Download:
pdf |
pdfBoundary and Annexation Survey (BAS)
Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
Instructions for Participating in BAS Using the BAS Partnership Toolbox
This page intentionally left blank.
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary and Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
i
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction ........................................................................................................................... vi
A.
The Boundary and Annexation Survey .......................................................................... vi
B.
Key Dates for BAS Respondents .................................................................................... vi
C.
Adjacencies and Legal Disputes ..................................................................................... vi
D.
Contact Us .................................................................................................................... vii
E.
Resources ..................................................................................................................... vii
Chapter 1 Getting Started with the Partnership Toolbox ....................................................... 1
1.1
Submission Requirements .............................................................................................. 1
1.2
Partnership Toolbox Requirements ................................................................................ 1
Chapter 2 Creating a Submission ........................................................................................... 3
2.1
Toolbox Tools Setup ....................................................................................................... 3
2.2
Census Data Download Tool........................................................................................... 3
2.3
Create Changes Tool ...................................................................................................... 5
2.4
Sliver Blaster Tool (Optional).......................................................................................... 8
2.5
Format Working MXD Tool (Optional) ............................................................................ 9
Chapter 3 Reviewing and Exporting a Submission ............................................................... 11
3.1
Required Attribute Information ................................................................................... 11
3.2
Large Boundary Corrections ......................................................................................... 13
3.3
Boundary-to-Feature Relationships ............................................................................. 14
3.4
Corridors and Offsets ................................................................................................... 15
3.5
CDP, Linear Feature, and Landmark Changes ............................................................... 15
3.5.1 CDP Changes ............................................................................................................ 15
3.5.2 Linear Feature Changes ........................................................................................... 17
3.5.3 Area Landmark, Hydrographic Area, and Point Landmark Updates ......................... 19
3.6
Attribute Check Tool .................................................................................................... 21
3.7
Export Submission Tool ................................................................................................ 22
Chapter 4 Submit Changes to the Census Bureau ................................................................ 25
4.1
Troubleshooting SWIM ................................................................................................ 26
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
ii
LIST OF TABLES
Table 1: Feature class and field names to match based on geography type. ................................ 6
Table 2: Required attribution information for the different types of geographic change
polygons......................................................................................................................... 12
Table 3: Acceptable field inputs for changes submitted to BAS. ................................................. 12
Table 4: Required Attribution for CDP Changes .......................................................................... 15
Table 5: Required Linear Feature Update Fields ......................................................................... 18
Table 6: Examples of acceptable landmark updates ................................................................... 19
Table 7: Methods for Updating Landmarks ................................................................................. 19
Table 8: Point Landmark, Area Landmark, and Hydrographic Area Updates............................... 20
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
iii
LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1. Partnership BAS Tools Menu .......................................................................................... 3
Figure 2. Partnership BAS Tools Menu with Census Data Download Selected .............................. 4
Figure 3. The Census Data Download Window with ‘Yes’ in the Use Data Downloader Field ....... 5
Figure 4. The Census Data Download Window with ‘No’ in the Use Data Downloader Field ........ 5
Figure 5. Partnership Tools Menu Showing a Folder for the BAS ID in the Projects Folder ........... 5
Figure 6. NAME Field in Census Data vs Local Boundary Data....................................................... 6
Figure 7. Appropriate Attribution for MCD or AIANNH Changes ................................................... 6
Figure 8. Partnership Tools Menu with Create Changes Tool Selected ......................................... 7
Figure 9. Create Changes Window for Legal Changes ................................................................... 7
Figure 10. Create Changes Window Non-Legal Changes ............................................................... 8
Figure 11. Partnership Tools Menu with Geodatabase ................................................................. 8
Figure 12. Partnership Tools Menu with Sliver Blaster Selected ................................................... 9
Figure 13. Sliver Blaster Window .................................................................................................. 9
Figure 14. Partnership Tools Menu with Format Working MXD Selected ................................... 10
Figure 15. Format Working MXD Window .................................................................................. 10
Figure 16. Projects Submenu with .mxd file Selected ................................................................. 10
Figure 17. Large Boundary Corrections ....................................................................................... 13
Figure 18. Small Spatial Correction Not Accepted ....................................................................... 14
Figure 19: The Editor Toolbar with the Create Features Tool highlighted ................................... 16
Figure 20: The Create Features window as it appears in ArcMap ............................................... 16
Figure 21. A Boundary Correction to CDP ................................................................................... 17
Figure 22. Partnership Tools Menu with Attribute Check Selected ............................................. 21
Figure 23. Attribute Check Window ............................................................................................ 22
Figure 24. Projects Submenu Showing an attribute_check Text File ........................................... 22
Figure 25. Partnership Tools Menu with Export Submission Files Selected ................................ 23
Figure 26. Export Submission Files Window ................................................................................ 24
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
iv
This page intentionally left blank.
