the Island Areas Censuses
operations.

September
2018

Award contracts with the Island Areas
Censuses governments.

September
2018

Release the Island Areas Censuses DOP.

June 2019

Open Area Census Offices in American
Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern
Mariana Islands, Guam, and St. Thomas and
St. Croix of the U.S. Virgin Islands.

September
2020

Close the Area Census Offices in the Island
Areas Censuses and their contracts.

December
2020

Publish the Island Areas Censuses
population counts.

September
2023

Complete Island Areas Censuses detail data
publications.

•• Coverage Measurement Matching
(CMM): Identifies matches and nonmatches
between the 2020 Census and the Coverage
Measurement Survey for the enumerated housing units and people.
•• Coverage Measurement Field Operations
(CMFO): Collects person and housing unit
information (independent from the 2020 Census
operations) for the sample of housing units in
the Coverage Measurement Survey.
•• Evaluations and Experiments: Measure the
success of critical 2020 Census operations.
Formulate and execute an experimentation program to support early planning and inform the
transition and design of the 2030 Census.

Each operation is described below.

5.8 TEST AND EVALUATION
The Test and Evaluation area performs two primary
functions:
•• Evaluate the quality of the 2020 Census.

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2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 137

5.8.1 Coverage Measurement Design
and Estimation
Detailed Planning Status:

Recently Begun

Detailed planning for this operation has recently
begun. The narrative that follows represents the
Census Bureau’s early planning efforts on the
operational design for the Coverage Measurement
Design Estimation.
Purpose
The Coverage Measurement Design Estimation
(CMDE) operation develops the survey design and
sample for the postenumeration survey for the
2020 Census. It also produces estimates of census
coverage based on a postenumeration survey.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: Demographic analysis was moved
to the Evaluations and Experiments operation.
Lessons Learned
Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census
studies and reviews, the following recommendations were made:
•• Simplify the sampling operations, the data
collection, the matching operations, and the
estimation by eliminating the creation and use
of block cluster, provided the basic collection
unit concept is similar to 2010 block cluster.
•• Follow best practices from the 2010 Census
Coverage Measurement operations where the
Census Bureau anticipated potential changes
in implementing the sample design, allowing
changes to sample design requirements to
be easily handled given the implementation
approach.
•• Use of the Planning Database for designing the
Census Coverage Measurement sample.
Opportunities to Innovate

•• Preserve joint distributions for imputed variables
by using multivariate methods or sequential
regression.
•• Improve coverage estimates for young children
and babies by using demographic analysis
results by age in the correlation bias adjustment.
•• Reduce the overall error of coverage estimate by
combining direct and synthetic estimates with
small area estimation models.
•• Improve the saliency and timeliness of estimates
by researching the feasibility of releasing coverage estimates in Fiscal Year 2021.
Description of Operation
The operational design of the 2020 Coverage
Measurement Program will be based on the 2010
Census Coverage Measurement operational design.
The CMDE operation performs the following
functions:
•• Develop the survey design for the postenumeration survey for the 2020 Census.
•• Design and implement the sample to support
the estimation of coverage estimates in the
2020 Census for the United States and Puerto
Rico, excluding Remote Alaska.
•• Produce estimates of net coverage error and the
components of census coverage for housing
units and persons living in housing units for the
United States and Puerto Rico, excluding Remote
Alaska.
Research Completed
Research that directly supports this operation has
not yet been completed.
Assumptions Made
Based on the 2010 Census design and planning of
other operations for the 2020 Census, the following assumptions have been made:

Brainstorming for changes from the 2010 Census
design methodology yielded the following list of
potential ideas for innovation:

•• Use the capture-recapture, dual-system estimation methodology, similar to the 2010 Census
Coverage Measurement approach, to measure
the 2020 Census coverage.

•• Reduce the sampling error of coverage estimates
by using area level covariates from the Planning
Database and the ACS in stratification and
estimation.

•• Maintain the independence of the Coverage
Measurement Survey operations from the 2020
Census operations.

138 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

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•• Automate all Coverage Measurement Survey
data collection instruments.
•• Take advantage of directorate and enterprise
automation processes.
•• Continue to use Demographic Analysis as an
input to coverage measurement estimation as in
the 2010 Census.
Decisions Made
The following decisions have been made for this
operation:
99 We will estimate the net coverage error and the
components of census coverage for housing
units and persons living in housing units. The
components of census coverage will include
correct enumerations, erroneous enumerations
(which include census duplicates), whole-person
imputations, and omissions.
99 The Census Bureau is proceeding with systems
already under development. However, as a result
of budget cuts and being descoped, the effects
on estimates will be determined later in the
decade as we don’t expect a major impact at this
point in time.
99 The target release is approximately one year
earlier than in the 2010 Census.
99 We will produce estimates for the United States
(including Washington, DC) and Puerto Rico, by
major demographic subgroups, and by specified
census operations. We will produce estimates by
states, large counties, and places.
99 We will implement processes and procedures as
it was done in the 2010 Census.
99 The first official field test of the 2020 Census
CMDE Operation will be conducted as part of
the 2018 End-to-End Census Test. Testing of the
processes will occur in advance of this test.
Design Issues to Be Resolved

Cost and Quality
Investment in CMDE is projected to have minimal
influence on the overall cost and quality of the
2020 Census.
Risks
By this point in the decade, planning for all major
2020 Census operations should be underway.
Budget reductions in FY 2013 through FY 2016
delayed planning for this operation. IF sufficient
resources are not provided in FY 2017 for the 2018
End-to-End Census Test planning, THEN all CMDE
operations and expected innovations may not be
fully implemented for the 2018 End-to-End Census
Test.
To make coverage estimates, the Census Bureau
needs to match census enumerations to responses
from an independent postenumeration survey—the
Coverage Measurement Survey. Part of the matching process identifies cases that require interviews,
which involves asking about people who were enumerated in the 2020 Census but not in the Coverage
Measurement Survey. If the 2020 Census enumerations include administrative records, matchers will
need to see the names of the persons enumerated
by administrative record data. Furthermore, field
representatives will need to say the names of people
who were enumerated by administrative records to
respondents when asking questions about them.
The Census Bureau has concerns that providers
of the administrative records or a Federal policy
may prevent the use of names from administrative
records during the Coverage Measurement Survey
data collection and matching operations. IF the
Census Bureau is prevented from using the names
of the persons enumerated by administrative data
during the Coverage Measurement Survey data collection and matching operations, THEN the Census
Bureau will not be able to accurately estimate the
coverage of the 2020 Census.

Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:
Question

Expected Date

What is the optimal sampling plan
that balances estimation plans and
operational considerations?

September 2016*

* The 2020 Census Operational Plan is current as of August 31,
2016.

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2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 139

•• Move housing unit matching and follow-up operations closer to the listing operation.

Milestones
Date

Activity

January 2016

Start CMDE.

September 2017

Release the CMDE DOP.

February–
April 2019

Select Coverage Measurement Survey
Sample BCUs.

August–
September 2019

Start 2020 Census CMDE Sample
Design.

April 2020

Conduct Small BCUs Subsampling.

May 2020

Identify CMDE Person Interview Sample.

Description of Operation

April 2021

Release National Net Person Coverage
Error and National Components of
Person Coverage Estimates.

The CMM operation includes:

July 2021

Release National Net Housing
Unit Coverage Error and National
Components of Housing Unit Coverage
Estimates.

October 2021

Release State and Other Local Results
of Net Error and Components of
Coverage for Persons and Housing Units.

•• Automate the assignment of status codes and
address information where possible.

5.8.2 Coverage Measurement Matching
Detailed Planning Status:

Recently Begun

Detailed planning for this operation has recently
begun. The narrative that follows represents the
Census Bureau’s early planning efforts on the
operational design for Coverage Measurement
Matching.
Purpose
The Coverage Measurement Matching (CMM) operation identifies matches and nonmatches between
the 2020 Census and the Coverage Measurement
Survey, for both housing units and people, including computer and clerical components.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: There have been no major changes
to this operation.
Lessons Learned
Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census
studies and reviews, the following recommendations were made:
•• Simplify the Coverage Measurement clerical
matching tasks.
•• Rely more on the automated matching systems
than the clerical matchers.
140 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

Opportunities to Innovate
To simplify the Coverage Measurement clerical
matching tasks, the Census Bureau will reengineer
the business process to improve the efficiency of
the analyst and will rely more on automation.

•• Housing Unit Matching: Links the housing unit
addresses in the sample and the initial census
addresses in the MAF using automated computer
matching and clerical matching techniques.
•• Person Matching: Links the persons in the sample and the census using automated computer
and clerical matching techniques.
•• Final Housing Unit Matching: Links the housing
unit addresses in the sample and the final
census addresses using automated computer
matching and clerical matching techniques.
Housing Unit, Person, and Final Housing Unit
Matching utilize two different methods:
•• Computer matching of addresses or persons
is conducted using software that assigns a
probability that the addresses or people match.
One threshold identifies cases that are definite
matches, another indicates cases that are
definite nonmatches, and the cases in between
these points are considered possible matches. A
similar process identifies duplicates, resulting in
a set of duplicate cases, nonduplicate cases, and
possible duplicate cases.
•• Clerical matching is conducted by clerical matchers utilizing the matching software designed
to assist them in all tasks involved in clerical
matching and coding. The software displays
the results of computer matching and allows
the matchers to review and correct any results.
Matchers must review and code all the possible
matches or duplicates and can also correct
cases determined as linked or nonlinked by the
computer matcher. In addition, clerical matchers
must geocode new addresses collected that are
not computer geocoded and assign residence
status codes and housing unit status codes. The
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clerical matchers receive the actual respondent
information from Coverage Measurement Survey
follow-up activities, so they can review a whole
household composition and any interviewer
notes about the case to help with their analysis.
The software also displays maps of the locations
(mapspots) assigned to addresses in the sample
area by 2020 Census operations versus the
Coverage Measurement Survey.
Research Completed
Research was undertaken to determine if the Initial
Housing Unit Followup (HUFU) and Final HUFU
operations are needed. A decision has been made
to conduct Initial HUFU. Research into the Final
HUFU operation for the 2020 Census continues.
Decisions Made
The following decisions have been made for this
operation:
99 The first official field test of the 2020 Census
CMM Operation will be conducted as part of the
2018 End-to-End Census Test. Testing of the processes will occur in advance of this test.

Milestones
Date

Activity

September 2017

Release the Coverage Measurement
Matching DOP.

April 2020

Conduct Initial Housing Unit
Computer Matching.

April–June 2020

Conduct Initial Housing Unit Clerical
Matching.

October 2020

Conduct Person Computer Matching.

July 2020–January
2021

Conduct Person Clerical Matching.

November 2020

Conduct Final Housing Unit Computer
Processing and Matching.

March–June 2021

Conduct Final Housing Unit Clerical
Matching.

5.8.3 Coverage Measurement Field
Operations
Detailed Planning Status:

Recently Begun

Design Issues to Be Resolved

Detailed planning for this operation has recently
begun. The narrative that follows represents the
Census Bureau’s early planning efforts on the operational design for the Coverage Measurement Field
Operations.

Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:

Purpose

Question

Expected Date

What computer matching and clerical
matching systems will be used for
Coverage Measurement?

September 2016*

* The 2020 Census Operational Plan is current as of August 31,
2016.

Cost and Quality
Investment in CMM is projected to have minimal
influence on the overall cost and quality of the
2020 Census.
Risks
By this point in the decade, planning for all major
2020 Census operations should be underway.
Budget reductions in FY 2013 through FY 2016
delayed planning for this operation. IF sufficient
resources are not provided in FY 2017 for the 2018
End-to-End Census Test planning, THEN all CMM
operations and expected innovations may not be
fully implemented for the 2018 End-to-End Census
Test.
U.S. Census Bureau

The Coverage Measurement Field Operations
(CMFO) collects person and housing unit information (independent from 2020 Census operations)
for the sample of Coverage Measurement Survey
housing units. Coverage Measurement (CM) collects the same data as the 2020 Census for both
housing units and persons. Additional information
is collected by CM to help us understand census
coverage and to detect erroneous enumerations.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: There have been no major changes
to this operation.
Lessons Learned
Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census
studies and reviews, the following recommendations were made:
•• Automate all CM data collection instruments.
•• To ensure more accurate data, minimize the time
lag between the follow-up operations where
beneficial.
2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 141

•• Consider including an early telephone phase
prior to personal visit for the Person Interview
operation.
Opportunities to Innovate
Opportunities to innovate include the following:
•• To the extent feasible, the CMFO will leverage
the use of automation and the field reengineering concepts under development for In-Field
Address Canvassing and NRFU operations.
Description of Operation
This operation collects person and housing unit
information for the sample of CM Survey housing
units. The 2020 Census CM Program will follow the
design of the 2010 Census Coverage Measurement
(CCM) Program with some minor differences discussed in CMDE operation. Accordingly, this operation includes the following five CM Survey field
data collection suboperations:
•• Independent Listing: In this operation, listers
walk all areas of the sample BCUs and list all the
housing units in the sample area from scratch,
that is, without using MAF information. This
is an independent listing. Listers knock on all
housing units to inquire if there is more than
one housing unit at the address (like a basement
or garage apartment, and if so, these are listed
separately).
•• Initial Housing Unit Follow-Up: The list of CM
housing unit addresses in the sample is matched
to the Initial census MAF list of addresses in the
same sample areas to identify matches, possible
matches, duplicates, and possible duplicates and
nonmatches between the two lists, duplicates
and possible duplicates in either list, and nonmatches in either list. The cases (addresses) that
are in one list but not in the other (nonmatches)
and those identified as possible matches or
possible duplicates are sent back for an Initial
Housing Unit Follow-Up interview. Additional
clerical matching is conducted using the follow-up results of this operation. The results
identify the list of housing units in the CM sample to be included in the CM person operations.
•• Person Interview: Collects person information for the CM Survey sample housing units by
performing in-person interviews using a computer-assisted data collection instrument. The
enumerators collect data similar to that collected
142 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

in the 2020 Census, as well as additional data
about persons in the household to determine if
any of these people may have been counted at
other addresses on Census Day.
•• Person Follow-Up: Collects additional information in the follow-up operation when lacking
sufficient information for estimation. The list
of CM housing unit people in the sample is
matched to the list of people in the census in the
same sample areas to identify matches, possible
matches, duplicates, and possible duplicates and
nonmatches between the two lists, duplicates
and possible duplicates in either list, and nonmatches in either list. The nonmatched persons
(those in only one list) and those identified as
possible matches or possible duplicates are
sent back for the Person Follow-Up interview
to obtain additional information. The collected
information is used in after follow-up clerical
matching to resolve the cases, and the results
are used in the estimation of person coverage.
•• Final Housing Unit Follow-Up: After completion of census operations, the updated MAF
list of addresses is matched to the CM list
of addresses to identify additional matches,
nonmatches, or duplicates. Unresolved cases
are sent back to the field to conduct the Final
Housing Unit Follow-Up operation.
•• The resulting data are sent to Final Housing Unit
Matching, where clerical matchers try to resolve
remaining matching, duplication, and housing
unit status issues. The results of Final Housing
Unit Matching are then used in the housing unit
coverage estimation.
As the Census Bureau designs this operation, it
will consider whether any administrative records
and third-party data can be used to support person
interviews, recognizing that the same administrative records and third-party data sources used
during NRFU cannot ensure an independent evaluation in CM.
Research Completed
Research that directly supports this operation has
not yet started. However, the CMFO will leverage
research conducted to support other field operations such as In-Field Address Canvassing and
NRFU.