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
v
INTRODUCTION
A.
The Boundary and Annexation Survey
The Boundary and Annexation Survey (BAS) provides tribal, state, and local governments an
opportunity to review the Census Bureau’s legal boundary data ensuring the Census Bureau has
the correct boundary, name, and status information. BAS also allows participants to review and
provide updates to Census Designated Places (CDPs). Maintaining correct boundaries helps
ensure that the Census Bureau assigns the appropriate housing and population counts to each
government.
BAS fulfills the agency’s responsibility as part of the National Spatial Data Infrastructure, for
which the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A–16 designates the Census
Bureau as the lead federal agency for maintaining national data about legal government
boundaries, as well as statistical and administrative boundaries. BAS supports the spatial data
steward responsibilities of the OMB E-Gov, Data.gov, the National Map, Geographic Names
Information System (GNIS) the Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) and the Geospatial
One-Stop. Title 13, Section 6, United States Code authorizes this survey.
The Census Bureau uses the boundaries collected in BAS to tabulate data for various censuses
and surveys including the decennial census, American Community Survey (ACS), and Population
Estimates Program (PEP). In addition, the Census Bureau uses the legal boundaries collected
through BAS to support several other programs such as Redistricting Data Program, the
Economic Census, the Geographic Update Population Certification Program, and the Special
Census program.
B.
Key Dates for BAS Respondents
January 1
Boundary updates must be legally in effect on or before this date to be reported
in the current survey year.
March 1
First BAS deadline - Boundary updates returned by this date will be reflected in
the ACS and PEP data and in next year’s BAS materials.
May 31
Final BAS deadline - Boundary updates returned by this date will be reflected in
next year’s BAS materials.
C.
Adjacencies and Legal Disputes
The Census Bureau will not make any boundary change that affects adjacent legal governments
without the appropriate documentation. Please review any changes that affect adjacent
governments to determine if they are intentional legal changes.
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
vi
If the Census Bureau discovers that an area of land is in dispute between two or more
jurisdictions, the Census Bureau will not make any boundary corrections until the parties come
to a written agreement, or there is a documented final court decision regarding the dispute.
To learn more, please contact the Census Bureau Legal Office at 1-301-763-2918.
For disputes involving tribal areas, the Census Bureau must defer to the Office of the Solicitor at
the Department of the Interior for a legal opinion. Often complicated land issues require an
extended period for resolution, and in those cases, the Census Bureau will retain the current
boundary in the database until a legal opinion is issued by the Solicitor's office.
D.
Contact Us
If assistance is required in preparing your BAS submission or if you are experiencing issues with
the ArcGIS Partnership toolbox, please contact the Census Bureau at or
1-800-972-5651.
When emailing , please include the following details:
E.
•
BAS ID and Government Name,
•
Level of geography for which you are submitting,
•
Contact information such as a phone number or email address,
•
Version of ArcGIS you are using,
•
Full text of the error message received as a screenshot or text (if applicable), and
•
Screenshots of discrepancies (if applicable).
Resources
Additional resources are available on our website. Technical documentation and helpful videos
are also available to walk through the BAS submission process.
Technical Documentation
For more technical information about Census Bureau Geography, BAS Submission information,
change types, and shapefiles, see the BAS Technical Guide at
.
Videos
The Census Bureau created training videos to give BAS participants detailed instructions and
information for reporting and submitting BAS changes. These videos are available on the BAS
website at: .
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
vii
CHAPTER 1
GETTING STARTED WITH THE PARTNERSHIP TOOLBOX
The Digital BAS Partnership Toolbox was created to ease the burden of creating change files on
BAS and Tribal BAS participants. This toolbox simplifies the update process by automating the
download of data, change creation, sliver removal, attribution formatting and checks, and
exporting files for submission. This allows the Census Bureau to easily process returned BAS
files. New tools have been added as of the 2022 BAS to facilitate the update of linear features,
landmarks, and Census Designated Places (CDPs). This how-to guide will walk participants
through creating their digital submission with this toolbox.
1.1
Submission Requirements
Participation in the current BAS cycle means that participants will provide the following:
A shapefile of boundary change polygons based-off the current Census Bureau boundary.
Submissions containing only a whole entity boundary shapefile of the current local data will not
be accepted.
Legal documentation numbers, authorization types, and effective dates for all legal boundary
changes (annexations and deannexations).
For tribal submissions, digital copies of the legal documentation to submit with the change
polygons. Acceptable documents include but are not limited to a federal register notice,
acceptance of conveyance and warranty deed, title status report, BIA certification, or letter.
Each non-legal boundary correction with proper attribution according to boundary corrections
guidelines laid out in Chapter 3, or the Census Bureau will not make the correction for this BAS
cycle.
Current information for the BAS point of contact, the person updating the shapefiles, and the
Highest Elected Official (HEO) for the government.
The BAS Partnership Toolbox will simplify the process for all the above requirements.
1.2
Partnership Toolbox Requirements
Before running these tools, users will need the following:
•
ArcGIS Desktop 10.0 or higher (not ArcGIS Pro).
•
The BAS Partnership Toolbox zip, which can be downloaded at:
.
•
The BAS ID for the government being processed. This can be found on the BAS Annual
Response email, letter, or online at: .
•
A shapefile or feature class showing the legal boundary of the government.
o Data in this layer should include the name of the government being processed
formatted to agree with the Census Bureau’s naming convention for the same
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
1
government as found in the NAME field or the NAMELSAD field for Minor Civil Division
(MCD) and American Indian / Alaska Native / Native Hawaiian (AIANNH).
•
Digital copies of the legal documentation to be submitted with the change polygons. This is
required for tribal submissions and requested for all other submissions.
o For tribal changes: acceptable documents include, but are not limited to, a federal
register notice, acceptance of conveyance and warranty deed, title status report, BIA
certification or letter.
o For all other changes (optional): acceptable documents include, but are not limited to,
ordinances, resolutions, changes to a local or state law, or court rulings.
•
(Optional) The 2022 BAS Partnership Shapefiles, which may be downloaded manually from
the Census Bureau website. These files are located at:
.
o The shapefile download is automated in the Partnership Toolbox. However, in instances
where downloads are restricted or internet connectivity is limited, participants may find
that pre-downloading these files is simpler and faster.
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
2
CHAPTER 2
CREATING A SUBMISSION
This chapter provides step-by-step instructions for using the BAS Partnership Toolbox to setup
your workspace and create change polygons. For best results, use the toolbox in ArcGIS 10.0
and higher (not including ArcGIS Pro). These toolbox tools were designed primarily for use in
ArcCatalog though they run in ArcMap as well. The instructions for most steps assume use in
ArcCatalog.
2.1
Toolbox Tools Setup
After downloading the toolbox from the BAS website, locate the zip file in your File Explorer.
Unzip the Digital BAS Partnership Tools.zip to the C: drive or other preferred working folder.
The folder location does not matter as long as it can be accessed from ArcCatalog. Inside there
will be a folder called DBAS. It contains all the files to work for your government.
Open ArcCatalog and connect to the DBAS folder. When it is expanded, the following should be
visible:
Figure 1. Partnership BAS Tools Menu
Do not attempt to change the file structure inside the DBAS folder. Moving folders or files from
where they are located may cause issues later in the process.
Note: To connect to a folder in ArcCatalog, click on the Connect to Folder button on the Standard
Toolbar, find the DBAS folder, and then click the OK button.
2.2
Census Data Download Tool
The Census Data Download tool gathers all the partnership shapefile data needed to create
changes from the Census Bureau website. If the data is on a Census Bureau provided CD/DVD,
this tool will also work but only if the data is loaded to the computer before running the tool.
This tool can also use the zip files downloaded from the 2022 BAS Partnership Shapefiles site:
. Please follow the steps below to run the Census Data Download tool.