U.S. Census Bureau

Assumptions Made
Based on planning of other operations, the following assumptions have been made:

Milestones
Date

Activity

September 2017

Release the CMFO DOP.

January–
March 2020

Conduct CM Independent Listing and
Quality Control.

•• The CM Survey operations will be maintained
independently of the 2020 Census.

May 2020

Conduct Initial Housing Follow-Up
and Quality Control.

•• All CM Survey data collection will be automated
and leverage systems and tools used in other
field operations where feasible.

May–
September 2020

Conduct CM Person Interview and
Quality Control.

October–
December 2020

Conduct CM Person Follow-Up and
Quality Control.

February–
April 2021

Conduct Final Housing Follow-Up and
Quality Control.

•• CM housing unit data collection will use the
Listing and Mapping Instrument.

•• Directorate and enterprise automation processes
will be leveraged whenever possible.
Decisions Made
The following decisions have been made for this
operation:
99 The Coverage Measurement person data collection will use a tablet.
99 There will be no additional telephone operation prior to the Coverage Measurement Person
Interview.
99 The first official field test of the 2020 Census
CMFO will be conducted as part of the 2018
End-to-End Census Test. Testing of the processes will occur in advance of this test.
Design Issues to Be Resolved: There are no
remaining design issues to be resolved for this
operation.
Cost and Quality
Investment in CMFO is projected to have minimal
influence on the overall cost and quality of the
2020 Census.
Risks
By this point in the decade, planning for all major
2020 Census operations should be underway.
Budget reductions in FY 2013 through FY 2016
delayed planning for this operation. IF sufficient
resources are not provided in FY 2017 for the
2018 End-to-End Census Test planning, THEN
all Coverage Measurement field operations and
expected innovations may not be fully implemented for the 2018 End-to-End Census Test.

5.8.4 Evaluations and Experiments
Detailed Planning Status:

Recently Begun

Detailed planning for this operation has recently
begun. The 2020 Census Evaluations and
Experiments operation is unlike other 2020 Census
operations in that, at its start, the Census Bureau
will follow a process to establish and reach consensus on the set of evaluations and experiments
to be conducted as part of the 2020 Census
Program. The details that follow address various
aspects of the planning process more so than the
detailed scope of the 2020 Census evaluations and
experiments themselves. The detailed scope of
evaluations and experiments will result from the
formulation process. The initial planning, formation of governing bodies, solicitation of input,
and the agreement on scope of the 2020 Census
Evaluations and Experiments operation is dependent upon funding.
In addition, the Demographic Analysis program is
included under the EAE operation. Demographic
Analysis is an independent evaluation of the census that uses demographic techniques and historical vital records on births and deaths and data on
international migration to produce national-level
estimates of the population. Demographic Analysis
is the primary source for administrative recordsbased estimates of the total population by age,
sex, and the Demographic Analysis race categories
for comparison with the 2020 Census counts.
Purpose
Evaluations and Experiments (EAE) document how
well the 2020 Census was conducted; evaluations

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2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 143

analyze, interpret, and synthesize the effectiveness
of census components and their impact on data
quality or coverage or both. Experiments identify
potential designs of early 2030 Census life-cycle
research and testing; experiments are quantitative or qualitative studies that must occur during
a decennial census in order to have meaningful
results to inform planning of future decennial
censuses. In general, experiments involve response
comparisons between tests, new or modified methods, or procedures against 2020 Census production methods or procedures.
The EAE operation performs the following
functions:
•• Measures success of critical 2020 Census operations and processes.
•• Formulates a 2020 Census experimental program that will further refine 2030 Census operational design options.
•• Contributes to the formulation of the 2030
Census Research and Testing phase objectives.
•• Develops a transition plan and appropriate organizational structures to establish 2030 Census
life cycle planning.
•• Initiates other early planning activities for the
2030 Census, including the monitoring of policy
concerns and technological, societal, and public
cooperation trends.
•• Produces an independent assessment of coverage via Demographic Analysis.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release:
Established the Decennial Research Objectives and
Methods (DROM) working group, which serves as
an oversight body to review research methodologies, study plans, and analysis results. The group
provides support to other 2020 Census teams in
the form of validation of the research questions
and the methods and data needed to provide
sound and defensible answers to the questions.
Initiating efforts to formulate the high-level scope
of evaluations and experiments for the 2020
Census, the DROM established an Interagency
Agreement with the Department of Defense to
contract with the JASON Group to support development of a vision for the 2030 Census.

144 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

Moved the Demographic Analysis program from
the CMDE operation to the EAE operation because
the design, methods, and long-term research
agenda of Demographic Analysis is more fitting
with the goals of the EAE operation. Separating
Demographic Analysis from the Coverage
Measurement operation helps ensure independence
of coverage estimations.
EAE will be a supporting operation for the decennial operations in the 2018 End-to-End Census
Test. Support will come in the way of standard
schedule activities and process flows associated
with the development, review, and approval of
study plans, operational assessments, and analysis
results.
Lessons Learned
Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census
studies and reviews, the following recommendations associated with the development and
management of the 2020 Census Evaluations and
Experiments operation were made:
•• Deployment of a Knowledge Management database to capture and track 2010 Census recommendations, recommendations from oversight
bodies, and early 2020 Census research and
testing results would be valuable for connecting
past experiences and research to future research
and planning objectives.
•• Dedicated resources are needed earlier in the
2020 Census life cycle to initiate 2030 Census
life-cycle planning efforts to enable a smooth
transition from the 2020 Census implementation
to the 2030 Census research.
Opportunities to Innovate
At its core, the scope of the 2020 Census EAE
operation will focus on aspects of the 2020 Census
design that could lead to 2030 Census innovations.
As the 2020 Census operational design solidifies, the Evaluations and Experiments operational
process will define the 2020 Census Evaluations
and Experiments, identify data requirements, and
document methods to address research objectives.
To date, opportunities to innovate, as documented
below, focus primarily on aspects of the planning
and scope definition process. These opportunities
to innovate include the following:

U.S. Census Bureau

•• Implementing a Knowledge Management system
and application for the 2020 Census Directorate.
•• Formulating 2020 Census evaluations and
experiments that are more formally guided by
the decisions on the 2020 Census operational
design and the 2030 Census planning and
objectives.
•• Evaluating how administrative records can be
better used or combined with other data sources
to improve the Demographic Analysis estimates
by age and sex, and to estimate or expand the
race and Hispanic origin categories for which the
Demographic Analysis estimates are produced.
•• Formulating Fiscal Years 2022–2024 Research
and Testing objectives that are more formally
guided by 2030 planning and objectives.
•• Formulating 2030 Census life-cycle budget
simulations that are more formally aligned with
strategic planning and research objectives.
•• Soliciting ideas and thoughts on the environment
in which we might conduct the 2030 Census in
order to establish the vision for 2030 and lay
the groundwork for our 2030 research agenda.
JASON, an autonomous group of academics
who have assisted the Federal government for
decades in proposing solutions to challenging
problems, assists us with this project.
Description of Operation
To initiate the formulation of the 2020 Census EAE
operation, an understanding of the 2020 Census
operational design is necessary. In general, the
scope for the 2020 Census operations sets the
landscape for identifying evaluations. Some aspects
of the 2020 Census design options, deemed out
of scope, provide the initial canvas for potential
experiments. The formulation phase involves:
•• Executive Staff guidance on strategic principles
and high-level research targets.
•• Feedback from internal Program Managers,
operational subject matter experts, and Senior
Researchers/Methodologists.
•• Feedback from oversight groups, advisory
committees, the international collaboration consortium, the National Academy of Science, and
other external experts.

•• Establishment of parameters (e.g., cost, quality,
risks, and visibility) and criteria for selecting
evaluations and experiment proposals.
•• Management of the scope of the 2020 Census
program for evaluations and experiments.
Development, implementation, program control,
closeout, and coordination activities follow formulation of the 2020 Census Evaluations and
Experiments operation. Future versions of the
operational plan will clearly describe these phases
of the operation.
Research Completed
While the ultimate set of 2020 Census evaluations
and experiments is considered research, the process for reaching agreement on the scope of the
evaluations and experiments and the underlying
governance of the formulation process, are not
considered research. As such, no research occurs
at this stage in the Evaluations and Experiments
operation.
Decisions Made
No decisions have been finalized for this operation.
Design Issues to Be Resolved
Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:
Question

Expected Date

How can vital statistics be better used, September 2016*
or combined with other data sources
to improve the Demographic Analysis
estimates by age and sex, and to
better estimate or expand the race and
Hispanic origin categories for which the
Demographic Analysis estimates are
produced?
What are the strategic principles
and high-level research targets for
guiding formulation of evaluations and
experiments during the 2020 Census?

December 2016

What are the parameters (cost, quality, December 2016
risks, visibility, etc.) and criteria for
selecting and prioritizing evaluation and
experimentation proposals?

•• Recommendations from census research
and testing as captured in the Knowledge
Management application.
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2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 145

Question

Expected Date

Given the strategic principles for
guiding formulation of evaluations and
experiments and the parameters and
criteria for selecting and prioritizing
evaluation and experimentation
proposals, what is the defined set of
2020 Census Evaluations and 2020
Census Experiments?

December 2018

Milestones
Date

Activity

June 2017

Baseline program-level research plans for
2020 Census Experiments.1

September
2018

Release the EAE DOP.

October 2018

Begin receiving Office of Management
and Budget clearances for 2020 Census
Evaluations.

December
2018

Baseline program-level research plans for
2020 Census Evaluations.

July 2019

Begin issuing results2 for 2020 Census
Evaluations.

October 2019

Begin receiving Office of Management
and Budget clearances for 2020 Census
Experiments.

July 2020

Baseline preliminary 2030 Census
alternative design options for research.

October 2020

Finalize preliminary objectives for the 2030
Census research and testing phase.

December
2020

Deliver Demographic Analysis estimates.

October 2021

Begin the 2030 Census research and testing
phase.

July 2022

Finalize research results for 2020 Census
Experiments.

December
2022

Begin issuing results for 2020 Census
Experiments.

April 2023

Finalize research results for 2020 Census
Evaluations.

* The 2020 Census Operational Plan is current as of August 31,
2016.

Cost and Quality
Investment in EAE is projected to have minimal
influence on the overall cost and quality of the
2020 Census.
Risks
Identification of the 2020 Census evaluations and
experiments is dependent on the Census Bureau
having an understanding of what the social, economic, and technological environment will look
like in 2030. IF notions for a 2030 Census are not
logically conceived, THEN meaningful results from
the 2020 Census evaluations and experiments will
be minimized.

1
The experiment and evaluation research plans are program-level
summaries of what experiments and evaluations will be conducted during
the 2020 Census.
2
This aligns with when the earliest results will be available for
Census operations, such as for the LUCA (LUCA).

146 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

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5.9 INFRASTRUCTURE
The following four operations support the infrastructure of the 2020 Census:
•• Decennial Service Center: Supports 2020
Census field operations and handles all service
requests initiated by field staff.
•• Field Infrastructure: Coordinates space acquisition for and lease management of the Regional
Census Centers (RCCs) and field offices and provides the administrative infrastructure for data
collection operations covering the 50 states, the
District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.
•• Decennial Logistics Management: Provides
logistics management services to include
procuring warehouse space, warehousing,
inventory management, kit assembly, deployment of materials, and receiving and excessing
materials.
•• IT Infrastructure: Provide the IT Infrastructure
to support the 2020 Census, including enterprise systems and applications, 2020 Censusspecific applications, field IT infrastructure, and
mobile computing.
Each operation is described below.

5.9.1 Decennial Service Center
Detailed Planning Status:

Underway

•• Fund support staff from the beginning of testing
through 2020 Census production; otherwise,
there is no knowledge transfer from one test to
the next. DSC is only funded on a year-to-year
basis so all contractors are dismissed at the
end of the contract. Training of Service Center
staff absorbs a significant amount of time and
resources that are lost if the Service Center is
closed during periods when field operations are
not under way.
Opportunities to Innovate
Opportunities to innovate include the following:
•• Centralized service center system to provide a
call management system, incident, and service
management system supporting decentralized
Service Center technicians (e.g., technicians
based in Area Census Offices answering any call
to the DSC).
•• Online service center technician training. Provide
online training for service center technicians as
opposed to classroom training. Online training is
more accessible than classroom training.
•• Cloud technology for call management and
incident management. Cloud technology will
support the centralized service center system.
Description of Operation

Purpose
The Decennial Service Center (DSC) will support
2020 Census field operations and handle all service
requests initiated by field staff.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: There have been no major changes
to this operation.
Lessons Learned
Based on lessons learned from the 2014 and 2015
Census Tests, the following recommendations are
made:
•• Having the Service Center open during annual
Census tests provides insight into potential
issues which may arise during full 2020 Census
operations.
•• Having Service Center staff involved in User
Acceptance Tests helps them gain a better

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understanding of possible issues which may
occur in the field.

The overall goal of the 2020 Census DSC operation is the design and deployment of an integrated
service center, which will support field operations
and handle all help or service requests initiated by
field staff during the 2020 Census. These services
include the following:
•• Password resets for all 2020 Census applications
including LUCA.7
•• Resolution of software and hardware issues
from field offices and field staff, such as those
experienced by users of the Decennial Applicant
Payroll and Personnel System and mobile
devices.
•• Security incident management, such as petty
theft, injuries, and stolen equipment.

7
DSC is providing only password resets for LUCA; no further
DSC support is anticipated for LUCA.

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 147

•• Communications to and from field offices to
address such things as outages or software
releases.
Major functions of the DSC include the following:
•• Provide three major functions supporting 2020
Census Field Operations:
ºº Receive requests for service.
ºº Respond to requests for service.
ºº Report on requests for service.
•• Provide Tier-1 support during the 2020 Census
Tests.
ºº Tier-1 support will consist of resolving simple
issues from the field in a specified period of
time, such as password resets.
•• Provide Tier-1 and Tier-2 support during the
2020 Census field operations.
ºº In addition to the Tier-1 support described
above, Tier-2 support will consist of more
complex issues requiring troubleshooting by
specially trained staff with expertise in 2020
Census applications, such as the Operational
Control System, the Enumeration Instrument,
and the Listing and Mapping instrument.
•• Provide and Implement service-level agreements
with Tier-3 support based on current operational
standards of practice.
•• Serve in a coordination and communication
role in the event that a field office executes a
Continuity of Operations Plan.
•• Archive electronic records generated by the DSC
in accordance with Census Bureau archiving
policies.
Work Completed
The following research has been completed for this
operation:
•• Tested DSC use as part of the 2014 and 2015
Census Tests.

148 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

ºº Findings:
•• Changes to PIN and password configurations
for enumerators have reduced the number
of calls expected for password resets.
•• As the fingerprint vendor, USPS needs to
be prepared to cover the expected call
volume.8
•• There was a lower-than-expected call volume for online training-related issues.
Decisions Made
The following decisions have been made for this
operation:
99 The DSC will be limited to providing service center support for 2020 Census staff with technical
issues related to 2020 Census enterprise organization applications.
99 The DSC will provide support to field staff for
the 2020 Census systems and applications.
99 The DSC will provide support for various
types of mobile devices and mobile operating
systems.
99 Automated training will increase volume and it
will occur earlier in the schedule. This expected
increased volume of calls will lead to additional staff needed for a longer period of time
to field additional calls. Telephone, Internet,
Paper External Demand Model outputs have
been developed. The model has been updated in
several significant ways and will continue to be
refined.
99 Based on the changes in the business process,
we will no longer support Control Panel field
procedures for enumerators. There is no impact
to call volume. Field staff will be available during
classroom training to assist with IT support.
99 The methods for contacting Decennial Service
Center (DSC) will be through online submission
and telephone.
8
DSC is not planning to support this function for the
2020 Census.

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Design Issues to Be Resolved

Milestones

Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:
Question

Expected Date

What new contracts will need to be
awarded for the 2020 Census?

January 2017

What is the optimal service center
January 2017
staffing structure for the 2020 Census?
Centralized or decentralized? Optimal
staff ratios? Type of technical support
needed in local field offices? Impact on
services rendered of the number of field
offices that are deployed, and number
of field staff hired? Impact on services
rendered of using wireless connectivity
in the field offices?

Date

Activity

September
2015

Open DSC to support the 2016 Census Test.

September
2016

Start support for the 2017 Census Tests.

June 2017

Release the DSC DOP.

September
2017

Start support the 2018 End-to-End Census
Test.
Award the 2020 Census DSC contract.

December
2017

Start support for the 2020 Census RCC.

January 2019

Start support for the 2020 Census Area
Census Offices.

June 2021

Close the DSC.

Cost and Quality
Investment in DSC is projected to have minimal
influence on the overall cost of the 2020 Census
(under review).
Impacts of this operation on overall 2020 Census
quality include the following:
ÏÏ Providing an efficient DSC operation will
enhance quality of data collection by enumerators during the 2020 Census.
Risks
The risks listed below are specific to this operation:
The number of staff hired for the DSC will be heavily based on the expected volume of calls received.
IF call volumes are not accurately forecast, THEN
staffing levels for the DSC may be inaccurate.
Adjustments to DSC staffing levels and roles are
based on the schedule and scope for the 2020
Census field operations. IF late or frequent changes
to the 2020 Census field operations schedule or
scope occur, THEN there may not be sufficient time
to hire and train additional DSC staff as needed.

5.9.2 Field Infrastructure
Detailed Planning Status:

Underway

Purpose
The Field Infrastructure (FLDI) operation performs
the following functions:
•• Coordinates space acquisition for, and lease
management of, the RCC and Area Census
Offices.
•• Provides the administrative infrastructure for
data collection covering the 50 states, the
District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico including:
ºº Recruiting.
ºº Hiring and onboarding.
ºº Personnel and payroll administration.
ºº Training.
ºº Partnership support.
ºº Management and supervision.
ºº Clerical support.
ºº Materials supply.
ºº Printing and plotting.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: There is a change to the decision
about the location of the RCCs. The RCCs will be
located in the same metropolitan areas as the
Regional Offices, with the exception of the Denver
region, where the RCC will be located in Dallas,
Texas. This change is reflected in the Decisions
Made section.

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2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 149

Lessons Learned
Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census
studies and reviews, the following recommendations were made:
•• Establish an interagency working group to identify and develop effective strategies for space
acquisition and build communication among
stakeholders.
•• Opening some field offices earlier than the others
allowed for a “test” run of implementation in the
space acquisition effort and improved the process
for opening the remaining (majority) of offices.
•• Streamline and automate the job application
process to replace the paper-based recruitment
and testing process.
Opportunities to Innovate
Opportunities to innovate include the following:
•• Streamline field management structure using
automation and technology to manage the NRFU
caseload.
•• Automate the job application and recruiting
processes, payroll submission and approval
process, and other administrative processes to
streamline personnel processes and reduce staffing requirements and related costs.
•• Use of automation for training, including providing newly hired staff with electronic training
modules.
Description of Operation
Field Infrastructure includes:
•• Space acquisition or leasing, provisioning (specifications, schemas, designs, etc.), building-out,
and supplying the RCC and field offices that will
open to support field operations.
•• Providing human resources and personnel management support functions, including recruiting, hiring and onboarding (i.e., suitability and
background checks), training, payroll, and out-­
processing (i.e., separation management).
Research Completed
The following research has been completed for this
operation:
•• Review of other countries’ census field
infrastructure.
150 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

ºº Findings: Best practices include consolidation
of support functions in the field, specifically
payroll, recruiting, and other administrative
functions.
•• Develop a new concept of operations for field
infrastructure and test in the 2015 Census Test.
ºº Findings: Field Staff Training:
•• Combination of online and classroom
training provided standardization of the
information, provided tracking capabilities,
and offered various learning methods.
•• Reduced training hours compared with the
2010 Census NRFU enumerator training
from 32 to 18 hours.
•• Deployment of online videos to provide
targeted training to enumerators quickly
and efficiently.
•• Identified topics requiring additional training in future tests.
ºº Findings: Field Reengineering.
•• Area Operations Support Center and staffing of the Area Operations Support Center
successful.
•• Electronic payroll successful.
Decisions Made
The following decisions have been made for this
operation:
99 The 2020 Census field office infrastructure will
include six RCCs.
99 The RCCs will be located in the same metropolitan areas as the Regional Offices, with the
exception of the Denver region, where the RCC
will be located in Dallas, Texas.
99 Separate office space will be needed in the
Regional Census Center (RCC) to support
and manage Census Coverage Measurement
Operations.
99 The preliminary Regional Census Center (RCC)
staffing model is as follows:
ºº General Management: one Regional Director
and one Deputy Regional Director.
ºº Data Collection: two Assistant Regional
Census Managers and one Regional Manager
for Operations, who oversees five Census
Operations Managers located in different field
offices.
U.S. Census Bureau

ºº Administrative Functions: one Assistant
Regional Census Manager, one Recruiting
Coordinator, two Administrative Coordinators,
one Space, Leasing, and Supplies Coordinator,
and one Lead Technical Support Coordinator
(under review).
ºº Geography Partnership and Quality: one
Assistant Regional Census Manager, one
Regional Manager for Quality Assurance
(QA), two Partnership Coordinators, and one
Geographic Coordinator.
99 The 2020 Census field office infrastructure will
include up to 250 field offices, a small subset of
which will open a few months early to support
early census operations, including In-Field
Address Canvassing.
99 The preliminary field office staff model is as
follows:
ºº General Management: one Census Operations
Manager (reporting to the Regional Manager
for Operations at the Regional Census Center
(RCC)), one Manager for Support Operations
and one Manager for Field Operations.
ºº Data Collection: multiple Field Managers for
Operations, Local Supervisors for Operations,
Trainers, and Enumerators; specific numbers
based on workload; supervisory ratios to be
determined.
99 In-Field Address Canvassing will be managed
out of the field offices.
99 Recruiting activities will be automated.
99 The job application and assessment (testing)
process will be automated.
99 Field staff training will employ the use of online
training capabilities.
99 The training pay rate will be lower than the production pay rate.
99 The time and expense recording and approval
process for data collection field staff will be
automated for field operations.
99 As part of the solution, the USPS will assist with
onboarding processing for field staff.

Question

Expected Date

What is the approach for the recruiting
and onboarding process?

January 2017

Where will the field offices be located?

January 2017

Cost and Quality
Investment in FLDI is projected to influence (reduce
 or increase ) the 2020 Census overall costs in
the following ways:
ÐÐ Reduced office infrastructure for In-Field Address
Canvassing and NRFU operations.
ÐÐ Increased efficiencies due to automated administrative functions, including recruiting, onboarding, training, and payroll.
ÐÐ Increased cost savings due to reduced field
staffing.
Impacts of this operation on overall 2020 Census
quality include:
ÏÏ Fewer enumerator errors resulting from use of
automation to improve training methodology
and supervision capabilities.
ÏÏ Automated Job Application and Employment
Assessment Testing.
ÏÏ Automated Personnel and Payroll Administration
(e.g., Time and Attendance Submission).
Risks
The infrastructure put in place to support the 2020
Census field operations is expected to manage the
workload regardless of how large it may be. IF the
field infrastructure is not sufficient to support the
work for the 2020 Census, THEN there is significant
risk of not being able to effectively or efficiently
manage the associated field workload, which could
have an impact on cost and data quality.
The number of offices and staffing levels are heavily based on the expected workload for the field
operations that support the 2020 Census. IF late
design changes occur that impact the workload for
the field operations, THEN the number of offices
and staffing levels may need to increase.

Design Issues to Be Resolved
Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:

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2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 151

Milestones

•• Continue the belt-driven kit assembly line
process.

Date

Activity

March 2016

Finalize RCC space requirements.

Opportunities to Innovate

Finalize number of field offices.

Opportunities to innovate include the following:

January
2017

Finalize locations of field offices.

•• Implementation of an online, real-time Enterprise
Resource Planning system.

June 2017

Release the FLDI DOP.

December
2017

Finalize field office space requirements.

December
2017

Begin opening RCCs.

January
2019

Begin opening field offices.

December
2020

Complete closing of all field offices.

June 2021

Complete closing of all RCCs.

5.9.3 Decennial Logistics Management
Detailed Planning Status:

Underway

Purpose
The Decennial Logistics Management (DLM) will
provide logistics management services including
procuring warehouse space, warehousing, inventory management, kit assembly, deployment of
materials, and receiving and excessing materials.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: There have been no major changes
to this operation.
Lessons Learned

•• Implementation of a wireless network and
bar code technology will automate inventory
transactions.
•• Extended implementation of and access to the
Enterprise Resource Planning system to RCC and
field offices.
•• Policy and procedure to require full material
and supply inventory accounting throughout
the Census using Enterprise Resource Planning
system.
Description of Operation
The DLM operation for the 2020 Census consists
of:
•• Setting up a warehouse and office to support
RCC and field office deployments.
•• Recruiting, hiring, and training human resources
to support NPC logistics operations.
•• Providing the means to provision RCC, field
offices, and field staff with supplies.
•• Providing the RCC and field offices with operating materials, supplies, and equipment.
•• Providing other support functions (e.g., printing,
shipping, kitting, non-IT equipment).

Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census
studies and reviews, the following recommendations were made:

Work Completed

•• Purchase and deploy an Integrated Logistics
Management System to gain cost benefits generated from bulk purchasing and significantly
improve inventory control.

•• Study of current literature regarding Third-Party
Logistics Organizations.

•• Utilize barcode technology entirely, in conjunction with an Integrated Logistics Management
System, to improve inventory control and
reduce costs.
•• Conduct training at local offices for inventory
control, in conjunction with use of an Integrated
Logistics Management System.