1. Expand the DBAS folder and the setup subfolder. In the setup subfolder, find the Partnership
BAS Tools Toolbox. Expand the toolbox and double click on the 1) Census Data Download tool.
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
3
Figure 2. Partnership BAS Tools Menu with Census Data Download Selected
2. There are two ways to use this tool: one that downloads the data from the Census Bureau for
the user and one that takes in a folder with the Census Bureau data already downloaded.
•
To have the data downloaded for you, proceed to step 3.
•
If you want to use data you already downloaded, proceed to step 4.
o If you have already downloaded the data, you must unzip the downloaded pvs batch zip
file (e.g. pvs_batch_from_) to display the partnership shapefiles zip files (e.g.
partnership_shapefiles_21v2_ and partnership_shapefiles_21v2_). The tool
will look for these partnership_shapefiles zip files when it runs.
Note: If you get an error message when trying to use the automatic download, please manually
download the partnership files and try the tool that way. If an error still occurs, please contact
the Census Bureau using the format laid out in the Contact Us section.
3. To have the Census Bureau data downloaded automatically, populate the fields in the dialog box
as follows:
•
Enter the 11-digit BAS ID in the User’s BAS ID field. If you are a county participant
responding for the governments within your jurisdiction, you will enter the County BAS ID.
•
Select Yes under the Use Data Downloader? field.
Note: Each government BAS ID can be found on the BAS Annual Response email sent at the start of
each BAS year, or online at .
4. Click OK and proceed to step 5. Figure 3 shows how a user would complete the fields to have
data downloaded for them.
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
4
Figure 3. The Census Data Download Window with ‘Yes’ in the Use Data Downloader Field
5. To use previously downloaded Census Bureau data, populate the fields in the dialog box as
follows:
•
Enter the 11-digit BAS ID in the User’s BAS ID field. If you are a county participant
responding for the governments within your jurisdiction, you will enter the County BAS ID.
•
Select No under the Use Data Downloader? field.
Navigate or drag the folder into Path to zip files field. Make sure the folder only contains the
Census Bureau zip files to ensure there are no future data issues.
Click OK to run the tool. Figure 4 shows how a user will complete the fields if they already have
the partnership shapefiles downloaded and saved on their computer.
•
Figure 4. The Census Data Download Window with ‘No’ in the Use Data Downloader Field
6. When this tool is complete, there should now be a folder for the BAS ID in the projects folder.
Inside that folder, there will be a geodatabase with reference data in it and an archive folder.
Figure 5. Partnership Tools Menu Showing a Folder for the BAS ID in the Projects Folder
Note: The archive folder contains other Census Bureau data that may be useful as well.
2.3
Create Changes Tool
At this point, the necessary Census Bureau data is organized into your project geodatabase
(gdb). Now you can run the 2) Create Changes tool to create the change files.
1. When running this tool to create changes for a legal government, there must be an attribute
field in the local boundary shapefile that contains the name of the government(s) as they appear
in Census Bureau records (Figure 6 and Figure 7). This includes matching capitalization, spacing,
and in the case of MCDs and AIA’s a descriptor of the geography (e.g. township, village,
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
5
borough, etc.). If it is a new government or the legal name is changing, it does not need to agree
though other attribution must be updated to reflect this change. Please refer to Table 1 to see
which feature class and field to use for each geography type.
Figure 6. NAME Field in Census Data vs Local Boundary Data
The bas place layer on the left shows how the Census Bureau NAME
field is populated for all the places in Butler County, PA while the local
places data shows how local data may need to be manipulated to agree
with the Census Bureau NAME field.
Figure 7. Appropriate Attribution for MCD or AIANNH Changes
The bas_cousub attribution on the left in the NAMELSAD field shows
how the local MUNICIPALI field on the right should be formatted to
ensure that the Create Changes tool works for the MCD changes in
Butler County, PA. The bas_aial attribution appears in a similar way.
Table 1: Feature class and field names to match based on geography type.
GEOGRAPHY TYPE
FEATURE CLASS
FIELD
bas_place
NAME
MCDs
bas_cousub
NAMELSAD
County
bas_county
NAME
bas_aial
NAMELSAD
bas_concity
NAME
Incorporated Place
Tribal
Consolidated City
2. Double-click on the 2) Create Changes tool.
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
6
Figure 8. Partnership Tools Menu with Create Changes Tool Selected
3. To create changes for legal geographies, in the Create Changes window:
•
Enter the 11-digit BAS ID in the BAS ID field.