152 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

The following research has been completed for this
operation:

ºº Findings: Given deadlines imposed by ThirdParty Logistics Organizations, this approach is
not consistent with the iterative development
of 2020 Census requirements.
•• Study of current literature on other logistics
support models that may fit the characteristics
of the 2020 Census:
ºº Findings:

U.S. Census Bureau

•• No new logistics models that align with the
major characteristics of the 2020 Census:
limited and short duration, high variety
and high mix of Operating Materials and
Supplies per operation, evolving data availability regarding quantities of Operating
Materials and Supplies.
•• Distributed warehousing will likely not
work for the 2020 Census. The strong
implication with distributed warehousing is
that whatever is needed in each warehouse
is well known ahead of time, which is not
characteristic of a decennial census.
•• The NPC has implemented the first phase of the
Integrated Logistics Management System project, to include inventory management.
Decisions Made
The following decisions have been made for this
operation:
99 Logistics support for procurement, assembly,
receiving, and deployment of non-IT operating
materials, supplies, and equipment will be conducted by the NPC.
99 Field Logistics support conducted by the NPC
will occur at an off-site location due to space
limitations within the current facility.
99 The preliminary plans for the Operating
Materials and Supplies have been developed
based on requirements from the Census tests to
date.
Design Issues to Be Resolved
Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:
Question

Expected Date

What are the preliminary plans for
quantities of Operating Materials
and Supplies required to support
operations?

October 2016

ºº Better, more up-to-date information for
­decision-making regarding on-going procurement activities.
ÐÐ Material requirements planning and resource
requirements planning.
ºº Generate better information about space
requirements and staff required to manage
inventory, and support field operations.
ÐÐ Production planning and scheduling of logistics
activities via proven, automated system features
instead of manual processes.
ºº Reduces the reliance on spreadsheet management by providing automated planning
and scheduling capabilities and has minimal
influence on the overall cost and quality of
the 2020 Census.
Risks
NPC delivered baselined space requirements for
the logistics operation to the General Services
Administration on April 1, 2016, to accommodate
an 18-month lead time before occupancy. Major
changes to these requirements could mean issues
with space available or the need to increase the
amount of space to meet the changes in material requirements. IF the NPC receives significant
changes to requirements for Operating Materials
and Supplies after the requirements for warehousing logistics have been baselined, THEN this may
result in a change in space requirements necessitating additional warehousing space, or may result
in underutilizing space already leased.
The more information NPC receives about operational requirements early on in the planning and
development stages tends to mitigate the need for,
and the magnitude of, additional resources and
costs. IF the NPC receives changes to operational
requirements as the 2020 Census work progresses,
THEN this may change the cost of logistics operational support, due to the need to add staff or
implement overtime to avoid schedule delays.

Cost and Quality
Investment in DLM is projected to influence (reduce
 or increase ) the 2020 Census overall costs in
the following ways:
ÐÐ Online, real-time inventory transaction updates.

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2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 153

Milestones
Date

Activity

April 2016

Initiate search and build out activities for
Logistics Space.

March 2017

Initiate Equipment Leases for Logistics
Functions.

June 2017

Release the DLM DOP.

October 2017 Occupy Logistics Space: installations
complete and ready to operate.
May 2021

Close down Logistics Operations.

5.9.4 IT Infrastructure
Detailed Planning Status:

•• Opening some field offices earlier than the others allowed for a “test” run of the deployment of
the IT infrastructure, including the equipment
and the telecommunications.
•• IT Infrastructure Readiness preparation and
assessment process for the 2015 Census Test
was instrumental and should continually be
used to improve remaining tests for the 2020
Census.
•• Improvements are needed in assessing and
approving requested changes to business and
technical requirements.
Opportunities to Innovate

Underway

Opportunities to Innovate include the following:

Purpose

•• Alignment to the Enterprise Architecture.

The purpose of the IT Infrastructure (ITIN) operation is to provide the IT-related infrastructure
support to the 2020 Census, including:

•• Early development of solutions architecture.
•• Use of enterprise solutions.

•• Enterprise systems and applications.

•• Iterative deployment of infrastructure aligned
with and based on testing and IIP.

•• Decennial-specific systems, applications, and
interfaces.

•• Use of workload demand models to size IT solutions appropriately.

•• Field IT infrastructure (RCC, field office, and
paper data capture center).

•• Scalable solutions.

•• Mobile computing.

•• Agile development of applications (all systems
supporting the 2020 Census).

•• Cloud computing.

•• Use of cloud computing.

Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational
Plan Release: Updated risks are consistent with
the Program-Level risk register, and updated “Work
Completed” is based on current status. Greater
detail on cloud computing items has been provided, and the types of systems supported within
the Decennial-specific applications scope has been
broadened.

Description of Operation

Lessons Learned
Based on lessons learned from the 2010 Census,
as well as the 2014 and 2015 Census Tests, the
following recommendations were made:
•• Provide nonfunctional and functional requirements that drive the design of the infrastructure
(e.g., performance, availability, information
about the users, monitoring, printing, reporting,
and security).
•• Use of prototypes and a test local census office
help validate the design of the IT infrastructure.
154 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

Each component of the ITIN operation is described
below.
Enterprise Systems and Applications: This
support area includes the planning and implementation of all hardware and software to support
operations for the 2020 Census, as well as the
management and monitoring of those systems,
including, but not limited to, the following:
•• CEDCaP Systems.
•• CEDSCI System.
•• Shared Services (Virtual Desktop Infrastructure,
etc.).
Decennial Specific Applications: This support
area includes the planning and implementation of
all hardware and software to support operations
for the 2020 Census, as well as the management
and monitoring of those systems, including, but
not limited to, the following:
U.S. Census Bureau

•• Recruiting, hiring, and on-boarding tools (including training).
•• Personnel and payroll applications.
•• Real-Time Non-ID Processing (RTNP) system.
•• Data Editing, Imputation, and Estimation
systems.
•• Evaluation systems.
•• Administrative Records systems.
RCC and Field Office IT Infrastructure: This
support area covers the deployment of IT capabilities in the form of office automation services
to any RCC, field office, facility, or work location
opened as part of the 2020 Census operations.
It includes support for all field data collection
operations through automated recruiting, hiring,
staffing, training, fingerprinting, and mobile device
support, including the following:
•• Definition of functional and nonfunctional solution requirements for field offices.
•• Development of the IT computing environment
design.
•• Procurement of circuits and IT equipment for the
census field offices.
•• Shipping, configuration, testing, and staging of
IT equipment for the census field offices.
•• Teardown and disposition of IT equipment and
circuits at the conclusion of the 2020 Census
activities.
Field IT infrastructure requirements will provide, at
a minimum, for the following:
•• Decennial Service Center.
•• National Processing Center.
•• Regional Census Centers.
•• Area Census Offices (ACO).
•• Data Capture Centers.
•• Partnerships, if needed.
•• Mobile offices and vehicles, if needed.
•• Offices for outlying areas (Island Areas).
•• Regional technicians.
Mobile Computing: The Census Bureau will
leverage technology innovations such as Mobile
Application Management (MAM) and Mobile Device
Management (MDM) programs and secure applications provided via Device as a Service. This will

U.S. Census Bureau

result in a flexible and efficient acquisition strategy to procure mobile devices and services for
fieldworkers.
Cloud Computing: The Census Bureau will
leverage cloud computing capabilities to transition
workloads onto FedRAMP certified Commercial
Cloud Service Providers. The Census Bureau will
implement cloud computing with configuration-managed automated deployments, automated
testing, and auto-scaling to meet demands with
a cloud consumption model for cost and billing.
Continuity of Operations Planning will also leverage
the cloud.
Work Completed
The following work has been completed for this
operation:
•• Established the Field IT infrastructure for the
2014 Census Test, 2014 SIMEX, 2015 Census
Test, and 2016 Census Test.
•• Established the Headquarters IT infrastructure
to support the 2014 Census Test, 2014 SIMEX,
2015 Census Tests and 2016 Census Test.
Mapped the IT infrastructure to each operational component tested to evaluate and ensure
readiness.
•• Used MDM solution and MAM solution to push
and securely manage mobile applications on
mobile devices.
•• Provided cloud infrastructure to support testing
of:
ºº Internet Data Collection.
ºº Real-Time Non-ID Processing.
Decisions Made
The following decisions have been made for this
operation:
99 An incremental approach will be used to define,
deploy, and test the IT Infrastructure.
99 Mobile devices will be used for field data
collection.
99 Whenever technically feasible and cost effective,
enterprise solutions will be used in support of
the 2020 Census.
99 A hybrid cloud design will be used for all 2020
Census systems requiring scaling wherever
possible.
2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 155

99 Virtual Desktop Infrastructure will be used for all
RCC and field office staff.
99 Demand models that the IT Infrastructure and
systems need to accommodate have been developed based on data from past Census Tests and
other surveys. These models are being used to
support future tests and the system of systems
architecture. Future data will be used to refine
these models.
99 The solution architecture was formalized
in FY2016 and was officially presented by
Atri Kalluri, the Decennial IT Division Chief,
at the July 22, 2016 2020 Census Program
Management Review.
99 Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) will not be
used moving forward, but lessons learned will
inform how we structure and use the Decennial
Device as a Service (dDaaS) program. The dDaaS
approach will be used to provide mobile devices,
accessories, cellular connectivity, and device
provisioning for each 2020 operation beginning
with the 2018 End-to-End Census Test through
2020 Coverage measurement.
99 The 2020 Census will use a variety of mobile
devices. For primary data collection, smartphones will be used. Field supervisory staff
will use tablets for oversight and for operation
control system functionality. Laptops (or tablets)
will also be used by field recruiters and outreach
staff. The security approach will be to encrypt
data at rest and in transit via a FIPS 140-2
solution. Mobile devices will also have a secure
authentication protocol. BYOD efforts in earlier
tests will serve as lessons learned in going
forward with a government furnished equipment
approach via the dDaaS acquisition vehicle.
99 The NPC will not have a role in IT deployments
to the RCCs and ACOs. The decision is that IT
deployments (keyboards, monitors as examples)
will be provided through a contracted service.

Cost and Quality
Investment in ITIN is projected to influence (reduce
 or increase ) the 2020 Census overall costs
through:
ÐÐ Leveraging enterprise solutions.
ÐÐ Leveraging cloud computing to address peak
performance requirements.
Impacts of this operation on overall 2020 Census
quality include the following:
ÏÏ Use of automation to collect real-time data,
enabling better monitoring and management of
the data collection activities.
ÏÏ Automated Training and Knowledge Base.
ÏÏ Sufficient mobile and networking infrastructure
to effectively support field operations.
ÏÏ Sufficient IT infrastructure to provide necessary
levels of performance, to include acceptable
interactions by the public, partners, and others.
Risks
Major concerns for the IT infrastructure operation
are covered by the IT-related 2020 Census Program
risks listed in Chapter 6.
Milestones
IT Infrastructure Milestones
Date

Activity

September
2016

Finalize Definition of Field IT Infrastructure
Solution Requirements.

December
2016

Award Contract for Field IT Infrastructure.

March 2017

Release the ITIN DOP.

November
2017

Begin Installation of ITIN for the RCCs.

June 2019

Begin Installation of ITIN for the ACOs.

Finalize Field Office IT Infrastructure Design.

Design Issues to Be Resolved
Additional work is required to make decisions on
the following questions:
Question

Expected Date

What cloud services are required to
support the 2020 Census operational
design (to include CEDCaP and nonCEDCaP)?

May 2017

156 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

U.S. Census Bureau

Cloud Testing and Readiness Milestones
Date

Activity

January 2015 Identify cloud computing as the assumed
technical solution in support of the CEDCaP
Decennial Infrastructure Scale-Up Project.
June 2015

Conduct initial testing of Internet SelfResponse using cloud computing services.

September
2015

Acquire cloud computing services in place to
support the 2016 Census Tests.
Deliver initial output from the 2020 Census
workload demand models, including Internet
Response.

December
2015

Deliver initial baseline of decomposed
2020 Census solution-level performance
requirements provided by 2020 Census
Integrated Project Teams.

June 2016

Deliver analyses of alternatives and
recommended solutions architecture, to
include cloud computing as a solution
alternative, in support of technical solutionlevel requirements. Acquire cloud computing
services to support the 2017 Census Tests
and future Census Tests.

August 2016

Complete 2020 Census technical solutionlevel requirements, including performance
requirements.

September
2016

Provision cloud computing services to support
the 2017 Census Tests and future Census
Tests. Re-baseline and deliver demand
models based on 2016 Census Test results.

December
2016
(estimated)

Phase 2 Cloud Contract Available, analysis
to transition or migrate 2020 Cloud Solutions
to Cloud Service Providers for 2020 Census
production completed.
Conduct performance and scalability testing in
the cloud (2017 Census Test Solution).

April 2017

Leverage cloud computing in support of 2017
Census Test.

June 2017

Modify technical solution architecture—plan
for larger scale performance, scalability, and
resilience testing in the cloud.

September
2017

Rebaseline workload demand models based
on 2017 Census Test results.

December
2017

Initiate performance, scalability, and resilience
testing in the cloud.

June 2018

Leverage cloud computing in support of 2018
End-to-End Census Test and analyze test
results. Modify workload demand models and
technical solution architecture.

September
2018

Review performance, scalability, and resilience
testing in the cloud.

September
2019

Ensure readiness of final cloud computing
solution for 2020 Census.

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2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 157

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6. Key Program-Level Risks
The 2020 Census Risk Management process
consists of activities performed to reduce the
probability and consequences of events that could
negatively affect the 2020 Census Program’s ability
to meet its objectives. The goal of the risk management process is to ensure a common, systematic,
and repeatable assessment approach at both the
program and project levels so that risks can be
effectively identified and managed, and clearly
communicated to management, stakeholders, and
executive-level decision-makers. Risk management
is iterative and designed to be performed continuously throughout the 2020 Census Program life
cycle.
Figure 33 shows the current risk matrix for all risks
in the 2020 Census Program Risk Register, as of
August 31, 2016.

From the 2020 Census Risk Register, 12 key program-level risks are highlighted in the sections
below. These risks were selected from the risk
register because members of the 2020 Census Risk
Review Board agreed these 12 key risks represent
the major concerns that could affect the design or
the successful implementation of the 2020 Census.
Along with the risk statement, the probability rating, the impact rating, the risk exposure level, and
the risk color are provided for each risk. Mitigation
strategies are also provided. Mitigation strategies
are to be considered ongoing activities, except
where indicated as complete. For information
about all the program-level risks, the full program
risk register is available upon request.

Probability
5
4

1
14%

3

5

5

3

75%
11%

2

1

2

6

1

4
1

1

2

3

4

5

Impact

Figure 33: 2020 Census Program-Level Risk Matrix

U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 159

6.1 FUNDING REQUESTS NOT
REALIZED
To execute a 2020 Census that reduces cost while
maintaining quality, the Census Bureau requires
appropriate funding during the entire life cycle
of the program. Funding for the 2020 Census
Program is required at the beginning of each fiscal
year and when funding commitments are realized.
IF the funding appropriated during each fiscal
year of the 2020 Census life cycle is less than
requested, THEN the ability to implement the critical systems and operations supporting the 2020
Census will be adversely affected.
Probability 4
(Likely)

Impact 5
(Major impact)

Exposure level

HIGH

Mitigation Strategies include the following:
•• Formulate and submit robust cost estimates
(including contingencies for known and unknown
risks) for planned 2020 Census activities throughout the 2020 Census Program life cycle.
•• Develop strong budget justifications that
demonstrate the negative impact of insufficient
funds in each fiscal year of the 2020 Census
Program life cycle.
•• Prioritize research, testing, and implementation
activities for each fiscal year of the 2020 Census
Program life cycle to focus on those areas that
can significantly impact cost and quality, and
develop contingency plans to quickly respond to
budget cuts.
•• Conduct quantitative analysis of the cost estimates using 2020 Census risk information.

6.2 ADMINISTRATIVE RECORDS AND
THIRD-PARTY DATA—EXTERNAL
FACTORS
The Census Bureau is planning to use administrative records and third-party data to reduce need to
follow up with nonrespondents through the identification of vacant and deleted housing units (those
that do not meet the Census Bureau’s definition of a
housing unit) and the enumeration of nonresponding housing units. Administrative records will also
be used to update the Master Address File, predict
the best times to contact nonresponding households, and verify respondent- and enumerator-­
provided information.
160 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

IF external factors or policies prevent the Census
Bureau from utilizing administrative records and
third-party data as planned, THEN the Census
Bureau may not be able to fully meet the strategic
goal of containing the overall cost of the 2020
Census.
Probability 3
(Moderately likely)

Impact 5
(Major impact)

Exposure level

HIGH

Mitigation Strategies include the following:
•• Identify external stakeholders that have an interest in Census Bureau policies regarding administrative record and third-party data usage.
•• Develop a stakeholder communications plan for
identified external stakeholders.
•• Regularly communicate to and seek feedback
from identified external stakeholders on design
decisions and research and testing results
related to the use of administrative records and
third-party data for the 2020 Census.
•• Assess impacts of any changes to the design
based on feedback from external stakeholders
and update plans accordingly.
•• Monitor external factors and policies that may
impact the Census Bureau’s planned use of
administrative records and third-party data for
the 2020 Census.

6.3 PUBLIC PERCEPTION OF ABILITY
TO SAFEGUARD RESPONSE DATA
The accuracy and usefulness of the data collected
for the 2020 Census are dependent upon the ability to obtain information from the public, which is
influenced partly by the public’s perception of how
well their privacy and confidentiality concerns are
being addressed. The public’s perception of the
Census Bureau’s ability to safeguard their response
data may be affected by security breaches or the
mishandling of data at other government agencies
or in the private sector.
IF a substantial segment of the public is not convinced that the Census Bureau can safeguard their
response data against data breaches and unauthorized use, THEN response rates may be lower
than projected, leading to an increase in cases for
follow-up and cost increases.

U.S. Census Bureau

Probability 3
(Moderately likely)

Impact 5
(Major impact)

Exposure level

HIGH

Mitigation Strategies include the following:
•• Develop a communications strategy to build and
maintain the public’s confidence in the Census
Bureau’s ability to keep their data safe.
•• Research other Census Bureau divisions, other
government agencies, other countries, and the
private sector to understand how they effectively
mitigate the issue of public trust and IT security.
•• Continually monitor the public’s confidence in
data security in order to gauge their probable
acceptance of the Census Bureau’s methods for
enumeration.

6.4 CYBERSECURITY INCIDENTS
Cybersecurity incidents (e.g., breach, denial of
service attack) could happen to the Census Bureau’s
authorized IT systems, such as the Internet self-response instrument, mobile devices used for fieldwork, and data processing and storage systems. IT
security controls will be put in place to protect the
confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the IT
systems and data.
IF a cybersecurity incident occurs to the systems
supporting the 2020 Census, THEN additional
technological efforts will be required to repair or
replace the systems affected in order to maintain
secure services and data.
Probability 3
(Moderately likely)

Impact 5
(Major impact)

Exposure level

HIGH

Mitigation Strategies include the following:
•• Monitor system development efforts to ensure
the proper security guidelines are followed
during the system development phase.
•• Research other Census Bureau programs, other
government agencies, other countries, and the
private sector to understand how they effectively mitigate cybersecurity incidents.

•• Prepare for rapid response to address any
detected cybersecurity incidents.

6.5 ENTERPRISE IT SOLUTIONS
The Census Bureau, wherever feasible, will leverage cross-program IT solutions and has begun
the work necessary to ensure this is achieved.
However, enterprise solutions may not address
all of the 2020 Census Program requirements. In
these cases, impacts must be identified and proper
actions taken to resolve the situation.
IF enterprise IT solutions cannot meet the 2020
Census Program requirements, THEN existing
systems may require substantial modifications or
entirely new systems may have to be developed,
adding complexity and increasing risk for a timely
and successful 2020 Census.
Probability 3
(Moderately likely)

Impact 4
(Substantial
impact)

Exposure level

MEDIUM

Mitigation Strategies include the following:
•• Engage with enterprise efforts to ensure that
solutions architectures align and provide continued support for 2020 Census requirements
development and management.
•• Participate in agency-wide solution development
(i.e., avoid custom solutions where enterprise
or off-the-shelf solutions will suffice) and ensure
that contingencies (i.e., off-ramps) are developed early and exercised when necessary.
•• Determine the extent existing systems from
the 2010 Census can be modified and reused if
necessary. (Complete)
•• Design IT solutions that are flexible enough to
incorporate design changes.
•• Establish a change control management process
to assess impacts of change requests to facilitate decision-making. (Complete)
•• Prepare for rapid response to implement change
based on the results of the change control
process.

•• Audit systems and check logs to help in detecting and tracing an outside infiltration.

6.6 DATA QUALITY

•• Perform threat and vulnerability analysis
through testing.

The planned innovations for the design of the 2020
Census aspire to save significant taxpayer dollars

U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 161

by making data collection and field operations
more efficient.
IF the innovations implemented to meet the 2020
Census cost goals result in unanticipated negative impacts to data quality, THEN additional
unplanned efforts may be necessary in order to
increase the quality of the census data.
Probability 3
(Moderately likely)

Impact 4
(Substantial
impact)

Exposure level

MEDIUM

Mitigation Strategies include the following:
•• Perform cost and quality trade off analysis on
data collected during field tests.
•• Review results of cost and quality trade off
analysis, and determine the most cost-effective
methods, if any, for increasing quality without
sacrificing cost savings.
•• Determine level of quality expected by major
stakeholders.
•• Determine what additional effort would be
needed to increase the quality of census data.

6.7 LATE OPERATIONAL DESIGN
CHANGES
After key planning and development milestones
are completed, stakeholders may disagree with
the planned innovations behind the 2020 Census
and decide to modify the design, resulting in late
operational design changes.
IF operational design changes are required following the completion of key planning and development milestones, THEN the 2020 Census Program
may have to implement costly design changes,
increasing the risk for a timely and successful
2020 Census.
Probability 3
(Moderately likely)

Impact 4
(Substantial
impact)

Exposure level

MEDIUM

Mitigation Strategies include the following:
•• Identify internal and external stakeholders that
have an interest in the 2020 Census operational
design.
•• Develop a stakeholder communications plan for
identified internal and external stakeholders.

stakeholders on design decisions and research
and testing results.
•• Assess impacts of any changes to the 2020
Census design based on feedback from internal
and external stakeholders and update plans
accordingly.
•• Monitor external factors and policies that may
impact the Census Bureau’s planned innovations
for the 2020 Census operational design.
•• Establish a change control management process
to assess impacts of change requests to facilitate decision-making. (Complete)
•• Prepare for rapid response to address potential changes and make decisions based on the
results of the change control process.

6.8 REENGINEERING ADDRESS
CANVASSING OPERATION
For the 2010 Census, a near 100-percent Address
Canvassing operation in the field was used to
update and validate a complete and accurate inventory of addresses, which forms the basis for the
census enumeration. For the 2020 Census, a variety of in-office techniques are being tested for use
in updating and validating the completeness of the
address inventory. These in-office techniques are
expected to reduce the areas that require fieldwork
while achieving an equal or greater result, thereby
reducing costs and improving quality for the overall 2020 Census Program.
IF the established threshold of addresses to update
and validate through in-office techniques is not
achieved with the expected level of quality and
cost, THEN the 2020 Census Program objectives
may not be met.
Probability 2
(Not likely)

Impact 5
(Major impact)

Exposure level

MEDIUM

Mitigation Strategies include the following:
•• Establish the objectives for In-Office Address
Canvassing through the development of the
2020 Census Operational Plan. (Complete)
•• Baseline the techniques for In-Office Address
Canvassing through the development of
the Detailed Operational Plan for Address
Canvassing. (Complete)

•• Regularly communicate to and seek feedback from identified internal and external
162 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

U.S. Census Bureau

•• Evaluate In-Office Address Canvassing techniques and results.
•• Update, as necessary, the In-Office Address
Canvassing techniques from lessons learned,
recommendations, and results from various data
collection exercises.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational Plan
Release:
•• Probability rating was lowered from 3 to 2
(therefore, the exposure level changed from
High to Medium) because recent analysis, as
documented in the Detailed Operational Plan
for the Address Canvassing Operation, of the
quality and coverage of the MAF has led 2020
Census managers to believe the 25 percent
In-Field Canvassing workload can be met.

6.9 ADMINISTRATIVE RECORDS AND
THIRD-PARTY DATA—ACCESS AND
CONSTRAINTS
The Census Bureau is planning to use administrative records and third-party data to reduce the
need to follow up with nonrespondents through
the identification of vacant and deleted housing
units (those that do not meet the Census Bureau’s
definition of a housing unit) and the enumeration of nonresponding occupied housing units.
Administrative records will also be used to update
the Master Address File, predict the best times to
contact nonresponding households, and verify
respondent- and enumerator-provided information.
The use of administrative records data requires
special handling and security protocols that affect
the development of the systems and infrastructure
supporting the 2020 Census.
IF the Census Bureau does not have timely and
continual access to administrative records and
third-party data, or the data providers place
constraints on the use of the data that conflicts
with planned 2020 Census operations, THEN the
Census Bureau may not be able to fully meet the
strategic goal of containing the overall cost of the
2020 Census.
Probability 2
(Not likely)

Impact 5
(Major impact)

Exposure level

MEDIUM

Mitigation Strategies include the following:
•• Identify all required administrative records
and third-party data sets needed for the 2020
U.S. Census Bureau

Census Program, including data providers and
points-of-contact.
•• Review data sharing agreements/contracts in
order to understand all the conditions assigned
to the administrative records and thirdparty data sets and to ensure conditions are
appropriate.
•• Ensure requirements for administrative records
and third-party data usage are developed and
documented.
•• Inform data providers that data agreements/contracts need to be updated.
•• Disseminate updated data agreements/contracts
to internal stakeholders.
•• Negotiate with the source providers to ensure
required administrative records and third-party
data are available when needed.
•• Ensure the build-out for all systems supporting
the 2020 Census takes into account the handling
of administrative records and third-party data.
•• Ensure the security requirements, including
physical security, for all systems supporting the
2020 Census cover the handling of administrative records and third-party data.
•• Ensure staff has been trained in the proper
handling of administrative records and thirdparty data.

6.10 CLOUD IMPLEMENTATION
Some systems supporting the 2020 Census
Program plan to mitigate the surging demand on
the systems by utilizing the Cloud as part of the
architecture.
IF the Cloud, and the migration to it, is not evaluated, designed, and tested thoroughly, THEN
any implementation of the Cloud may introduce
system failures or process gaps with downstream
implications.
Probability 3
(Moderately likely)

Impact 3
(Moderate impact)

Exposure level

MEDIUM

Mitigation Strategies include the following:
•• Develop plans for alternate deployments of
each 2020 Census system that is targeted to be
hosted on the Cloud.
•• Assign the 2020 Census Technical Integrator
to develop a physical architecture for the 2020
2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 163

Census System of Systems, including the assessment and design of a cloud architecture for the
2020 Census.
•• Assign the 2020 Census Technical Integrator to
assess every system of the 2020 Census System
of Systems, including the systems suitability for
the Cloud and the migration strategy if the system is determined to be suitable for the Cloud.

6.11 TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATIONS
SURFACING AFTER DESIGN IS
FINALIZED
Technological innovations inevitably surface, but
the 2020 Census Program must move forward
toward building the operational design, which will
be finalized and put into production for the 2018
End-to-End Census Test.
IF technological innovations surface after the
design for the 2020 Census has been finalized,
THEN development and testing life-cycle phases
must be compressed if the innovations are
adopted, resulting in less time to mature innovations in census methodologies and systems.
Probability 2
(Not likely)

Impact 4
(Substantial
impact)

Exposure level

MEDIUM

surface between the 2018 End-to-End Census
Test and Census Day in 2020. It is not likely any
technological innovation will be approved for
production in that timeframe.