•
Under Changes Being Processed, choose the type of changes to create from the dropdown
options:
o Incplace (incorporated place).
o Cousub (MCDs).
o County.
o AIANNH (Tribal areas).
o Concity (Consolidated City).
•
•
In the Local Boundary File field, enter the path or navigate to the full boundary polygon.
For the Name Field in Local Data, type the name of the field (as it appears in ArcCatalog)
containing the information matching the Census Bureau’s NAME or NAMELSAD field as
appropriate from Step 1.
Figure 9. Create Changes Window for Legal Changes
4. To create changes for any other geography, in the Create Changes window:
•
Enter the 11-digit BAS ID in the BAS ID field.
•
Under Changes Being Processed, choose the type of changes to create from the dropdown
options:
a. CDP.
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
7
a. Ln (Linear Features).
b. Alndk (Area Landmarks).
c. Plndk (Point Landmarks).
Figure 10. Create Changes Window Non-Legal Changes
Click OK to run the tool.
Once the tool is complete, the output will be placed in the geodatabase under the submission
feature dataset.
Figure 11. Partnership Tools Menu with Geodatabase
Repeat steps for any other levels of geography that need changes created.
Note: The BAS year used in screenshots throughout this document may vary, however, functionality
remains the same.
2.4
Sliver Blaster Tool (Optional)
The Sliver Blaster tool is useful for governments that have numerous very small change
polygons that are time consuming to manually parse through for deletion. Since the Census
Bureau cannot guarantee inclusion of changes under 30 feet wide, use this tool to remove
changes that are lower than that threshold. Participants can also change the tolerance for
slivers if they know there are small changes that need to be included. This automated tool will
vary in processing time depending on the number of features in the entity.
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
8
Note: This tool should only be used on legal geographies. Do not use this on CDPs, linear features, or
landmarks of any kind.
1. Double click on the 3) Sliver Blaster tool.
Figure 12. Partnership Tools Menu with Sliver Blaster Selected
2. In the Sliver Blaster tool window:
•
The Changes File refers to the legal changes file(s) created in the previous step, found in the
submission feature dataset.
•
The Census Edges feature class is found in the reference feature dataset and is called
bas_edges.
•
The Buffer Distance field is set to 30 feet by default, but this can be adjusted to
accommodate smaller changes.
3. Click OK to run.
Figure 13. Sliver Blaster Window
2.5
Format Working MXD Tool (Optional)
The intent of this tool is to create a map document (.mxd) for users containing their change file
and the reference layers they will need to finalize a submission. If users would prefer to use
their own .mxd, this step is not required. The rest of this guide assumes the user is working
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
9
from the .mxd created by this tool.
1. Double click on the 4) Format Working MXD tool.
Figure 14. Partnership Tools Menu with Format Working MXD Selected
2. The only input for this tool is the Working Folder, which is the folder with the government’s BAS
ID as its name.
Figure 15. Format Working MXD Window
3. Click OK to run the tool.
4. Open the new .mxd and begin working with the change polygons.
Figure 16. Projects Submenu with .mxd file Selected
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
10
CHAPTER 3
REVIEWING AND EXPORTING A SUBMISSION
At this point in the process, a review of the created changes is necessary to ensure proper
attribution is contained within each record. This chapter will discuss the types of changes you
may want to update or remove from your submission based on current relationships within the
Census Bureau data.
1. Please open the .mxd created in the previous chapter and start an editing session. Open
the attribute table for your changes layer(s), so you can go line by line through the requested
changes.
2. Review each change polygon for any of the following potential issues:
•
Required attribution information (Section 3.1)
•
Large boundary corrections (Section 3.2)
•
Boundary-to-Feature Relationships (Section 3.3)
•
Corridors and Offsets (Section 3.4)
As a reminder, the Census Bureau will snap boundary changes to any linear feature that is
correctly located within 30 feet of the change. Additionally, changes that are less than 30 feet at
their widest point may not be incorporated into MAF/TIGER due to system constraints. Please
refer to the BAS Technical Guide for more information.
3. Edit landmark, feature, and CDP changes as necessary.
4. Save your edits to your change feature classes.
5. Export submission and proceed to Chapter 4: Submit Changes to the Census Bureau.
3.1
Required Attribute Information
It is important to review each change polygon and confirm that the correct attribute
information is included. Without the correct attribute information, the Census Bureau will be
unable to process and incorporate the changes into MAF/TIGER.
1. All changes are coded as a “B” for Boundary Correction by the Create Changes tool. If you know
there are legal changes in your file, navigate to the area the legal change is in and select the
change polygon.
2. Update the required fields for the selected change polygon. Refer to Table 2 for the required
attributes that will need to be manually updated. Table 3 lists the acceptable values for each
required field or expected values for fields that do not take a specific Census Bureau specific
code.
3. Once the attribution is updated, save the edits, move to the next change polygon, and repeat
the process in steps 1 and 2.
4. Once the known legal changes are complete, review the rest of the changes using the guidance
in Sections 3.2, 3.3, and 3.4.
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
11
Table 2: Required attribution information for the different types of geographic change polygons.
CHNG_TYPE
NAME
EFF_DATE
AUTHTYPE
DOCU
AREA
RELATE
Annexation/
Addition
✓
✓
✓
✓
✓*
✓*
Deannexation/
Deletion
✓
✓
✓
✓
✓*
✓*
Boundary Correction
✓
✓
✓
Geographic Corridor
✓
✓
✓
Geographic Offset
✓
✓
✓
Disincorporation
✓
✓
✓
✓
✓
New Incorporation
✓
✓
✓
✓
✓
Name Change
✓
✓
✓
✓
✓
(Note: ✓ = Required Field; *DOCU is not required in Georgia, AREA is required in Georgia only)
Table 3: Acceptable field inputs for changes submitted to BAS.
ATTRIBUTE FIELD
CHNG_TYPE
DESCRIPTION
Type of area update. Addition and Deletion are used for Tribal
submissions only. Allowable values include:
Annexation/Addition
A
Deannexation/Deletion
D
Boundary Correction
B
Geographic Corridor
C
Geographic Offset
F
Disincorporation
X
New Incorporation
E
Name Change
G
EFF_DATE
Effective date of legal change
AUTHTYPE
Authorization type. Allowable values include:
Ordinance
O
Resolution
R
Local Law
L
State Level Action
S
Executive Order (Tribal)
E
BIA Certification (Tribal)
C
Deed (Tribal)
D
Other
X
DOCU
Supporting documentation number (not the book-deed page,
file name, or plat); not required in the state of Georgia
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
12
ATTRIBUTE FIELD
AREA
Area of update in acres; only required in the state of Georgia
RELATE
3.2
DESCRIPTION
Relationship description.
•
IN
•
OUT
Large Boundary Corrections
The Census Bureau will not accept large boundary corrections that substantially change the
current boundary of a government without the appropriate legal documentation numbers and
effective dates. These large boundary corrections (Figure 17) may be legal boundary changes
that occurred in the past and were never reported to the Census Bureau.
Figure 17. Large Boundary Corrections
Without the appropriate documentation, the Census Bureau will not accept
large boundary corrections.
If you identify a large boundary correction that is a previous legal change, please do the
following:
1. Submit the appropriate legal documentation number and effective date (no matter how old) so
that the changes may be incorporated into MAF/TIGER. Refer to Table 2 and Table 3 and the
steps in Section 3.1 to fill out required attribution for legal changes.
2. If legal documentation cannot be provided for any reason, please Contact Us to discuss your
submission options.
Note: There may be a few instances when large boundary corrections need to be made because of
incorrect digitizing or where the boundary appears in the incorrect location due to other
Census Bureau activities. If unsure how to proceed, Contact Us to discuss submission options.
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
13
3.3
Boundary-to-Feature Relationships
Please review all changes to ensure that the correct boundary-to-feature relationships are
being created or maintained. The Census Bureau is aware that many governments base their
legal boundaries on cadastral (parcel-based) right-of-way mapping. However, the Census
Bureau bases maps on spatial data that is topologically integrated (see the BAS Technical Guide
). This
helps establish a more accurate population count for governments.