6.12 POLICY IMPACTS
The Census Bureau is introducing significant innovations to conduct the 2020 Census. Some of these
innovations may be contingent upon interpretation
of current policies or the development of new policies where gaps exist.
IF policies prevent the 2020 Census Program from
implementing the proposed innovations, THEN the
2020 Census Program may not be able to meet the
strategic goals and objectives of the program.
Probability 2
(Not likely)

Impact 3
(Moderate impact)

Exposure level

LOW

Mitigation Strategies include the following:
•• Actively engage key internal and external stakeholders to build support for the use of new or
modified activities and operations for enumeration in the 2020 Census.
•• Determine if current or new policies, both internal and external, will affect the implementation
of the proposed innovations.

Mitigation Strategies include the following:
•• Design and build versatile operations and
systems.
•• Keep team members and management aware of
evolving technological innovations.
•• Devote dedicated resources to track and communicate innovations. (Complete)
•• Dedicate funds to incorporate innovations into
the design.
•• Bring new technological innovations to Portfolio
Management Governance Board (PMGB).
•• Reach out to data-collection institutions for
knowledge sharing.
Changes Made Since Version 1.1 Operational Plan
Release:
•• Probability rating was lowered from 3 to 2
(therefore, the exposure level changed from
High to Medium) because it is believed the
design for the 2018 End-to-End Census Test will
be technologically sound and there are unlikely
to be many technological innovations that will
164 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

U.S. Census Bureau

7. Quality Analysis
As the Census Bureau continues to evaluate the
2020 Census operational design, an analysis of
the impact on the quality of the census results is
required to ensure that innovations designed to
reduce cost do not have an unacceptable impact on
quality. This section describes the processes and
analysis performed to date on the quality impacts
of the four key innovation areas: Reengineering
Address Canvassing, Optimizing Self-Response,
Utilizing Administrative Records and Third-Party
Data, and Reengineering Field Operations. The
analysis focuses on impacts of innovations. For
example, the analysis related to administrative
records and third-party data focuses on the impact
of these innovations on Nonresponse Followup
(NRFU), as that operation is where the innovations
are expected to provide the greatest cost savings.
The Census Bureau analyzed all major frame development and enumeration operations in the 2020
Census design.
This section is organized as follows with supporting operations for the analysis:
•• Quality Impacts for Reengineering Address
Canvassing
ºº Address Canvassing
ºº Local Update of Census Addresses (LUCA)
ºº Geographic Programs
•• Quality Impacts for Optimizing Self-Response
ºº Paper Data Capture
ºº Internet Self-Response
ºº Non-ID Processing
ºº Census Questionnaire Assistance (CQA)
•• Quality Impacts of Utilizing Administrative
Records and Third-Party Data
ºº Update Enumerate (UE)
ºº Nonresponse Followup (NRFU)
•• Quality Impacts of Reengineering Field
Operations
ºº UE
ºº Group Quarters (GQ)
ºº NRFU
This release expands prior analysis in version 1.1
of the 2020 Census Operational Plan by including
U.S. Census Bureau

analysis of 2015 and 2016 Census Test data,
integrating LUCA, identifying expanded metrics
for housing and people, quantifying downstream
impacts and integration across operations, and
analyzing six additional operations.
This analysis produces two major outputs: estimated housing-unit coverage error and person-level
coverage error. Reengineering Address Canvassing
studies only housing-unit coverage. Enumeration
includes integration of both subsections—one
for housing units (HUs) and one for people. As
was done in the 2010 Census enumeration, final
quality metrics for people are divided into three
major parts: estimated completed enumerations,
estimated erroneous enumerations, and estimated
omissions. Although all of these estimates for both
HUs and people in 2016 are reported at the national
level, lower levels of geography may be analyzed in
upcoming years prior to 2020.
This quality analysis leverages data from the
2010 Census Coverage Measurement (CCM),
2010 Census, census tests from the 2020 Census
Research and Testing Program conducted from
2012 through 2016, and the American Community
Survey (ACS) to produce specific parameters. A
parameter is a measure of X or Y or Z. For example, one parameter for an operation could be an
estimated workload, and another parameter could
be the number of estimated errors it will produce
of a given kind. In some cases, expert judgment is
used when data were not available. Expert judgment varies from team to team, but in general, the
experts for each parameter were asked to predict
a value of the parameter for the 2020 Census as
accurately as possible. Typically, a parameter is
based on data but then adjusted based on expert
judgment to account for deficiencies in the data.
An example is provided below in the Methodology
Example section.
The integration of cost and quality drove the quality methodology. In past years, the cost estimation
team used parameters produced by Subject Matter
Experts (SME) to define workloads and to estimate
costs across the operations. To be consistent with
cost models, a complex set of parameters drives
this quality methodology, and each parameter
includes five important components from SMEs:

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 165

1.

Minimum value;

2.

Middle value (typically mean, median, or
mode);

3.

Maximum value;

4.

Distribution (normal, uniform, triangular,
log-normal, etc.); and

5.

Source.

Two models integrate the parameters—one for
frame and the other for enumeration. The models interact with each other and produce quality
estimates of an integrated design of the 2020
Census. In other words, the effects of Address
Canvassing quality can be traced through the various self-response methods and all the way down
to the nonresponse operations to see the impacts
Address Canvassing has on cost and quality of
all the later operations of the design. This analysis reviewed the impacts and interactions of all
the major operations in the design. This analysis
includes HUs and population for the 50 states, the
District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.
It is important to realize that the current analysis
relies on scores of input parameters, many of them
derived from expert judgment. As the decade progresses, data from additional tests, research, and
analyses may become available and in some cases
provide for more accurate parameters. Thus, the
projections and estimates that are currently being
reviewed and analyzed are only preliminary and
will change.
These analyses are potentially valuable in several
ways. First, they point out dependencies and gaps
among the operations that warrant consideration
as the census design moves from planning to
implementation. For example, this analysis reviews
impacts of decisions on LUCA to later operations
like paper self-response via workloads. If LUCA
adds a million correct or erroneous addresses, then
paper operations have to prepare to mail materials
to them. Second, they help determine which factors
(parameters) are the key drivers of cost or quality
and must be constantly considered and monitored,
versus which factors must be addressed but play
a less important role in the design. By changing
many parameters together and reviewing impacts,
the Census Bureau can prepare for and mitigate

166 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

extreme circumstances that may arise (risk management). For example, if a major government
security breach occurs in early 2020, then all of
our parameters for self-response may drop considerably. We can very quickly model these possibilities and see extreme examples with relatively
minor effort. Finally, by changing the values of one
parameter while keeping all others fixed (performing sensitivity analyses), one can study potential
effects on quality under alternative operational
designs. If we change the percent of addresses visited in the In-Field Address Canvassing operation,
we can see the impacts of that change to cost and
quality for other operations and the overall design
of the 2020 Census.
Baseline
The quality of the 2010 Census was measured
using the 2010 Census Coverage Measurement
Survey (CCM).12 The CCM was a post-enumeration
survey designed to assess the coverage of the
census for HUs and persons, producing estimates
of omissions and erroneous enumerations. The
CCM estimated a net overcount of 0.01 percent,
or 36,000 persons, which was not statistically
different from zero. There were an estimated 10.0
million erroneous enumerations for the household population and 10.0 million omissions,
after removing the 6.0 million whole person
imputations. To identify the potential cost and
quality implications of the 2020 Census design,
the Census Bureau does not have the benefit of a
post-enumeration survey. However, the analysis
presented here uses some findings from the 2010
CCM survey to make assumptions about what to
expect given the 2020 Census design plans. In
addition, census test results and simulations with
2010 Census data are used to assess potential cost
and quality effects.
Additionally, the Census Bureau’s Population Division
(POP) produces estimates of expected HUs and population for 2020. POP updates these projections on a
regular basis and includes both stateside and Puerto
Rico components. The current 2020 estimates are
142,359,000 HUs and 334,503,000 people. The
quality analysis presented here uses these POP
12
The scope of the 2010 CCM survey excluded people living
in group quarters and in Remote Alaska.

U.S. Census Bureau

estimates as an estimate of truth. A full description
of POP methodology is available.13
Methodology Example
2020 Census operational teams prepared and
provided parameters for predicting the quality of
their operations. This example will focus on the
self-response team, but all the teams followed a
similar process to provide parameters. We focus
on paper self-response and the impacts that paper
self-response has on the overall quality of the 2020
Census design. The entire country is divided into
three basic parts for the purposes of mail contact—
Type of Enumeration Area (TEA) 1, which are SelfResponse areas; TEA 2, which are UE areas; and
TEAs 3+, which are the rest of the country14.
The six parameters for Paper self-response include:
1.

Percent of Paper questionnaires completed in
TEA 1;

2.

Percent of Paper questionnaires completed in
TEA 2 mailable areas;

3.

Percent of Paper questionnaires completed in
TEA 2 non-mailable areas and post-visit;

4.

Percent of Paper questionnaires with erroneous people (called erroneous enumerations);

5.

Percent of Paper questionnaires with omitted
people (called omissions); and

6.

Percent of Paper questionnaires with missing
Race or Hispanic origin.

Focusing on the first parameter, percent of paper
questionnaires completed in TEA 1, the SelfResponse Team provided the following information:
1.

Minimum value—9.4 percent;

2.

Middle value—12.7 percent;

3.

Maximum value—16.0 percent;

4.

Distribution (normal, uniform, triangular,
log-normal, etc.)—triangular; and

5.

Source—2012 National Census Test, 2014
Census Test, 2015 Census Test, 2015

13
For information on POP methodology, see Methodology,
Assumptions, and Inputs for the 2014 National Projections,
December 2014, at .
14
TEAs 3+ are not included in this analysis and they make up
0.2 percent of the addresses in the country.

U.S. Census Bureau

National Content Test, ACS, 2010 Census,
Pew Research, and Expert Judgment.
These estimates are based on analysis involving
multiple tests and survey data. However, the test
and survey data do not yield the same self-response rates that have been seen in past Censuses.
Based on expert judgment, a factor was applied to
the self-response rate to account for the “Census
Environment” that is not replicatable in any census
test or survey. The middle value estimate of this
parameter was applied to the total TEA 1 universe
(133.5 million). The other parameters for TEA 2
were applied to the TEA 2 universe (12.4 million)
and then the estimates were added together to
get approximately 17,900,000. This total, 17.9
million, represents the current point estimate of
the number of completed paper questionnaires
expected in the 2020 Census. This estimate has
uncertainty around it, based on the minimum and
maximum values of the parameters. The minimum
and maximum, as well as the distribution, are used
to feed the Monte Carlo simulation. The outputs of
the Monte Carlo simulation for quality, after they
are integrated with all other parameters, provide
a basis for uncertainty around the parameters and
the 2020 Census design as a whole. Finally, the
source information helps people outside the team
understand the supporting documentation and
methodology behind each estimate.

7.1 REENGINEERING ADDRESS
CANVASSING
Throughout the entire Reengineering Address
Canvassing section, the analysis focuses on three
ultimate estimates:
1.

Total living quarters on the enumeration
frame at the beginning of enumeration;

2.

Missed adds—these are addresses expected
on the ground that are missing from our
frame (missed adds include addresses that
are on the frame but lack a geocode15); and

3.

Missed deletes—these are addresses on our
frame that are not actually valid living quarters on the ground.

15
A geocoded address is one that has a block code. This code
is critical for 2020 Census because we must count people and
living quarters in a block.

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 167

The final outputs from Reengineering Address
Canvassing are the starting point for enumeration (approximately January 1, 2020). The specific
parameters collected to define the Reengineering
Address Canvassing outputs are summarized in
Table 8. Table 8 gives a rough approximation of the
level of detail and complexity of the various operations for this analysis.

Table 8: Summary of Quality
Parameters Collected for
Reengineering Address Canvassing

Operation

Number of
parameters
collected
for quality
analysis

Initial frame development. . . . . . . . . . . . . .

10

MAF Coverage Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

5

In-Office Address Canvassing. . . . . . . . . .

22

LUCA. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

10

In-Field Address Canvassing. . . . . . . . . . .

5

Geographic programs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

8

Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

57

To simplify the analysis, the starting point is the
beginning of Fiscal Year 2016 (FY16), with the estimated number of the three main aggregates. The
numbers evolve though the subsequent fiscal years
by incorporating growth in the housing stock, and
cleaning up the frame by resolving missed adds and
missed deletes--errors on the frame. These errors
are resolved through several operations, including
In-Office Address Canvassing, the Master Address
File (MAF) Coverage Study, the LUCA program, and
In-Field Address Canvassing. The critical point is
January 1, 2020, when the enumeration frame is
defined and created for census enumeration operations, such as, Self-Response, UE, and others.
This analysis integrates operations. As an example, the errors on the frame are tracked across
operations down to the NRFU operation, so that
the same error is not fixed by more than one
operation.
Initial Frame Development

as of October 1, 2015. Based on analysis of the
MAF and using results of the Address Validation
Test that occurred in 2015, the ten parameters for
estimating the initial state of the MAF are listed in
Table 9.

Table 9: Summary of Quality
Parameters Collected for Initial Frame
Parameter

Source

Number of addresses on the
frame (US and Puerto Rico)—
3 parameters

ACS 2016 extracts of
total addresses and
ungeocoded addresses

Estimated number of actual
addresses

POP’s estimate

Percent of growth missing from
the frame

From Analysis of the
Address Validation Test
(AVT) and expert judgment

Percent of the growth that is
ungeocoded

Estimated based on AVT
and additional sources

Percent of growth that is
overcoverage (missed deletes)

Estimated based on AVT
and expert judgment

Errors already on the frame—
Percent of missed adds in frame

Estimated based on AVT
and expert judgment

Errors already on the frame—
Percent of missed deletes in
frame

Estimated based on AVT
and expert judgment

Addresses geocoded annually

Estimated based on past
production rates and
expected funding in the
future

These ten parameters, once integrated, represent
the state of the frame in 2016 prior to any Address
Canvassing work, including the In-Office Address
Canvassing and the MAF Coverage Study, which
both started in full production in FY16.
The number of addresses on the frame for FY17 is
projected by taking the estimate for FY16, adding an estimate of the missed adds that will be
resolved during FY16, and subtracting an estimate
of the missed deletes that will be resolved in FY16.
The missed adds and missed deletes are resolved
through the operations mentioned above. These
numbers take into account the projected new
growth and the estimated numbers of missed adds
and missed deletes that accompany this growth.
Projections of these numbers for FY18, FY19, and
FY20 are made analogously.

The starting point for the frame quality analysis
begins with estimates of the state of the frame

168 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

U.S. Census Bureau

For this analysis, estimates of the numbers of
missed adds are separated into two categories:
addresses missing from the MAF, and addresses on
the MAF that are ungeocoded. Some operations will
resolve both types. On the other hand, a planned
geocoding operation to be started in the middle
of 2017 will address only ungeocoded addresses.
The office work involved in the LUCA operation will
differentiate between the two types of missed adds
as it attempts to resolve cases.
In-Office Address Canvassing and MAF
Coverage Study
The Address Canvassing operation has three
major components, as described in section 5.4.3:
In-Office Address Canvassing (IOAC), In-Field
Address Canvassing (IFAC), and the MAF Coverage
Study (MCS). Both the IOAC operation and the
MCS began in full production in FY16 and continue throughout the decade. The IOAC operation has two phases—Interactive Review (IR) and
Active Block Resolution (ABR). IR categorizes the
blocks into passive, active, or on-hold blocks. ABR
updates the block and adds and deletes addresses
in the active blocks. Table 10 describes the five key
parameters, out of the 27 total collected, for IOAC
and MCS conducted in 2016 through 2019, prior to
LUCA. Workload parameters, not described, include
the amount of work planned for each year based
on approved budgets.

Table 10: Summary of Key Quality
Parameters Collected for the In-Office
Address Canvassing and MAF Coverage
Study
Parameter

Source

Percent of blocks identified
as Passive during Interactive
Review

Based on observed IR
work that occurred in 2016

Percent of missed adds in
Passive blocks

Address Validation
Test results and expert
judgment

Percent of missed deletes in
Passive blocks

Address Validation
Test results and expert
judgment

Percent of missed adds captured Address Validation
in Active blocks
Test results and expert
judgment
Percent of missed deletes
captured in Active blocks

U.S. Census Bureau

Address Validation
Test results and expert
judgment

Recognizing that the frame is the single largest
contributor to overall quality, the parameters in
Table 10 show the most critical contributors to
quality in the entire 2020 Census design. IOAC
corrects hundreds of thousands of addresses
for both missed adds and missed deletes each
year. The quality outputs from the integration
of IOAC parameters illustrate the core quality
­improvement in the 2020 Census design. This
ongoing frame improvement work involves inputs
and outputs that include a higher quality frame
than the Census Bureau saw coming out of the
2010 Census. Better frame maintenance processes
conducted throughout the decade, including the
Geographic Support System (GSS), geocoding, and
improved technology like the use of aerial imagery, helped define the overall quality of the 2020
Census. The addition of this IOAC process shows
promise to improve the quality of the 2020 Census,
demographic surveys, and future censuses.
As the Census Bureau operationalizes the IOAC
processes and measures the results of the work
through the MCS in 2017, the input parameters
for IOAC based on these measures should improve
and support better estimates of the three key
aggregates.
Local Update of Census Addresses
In analyzing the effect of the LUCA operation, the
most important input parameter is the number of
LUCA submissions from the various governmental entities. The procedures and requirements for
submission changed from the 2000 Census to
the 2010 Census, and have changed again for the
2020 Census. That makes it more difficult to project the volume of submissions the Census Bureau
will receive.
Another parameter considered is the number of
addresses submitted to the Census Bureau through
LUCA and then rejected by the Bureau as not valid.
The rejections may be appealed to the Office of
Management and Budget for additional consideration. Unless the appeals are resolved before the
enumeration frame is identified, such cases will be
included in the frame.
For the quality analysis, the projected number of
submissions is subdivided into several categories,
according to the Census Bureau’s assessment of the
addresses provided—including whether the address
is valid or not, on the MAF already or not, etc.
2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 169

Based on results of the LUCA program in past censuses, experts on the LUCA process have projected
the total number of submissions the Census Bureau
might anticipate, the proportions for the categories
those addresses may fall into, and the chance that
rejected submissions will be appealed. Past data
are used to estimate how many of those appealed
cases will turn out to be valid living quarters and
added to the frame.
The most important result of the quality analysis for LUCA is summarized in estimates of two
numbers from the LUCA program, good addresses
missing from the frame and erroneous addresses
added to the frame. The first represents the
reduction in the number of missed adds, while the
second represents additions to the frame in error
(missed deletes). The former quantifies a reduction in potential omission of housing units (and,
eventually, people); the latter quantifies additional
cases that may be sent for fieldwork erroneously.
Just as important, the sum of these two numbers
has a serious effect on census operations and their
accompanying cost.
An important dependency included in this analysis
is the relative state of the address frame when the
LUCA program begins, and when submissions are
received and processed. As errors on the frame
are rectified through other geographic programs,
such as In-Office Address Canvassing, the number
of missed adds and missed deletes should diminish. This may provide for fewer address submissions from the government partners in the LUCA
program and should result in fewer actual address
corrections, that is, less error reduction. The quality analysis on the frame takes these dependencies
into account.
In-Field Address Canvassing
The In-Field Address Canvassing (IFAC) operation
will occur in 2019 for no more than 25 percent of
the HUs, the key IFAC parameter. This operation
incorporates fieldwork identified through the results
of In-Office Address Canvassing and LUCA submissions. For this final field operation, which prepares
the frame for enumeration, the Census Bureau
identifies parameters about capture rates of the
missed adds and missed deletes expected in these
canvassed blocks. After this fieldwork is complete,
the final enumeration universe as of January 1,
2020 is created and estimated by this analysis.
170 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

Measures of Uncertainty for Reengineering
Address Canvassing
As described earlier, each input parameter has a
minimum, middle, maximum value, and a distribution. After Reengineering Address Canvassing
integration for all these parameters, the final
description of the work logically concludes with
the outputs from the Monte Carlo simulations
that integrate all the uncertainty around these
key frame development parameters. The resulting
variability is an input to the next phase, which is
enumeration.
Reengineering Address Canvassing
Alternatives Analysis
One of the goals of the 2020 Census Quality
Analysis Team is to use the models to look at
alternative designs and potential refinements to
the 2020 Census operational design. To that end,
the Quality Analysis Team identified the five key
parameters that affect cost or quality. The Census
Bureau considers alternative designs that present
perspective on quality impacts of these parameters.
Because the volume of addresses sent to In-Field
Address Canvassing is a major cost driver, that
parameter is included.
Active Block Resolution (ABR) is a new operation that began during FY16. Very little data are
available to understand the quality of this process. Two parameters for ABR contributed to our
alternatives analysis.
During In-Office Address Canvassing the Census
Bureau categorizes blocks to be “Passive,” or
stable, which means based on aerial imagery and
other data sources we do not believe this block
requires any additional effort, and there appear to
be no inventory changes. Once again, this process
is new and Census Bureau experts have minimal
data to estimate the quality of this process. Two
key parameters measure quality for Passive blocks.
For the ABR and Passive Blocks the Census Bureau
expects to have much-improved data coming from
the MCS by September 2017. Once MCS results
analysis is done, more reliable estimates of quality
for ABR and IOAC process will be incorporated into
these parameters and the model generally.
Analysis of alternatives for the cost and quality
tradeoffs began in late summer 2016. The Census

U.S. Census Bureau

Bureau is conducting a detailed analysis of alternatives in FY17, as resources permit.
Geographic Programs
After the frame definition is complete, the
Geographic Programs operation prepares the
frame for Enumeration. These parameters from
the Geographic Programs operation subdivide the
universe that goes to Enumeration and defines
enumeration methods for the specific addresses.
Based on the newly updated results of Type of
Enumeration Area (TEA) delineation produced
in July 2016, all of the parameters collected for
Geographic Programs are applied to the estimated
total number of HUs predicted for January 1, 2020,
and are shown in Table 11.

7.2 OPTIMIZING SELF-RESPONSE
Before the analysis turns to Optimizing SelfResponse, Sections 7.2, 7.3, and 7.4 all focus on
enumeration operations that impact quality. This
analysis of enumeration continues to estimate
the number of addresses enumerated, addresses
missing from enumeration, and addresses that
are enumerated erroneously, as seen in the frame
development analysis, as well as an additional
dimension added for people. The final outputs
from enumeration include:
1.

Total living quarters enumerated;

2.

Missed adds for living quarters;

3.

Missed deletes for living quarters;

For this quality analysis, all of the addresses in TEA
3 or higher (including TEAs 4, 5, and 6) are not
considered. As seen in Table 11, these TEAs only
account for an estimated 300,000 living quarters.

4.

Correct enumerations for people;

5.

Erroneous Enumerations for people;

6.

Omissions for people; and

Table 11: Geographic Programs Quality
Parameters

7.

Imputed16 Race or Hispanic origin.

Percent

Number
of living
quarters

100

146,200,000

Percent of all addresses in
  TEA 1 (self-response) . . . . .

91.31

133,500,000

Percent of TEA 1 addresses
  that are mailable . . . . . . . . .

91.25

121,800,000

Percent of all addresses in
  TEA 2 (update enumerate). .

8.49

12,400,000

Percent of TEA 2 addresses
  that are mailable . . . . . . . . .

29.17

3,600,000

Percent of all addresses in
  TEA 3+ BCUs (all other)1 . .

0.20

300,000

Parameter
Total living quarters from
  reengineering address
 canvassing. . . . . . . . . . . . .

The results for enumeration are summarized by
these seven measures for this quality analysis.
The detailed parameters collected from subject matter experts to define the enumeration,
including Optimizing Self-Response, Using
Administrative Records, and Reengineering Field
Operations, are summarized in Table 12.
16
Imputation is the process of replacing missing data with
substituted values. Imputations come from three main sources—
whole-household imputations, whole-person imputations, and
item-missing imputations.

1
Measurement of the quality of these addresses will occur in FY17
and beyond.

Note: These data do not reflect the uncertainty of the estimates.
All the numbers in this table reflect the middle values of a range of
estimates provided by the teams.

U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 171

Table 12: Summary of Quality
Parameters Collected for Enumeration

Operation

Number of
parameters
collected
for quality
analysis

Paper1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

6

Internet Self-Response (ID only). . . . . . . . .

6

Non-ID Processing (sources are Internet
  and telephone) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

8

Telephone (ID only). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

7

Nonresponse Followup (administrative
 records). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

8

Nonresponse Followup (Non Ad Rec). . . . .

14

Update Enumerate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

20

Group Quarters. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

5

Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

74

The Quality Analysis Team recognizes that there is not a formal
operation called “Paper,” but we ask readers to accept this language for
simplicity of the analysis.
1

The remainder of this section focuses on
Optimizing Self-Response, specifically.
Paper Enumeration
The Census Bureau estimates the percent of
the Self-Response universe that complete their
questionnaires on paper and send them back
and the percent of the mailable portion of the UE
geography for which households complete their
questionnaires on paper. The third component
of paper comes from the UE universe that either
responds via Non-ID or mails back questionnaires
that are left during the first visit in UE. Based on
the parameters for this mode, the Census Bureau
estimated the total number of completed questionnaires expected via Paper in the 2020 Census.
Internet Enumeration (ID only)
The quality parameters collected for Internet were
similar to paper. The Census Bureau estimates
the percent of the Self-Response universe that
complete their questionnaires on the Internet
and the percent of the mailable portion of the UE
geography that complete their questionnaires on
the Internet. The third component of the Internet
comes from the UE universe that completes a
questionnaire in the Internet based on materials
172 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

left during the first visit in UE. Because of quality
differences expected for Non-ID Internet cases,
those cases are analyzed independently from
these parameters. Measurement of Internet Non-ID
occurs in the Non-ID subsection. These parameters
only estimated Internet ID cases.
Census Questionnaire Assistance Enumeration
(ID only)
The Telephone or Census Questionnaire Assistance
(CQA) quality parameters for SMEs paralleled the
Internet parameters. The Census Bureau estimated the percent of the Self-Response universe
that complete their questionnaires using the CQA
telephone option. The Census Bureau also estimated the percent of the mailable portion of the UE
geography that complete their questionnaires over
the telephone. The third component of the telephone comes from the UE universe that completes
a questionnaire by calling in based on materials
left during the first visit in UE. Because of quality
differences expected for Non-ID telephone cases,
those cases are analyzed independently from these
parameters. Measurement of telephone Non-ID
occurs in the Non-ID subsection. The CQA parameters only provide estimates for CQA ID cases.
Non-ID Processing Enumeration (Internet and
Telephone)
The Census Bureau estimated the percent of the
enumeration universe that will complete their
questionnaires using the Non-ID process from
either Internet or CQA. This includes portions from
both Self-Response and Update Enumerate geographies. Some cases match and get an ID via automated matching; other cases are matched through
the clerical process; and finally some require a
field-verified visit to confirm the geography. These
parameters estimate all completed cases identified and enumerated through the Non-ID process
from all paths. The Non-ID operation will add new
addresses that the Census Bureau does not have
on the initial enumeration frame, which is different than self-response options applied in the 2010
Census. These estimates for real adds via Non-ID
are based on the outputs from Reengineering
Address Canvassing operations, that is, the quality
of the frame going into enumeration operations.
This is a significant integration point that occurs in
upcoming operations as well.