The Census Bureau will not accept boundary corrections that dissolve the current relationship
between an existing boundary and linear feature without specific instruction that the
relationship is incorrect. The Census Bureau will not incorporate any boundary corrections that
create 30 feet or less of gap or overlap between the existing linear feature and boundary into
MAF/TIGER. Figure 18 shows an example of changes that will not be accepted.
Figure 18. Small Spatial Correction Not Accepted
Small spatial boundary corrections (<30ft) would dissolve the boundary-tofeature relationship with multiple streets. Incorporating these changes would
affect the population counts for the area. Therefore, the Census Bureau will not
accept these small boundary corrections.
Items to note if there are changes in your submission that would remove boundary-to-feature
relationships:
1. Changes that are based on cadastral data and are not legally required to accurately display the
boundary can be deleted from the submission.
2. If the change is along a roadway and must be incorporated, please consider marking it as an
offset or corridor. Please refer to Section 3.4 to learn how to add corridors and offsets.
3. If the feature is incorrectly located, the change can remain in the submission. Please note the
incorrect feature in the JUSTIFY field.
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
14
3.4
Corridors and Offsets
The Census Bureau does not require places and AIAs to report right-of-ways. Geographic corridors are
nonessential to the mission of the Census Bureau and the right-of-way should only be included if it is
crucial to the place or AIA, or if state or local laws require it. For more information on appropriate uses
of corridors and offsets, refer to the BAS Technical Guide .
To add a corridor or offset to your submission:
1. Navigate to the change polygon and select it.
2. Using the Attribute table or the Attribute Window, change the CHNG_TYPE to the appropriate
value. For a corridor set it to C and for an Offset set it to F.
3. If this change is due to legal action, please provide the AUTHTYPE, DOCU, EFF_DATE, and AREA
as appropriate as well. Information on these required fields can be found in Section 3.1.
3.5
CDP, Linear Feature, and Landmark Changes
Linear Features, area landmarks (e.g., lakes), point landmarks (e.g., mountain peaks), and CDPs
can be updated through BAS, but are not required. The Census Bureau accepts updates to these
areas in a similar manner to legal boundary changes. However, since they are not legal
governments, no documentation or effective dates are required.
3.5.1
CDP Changes
To create changes to CDPs, make sure you have already run the 3) Create Feature, Landmark,
and CDP Changes Tool. That tool creates an empty feature class called bas__changes_cdp.
Each CDP update must have the required attributes and corresponding change type populated
(refer to Table 4). The steps below document how to properly update your CDP layer.
Table 4: Required Attribution for CDP Changes
CHNG_TYPE
NAME
RELATE
✓
Boundary Correction
✓
B
✓
Delete CDP
✓
X
✓
New CDP
✓
E
✓
Name Change
✓
G
✓
(Note: ✓ = Required Field)
Start an editing session if you have not already. Navigate to the area where you would like to
modify, add, or remove a CDP. Make sure the Create Features window is open as it should list
all the appropriate types of CDP edits you may want to make.
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
15
Figure 19: The Editor Toolbar with the Create Features Tool highlighted
Figure 20: The Create Features window as it appears in ArcMap
To modify a CDP’s shape, you will use the built-in ArcGIS edit tools to draw the difference
between the boundaries as you would like it to appear. Select the BC (Boundary Correction)
template for these changes and draw the areas that should be added or removed from the CDP.
Once the polygon is complete, update the following fields in the attribute table:
a. Enter the feature name in the NAME field. If you’re not sure of the name, you can use the
identify tool to get the name from the bas_cdp layer.
b. Fill out the RELATE field to designate if the area is being added (IN) or removed (OUT) from
the CDP.
c. Make sure the CHNG_TYPE field has the appropriate designator (B). If it doesn’t, change it
to B.
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
16
Figure 21. A Boundary Correction to CDP
To modify a CDP’s Name:
a. Select the CDP from the bas_cdp layer. Copy and paste it into the bas__changes_cdp layer.
b. Begin editing the attributes for the pasted change. Enter a ‘G’ in the CHNG_TYPE field and
enter the new name in the NAME field.
To add a CDP, use the built in ArcGIS edit tools to draw the new boundaries as you would like it
to appear, using the New Incorporation template. Once the polygon is complete, make sure to
update the following fields in the attribute table:
a. Enter the new name in the NAME field.
b. Make sure the CHNG_TYPE field has the appropriate designator (E). If it doesn’t, change it to
E.