U.S. Census Bureau

Table 13: Summary of Self-Response Workloads for Housing Units
Non-ID

Cases

Paper

Internet ID

Internet

CQA

CQA ID

Completed Cases Total. . . .

17,900,000

58,400,000

7,000,000

400,000

6,900,000

 Occupied. . . . . . . . . . . . . .

17,900,000

58,400,000

7,000,000

400,000

6,900,000

 Vacant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

 Delete. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

 Adds. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

N/A

N/A

 Unresolved. . . . . . . . . . . . .

N/A

N/A

1

90,000

1

N/A

1

10,000

N/A

N/A

N/A

For this analysis, these added Non-ID addresses are included as occupied. Some could be vacant, but a very small number is expected.

Note: These data do not reflect the uncertainty of the estimates. All the numbers in this table reflect the middle values of a range of estimates
provided by the teams.

Self-Response Housing Unit Summary
Because self-response generally does not add or
delete addresses from the enumeration universe,
minimal impacts come from self-response on the
housing unit side. The one exception is of course
Non-ID processing, as seen in Table 13.
For this analysis, Completed Cases includes
the total of Occupied, Vacant, and Unresolved
addresses. Although deleted cases have cost
impacts, there are no quality impacts for person
enumeration. The addresses in the “Adds” row are
already captured in the occupied and vacant figures
in this table.
Self-Response Person Summary
For this analysis, the measurements or parameters
of person-level error come from the 2010 CCM
with adjustments to include dependencies with the
Reengineered Address Canvassing. Similar methods were applied to all the self-response modes to
estimate 2020 Census person-level coverage error.
Each parameter that feeds Table 14 has detailed
methodology based on input from subject matter
experts and only includes within-questionnaire

U.S. Census Bureau

error. Entire addresses either missed or overcounted are not included in these estimates but are
considered elsewhere.

Table 14: Summary of Key Quality
Parameters Collected for Self-Response
Person Error
Parameter

Sources

Number of erroneous
enumerations by SelfResponse Mode

2012 National Census Test,
2014 Census Test, 2015
Census Test, 2015 National
Content Test, ACS, 2010
Census, Pew Research, and
Expert Judgment

Number of missed people
2012 National Census Test,
(omissions) by Self-Response 2014 Census Test, 2015
Mode
Census Test, 2015 National
Content Test, ACS, 2010
Census, Pew Research, and
Expert Judgment
Number of people with
2012 National Census Test,
Missing Race or Hispanic
2014 Census Test, 2015
origin by Self-Response Mode Census Test, 2015 National
Content Test, ACS, 2010
Census, Pew Research, and
Expert Judgment

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 173

7.3 USING ADMINISTRATIVE
RECORDS
Use of administrative records and third-party data
is the third major innovation area introduced in
the 2020 Census design. The key parameters from
Administrative Records are:
1.

Percent of the universe removed for
Occupied;
•• NRFU universe

7.4 REENGINEERING FIELD
OPERATIONS

•• UE Universe
2.

3.

The process implemented to estimate quality for
administrative records usage involves applying
these rates of error to the NRFU and UE universes
removed using administrative records. The quality
metrics produced for person-level error came from
analysis on the entire 2010 Census universe and
were therefore applied across both NRFU (TEA 1)
and UE (TEA 2) evenly. Future analysis may break
this error down by TEA to improve these methods.

Percent of the NRFU universe deemed to be
vacant through the use of administrative
records; and
Percent of the NRFU Universe deemed to be
vacant through the use of a delete.

Although the delete percent is not yet developed,
the Census Bureau built this component into the
model for the purpose of analyzing design alternatives. Table 15 shows the person-level parameters
for using administrative records. Recognizing that
Group Quarters will use administrative records, the
analysis team plans to add analysis of GQ administrative records usage in FY17.
The person-level error based on using administrative records seen in Table 15 is a new source of
error compared to the 2010 Census design.

Table 15: Summary of Key Quality
Parameters Collected for Using
Administrative Records Error for
Persons
Parameter

Sources

Number of erroneous
enumerations

2010 Census simulation using
the 2016 test models

Number of missed people
(omissions)

2010 Census simulation using
the 2016 test models

Number of people with
imputed race or Hispanic
origin

2010 Census simulation using
the 2016 test models

174 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

Nonresponse Followup
The Nonresponse Followup field operation is the
most costly operation. After the Census Bureau
removes the addresses via administrative records
and adds the new addresses in the field, what
remains is the field workload for NRFU.
For this analysis, “Completed Cases” includes the
total of Occupied, Vacant, Delete, and Unresolved
addresses. Although deleted cases have cost
impacts, there are no quality impacts for person enumeration within questionnaires. Added
addresses, on the other hand, are included in
the occupied and vacant components. NRFU will
add new addresses that the Census Bureau did
not have on the initial enumeration frame, and
NRFU will delete addresses from the frame that
do not exist on the ground. The parameters for
added and deleted addresses via NRFU are integrated with the missed adds and missed deletes
from Reengineering Address Canvassing operations. These are important integration points with
Reengineering Address Canvassing. Finally, the
unresolved addresses represent cases that are
deemed finished without a completed interview.
Unresolved cases typically occur after the maximum number of visits is reached.
Table 16 shows the person-level parameters of
error for the NRFU operation.

U.S. Census Bureau

Table 16: Summary of Key Quality
Parameters Collected for Nonresponse
Followup Person Error (Non-Ad Rec)
Parameter

Sources

Number of erroneous
enumerations by HU
respondent type

2010 CCM Reports

5.

Application of using administrative
records and third-party data to remove
occupied HUs from the UE universe. This universe is included in the administrative records
tables presented.

6.

Nonresponse where all addresses end up, if
not in the first five categories.

Number of missed people
2010 CCM Reports
(omissions) by HU respondent
type

The quality parameters for the UE operation are
less mature because the team started in FY15.

Number of people with
imputed race or Hispanic
origin by HU respondent type

Table 17: Summary of Key Quality
Parameters Collected for Update
Enumerate for Person Error

2010 CCM Reports

The “unresolved” addresses from NRFU included in
the final row of this table are one primary source
of the imputations. Cost impacts related to the
number of visits drive the number of cases that
remain unresolved at the end of NRFU. This balance
between cost and quality is manifested clearly in
this component of the operational design.
Update Enumerate
The Update Enumerate (UE) operation is more complicated and has a sizable effect of the overall quality of the 2020 Census design. Based on the current,
untested methodology, the Census Bureau expects
six sources of response data for UE geography.
1.

Self-response with an ID that occurs
prior to the first visit for the 29 percent
of this TEA that is mailable. This universe will
not be included in this section because it has
already been included in the Paper, Internet,
and CQA sections.

2.

Self-response that comes from Non-ID
direct mailing prior to the first visit for
the 71 percent of this TEA that is not mailable. This includes Internet and CQA, already
included in prior sections as well.

3.

Enumeration at the door during the first
visit when updates are made to the address
frame, including identification of vacant and
deleted HUs.

4.

Self-response that occurs after the first
visit based on the materials like paper questionnaires or ID’ed cards left during the first
visit. This is included in the self-response for
Internet and telephone in prior tables.

U.S. Census Bureau

Parameter

Sources

Number of erroneous
enumerations by type of
respondent and visit

2010 CCM Reports and
expert judgment

Number of missed people
(omissions) by type of
respondent and visit

2010 CCM Reports and
expert judgment

Number of people with
imputed demographics by
type of respondent and visit

2010 CCM Reports and
expert judgment

Group Quarters
Group Quarters (GQ) operation parameters estimate the number of GQs enumerated and number
of people enumerated in GQs. Only basic quality
impacts are covered in this quality analysis for
FY16 in an effort to include all significant methods
of enumeration. Minor adjustments for person-level
error occurred for group quarters.
Measures of Uncertainty for Enumeration
Consistent with prior descriptions, each parameter
has a point estimate and measures of uncertainty
around the point estimate. After enumeration is
completed, the final description of the work logically concludes with the outputs from the Monte
Carlo simulations that integrate all the uncertainty
around these parameters. As described earlier,
each parameter has a minimum, middle, maximum
value, and a distribution. These pieces of information are the inputs to perform Monte Carlo simulations on the integration of frame and enumeration
to describe the uncertainty of quality for the 2020
Census design.

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8. Life-Cycle Cost Estimate
The 2020 Census Life-Cycle Cost Estimate is pending clearance. This section will be populated
at a later date.

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9. Approval Signature

Lisa M. Blumerman (signed)

September 30, 2016

Lisa M. Blumerman Date
Associate Director for Decennial Census Programs

U.S. Census Bureau

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10. Document Logs
10.1 SENSITIVITY ASSESSMENT
This table specifies whether or not the document contains any administratively restricted information.
Verification of Document Content
This document does not contain any:
•• Title 5, Title 13, or Title 26 protected information
•• Procurement information
•• Budgetary information
•• Personally identifiable information

10.2 REVIEW AND APPROVALS
This 2020 Operational Plan document has been reviewed and approved for use.
This table documents the necessary approvals leading up to the point of baselining.
Document Review and Approval Tier: Operational Plan
Name

Area Represented

Date

Robin A. Pennington

2020 Census Operational Plan Team

9/16/2016

2020 Census Operational Plan Team Leadership Group:
Lisa M. Blumerman

Associate Director for Decennial Census Programs

9/16/2016

Shirin A. Ahmed

Assistant Director for Decennial Census Programs

9/16/2016

Deborah M. Stempowski

Chief, Decennial Census Management Division

9/16/2016

Patrick J. Cantwell

Chief, Decennial Statistical Studies Division

9/16/2016

Deirdre D. Bishop

Chief, Geography Division

9/16/2016

Phani-Kumar A. Kalluri

Chief, Decennial IT Division

9/16/2016

2020 Census Portfolio Management Governance Board

9/16/2016

2020 Census Executive Steering Committee

9/16/2016

10.3 VERSION HISTORY
The document version history recorded in this section provides the revision number,
the version number, the date it was issued, and a brief description of the changes since the
previous release. Baseline releases are also noted.
Rev #

Version

Date

Description

Final

V 1.0

October 1, 2015

Original baseline.

Final

V 1.1

November 6, 2015

Conversion of Operational Plan content into Communications Directorate
Desktop Publisher. Converted all figures and updated figures 8 and 28.
Also added Section 8—Lifecycle Cost Estimate and Appendices.

Final

V 2.0

September 30, 2016

Fiscal year 2016 update of 2020 Census Operational Plan.

U.S. Census Bureau

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Appendix: List of Acronyms
Acronym

Definition

ABR

Active Block Resolution

ACO

Area Census Office

ACS

American Community Survey

ADC

Address Canvassing

ARC

Archiving

AVT

Address Validation Test

BAS

Boundary and Annexation Survey

BCU

Basic Collection Unit

BPM

Business Process Models

BYOD

Bring Your Own Device

CAP

Capability Requirements

CCM

Census Coverage Measurement Survey

CEDCaP

Census Enterprise Data Collection and Processing

CEDSCI

Center for Enterprise Dissemination Services and Customer Innovation

CFD

Content and Forms Design

CM

Coverage Measurement

CMDE

Coverage Measurement Design and Estimation

CMFO

Coverage Measurement Field Operations

CMM

Coverage Measurement Matching

COMPASS

Census Operations Mobile Platform for Adaptive Services and Solutions

CQA

Census Questionnaire Assistance

CQR

Count Question Resolution

CRO

Count Review Operation

dDaaS

decennial Device as a Service

DLM

Decennial Logistics Management

DOP

Detailed Operational Plan

DPD

Data Products and Dissemination

DSC

Decennial Service Center

EAE

Evaluations and Experiments

eSDLC

Enterprise Systems Development Life Cycle

ETL

Enumeration at Transitory Locations

FAA

Federally Affiliated Americans Count Overseas

FLDI

Field Infrastructure

FPD

Forms Printing and Distribution

FSCPE

Federal-State Cooperative Population Estimate

GAO

Government Accountability Office

GEOP

Geographic Programs

U.S. Census Bureau

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Acronym

Definition

GQ

Group Quarters

GSS-I

Geographic Support System Initiative

GUPS

Geographic Update Partnership Software

HU

Housing Unit

HUFU

Housing Unit Followup

iCADE

Integrated Capture and Data Entry

IFAC

In-Field Address Canvassing

IOAC

In-Office Address Canvassing

IPC

Integrated Partnership and Communications

ISP

Internet Self Response

IT

Information Technology

ITIN

IT Infrastructure

IR

Interactive Review

IVR

Interactive Voice Response

LNG

Languages Services

LUCA

Local Update of Census Addresses

MAF

Master Address File

MAM

Mobile Application Manager

MCS

MAF Coverage Study

MDM

Mobile Device Management

MMVT

MAF Model Validation Test

MOJO

In-field operational control system

NARA

National Archives and Records Administration

NID

Non-ID Processing

NPC

National Processing Center

NRFU

Nonresponse Followup

O&M

Operations and Maintenance

PBC

Partial Block Canvassing

PDC

Paper Data Capture

PL

Public Law

PLBR

Project-Level Business Requirements

PM

Project Management

PSAP

Participant Statistical Areas Program

QC

Quality Control

RCC

Regional Census Center

RDP

Redistricting Data Program

RFP

Request for Proposal

RPO

Response Processing Operation

184 2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0

U.S. Census Bureau

Acronym

Definition

SEI

Systems Engineering and Integration

SIMEX

Simulation Experiment

SPC

Security, Privacy, and Confidentiality

TEA

Type of Enumeration Area

TIGER

Topologically Integrated Geographic Encoding and Referencing System

TSAP

Tribal Statistical Areas Program

UE

Update Enumerate

URL

Uniform Resource Locator

USPS

United States Postal Service

WBS

Work Breakdown Structure

U.S. Census Bureau

2020 Census Operational Plan—Version 2.0 185