To delete a CDP:
a. Select the CDP from the bas_cdp layer. Copy and paste it into the bas__changes_cdp layer.
b. Begin editing the attributes for the pasted change. Enter an ‘X’ in the CHNG_TYPE field.
3.5.2
Linear Feature Changes
The Census Bureau will accept linear feature modifications when needed. If you have linear
feature changes to submit, make sure you have already run the 3) Create Feature, Landmark,
and CDP Changes Tool. That tool creates an empty feature class called bas__ln_changes. There are multiple valid approaches to populating this layer with appropriate
change data. Since these would include potential updates to local data sources, we cannot say
which would be most appropriate for each individual user.
Each linear feature update must have the required attributes and corresponding change type
populated (refer to Table 5). The steps below document how to properly update your linear
feature layer.
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
17
Table 5: Required Attribution for Linear Feature Updates
CHNG_TYPE
TLID
Add
Feature
✓
AL
Delete
Feature
✓
DL
✓
Rename
Feature
✓
CA
✓
Recode
Feature
✓
CA
✓
FULLNAME
MTFCC
LTOADD
RTOADD
LFROMADD
RFROMADD
✓
✓
✓
✓
✓
✓
✓
✓
(Note: ✓ = Required Field; LTOADD, RTOADD, LFROMADD, and RFROMADD are not required but requested only
for Add Feature records)
1. Some possible methods for adding lines include:
•
Load the data (with or without a query) into the changes feature class so that individual
fields can be mapped into the Census Bureau requested schema.
•
During an edit session, trace the local data source or create streets from imagery using the
appropriate bas__ln_changes template to create new records, or
•
During an edit session, copy and paste data from the local streets data source.
2. For adding linear features, modify the attribution for the features using your preferred editing
method:
a. Enter ‘AL’ in the CHNG_TYPE field (if it is not already populated) and enter the appropriate
MTFCC in the MTFCC field. If the feature has a name, enter the name in the FULLNAME
field.
b. If this is a new street (MTFCC starts with S), you must provide the name of the street in the
FULLNAME field and you may also provide Address Ranges (LTOADD, RTOADD, LFROMADD,
and RFROMADD).
3. To modify or delete lines, start an editing session if you haven’t already. Then copy and paste
the records from the bas_edges feature class that you want to change. By doing this you
preserve the TIGER/Line ID (TLID) in the TLID field to ensure the correct features are affected.
4. If a feature that does not exist is in the Census Bureau’s feature network, mark the feature for
deletion by entering ‘DL’ in the CHNG_TYPE field.
5. If a feature is in the incorrect location in the Census Bureau’s feature network, mark the feature
for deletion and re-add it in the correct location using the steps laid out above. Only do this if
the feature is significantly off, or in the wrong position relative to boundaries or other features.
6. If a feature has an incorrect name and/or MTFCC, enter ‘CA’ in the CHNG_TYPE field. Populate
the correct MTFCC in MTFCC and/or the correct name in FULLNAME.
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
18
Note:
3.5.3
A list of MAF/TIGER Feature Classification Codes (MTFCC) can be found at
.
Area Landmark, Hydrographic Area, and Point Landmark Updates
Area landmarks, hydrographic areas (e.g., lakes), and point landmarks (e.g., mountain peaks)
can be updated through BAS, but the Census Bureau doesn’t require updates to them.
Hydrographic area changes should be included in the area landmark changes file, so for this
section the term “area landmark” includes hydrographic updates. Landmark updates that are
accepted through BAS are listed in Table 6 For more guidance on MTFCCs, acceptable values,
and how they are used, please visit .
Table 6: Examples of acceptable landmark updates
Area Landmarks
Area or Point Landmarks
•
•
•
•
•
•
Water bodies
Swamps
Quarries
National parks
Forests
•
•
•
•
•
Airports
Parks
Schools
Golf courses
Museums
Cemeteries
Point Landmarks
•
•
•
•
Mountain peaks or
summits
Libraries
City halls
Community centers and
police stations
It is important to note that the Census Bureau cannot delete or modify any point landmarks
imported from the USGS GNIS database. Therefore, changes submitted for the following types
of landmarks may be left unchanged even though they are acceptable updates:
•
K2451 (Airport).
•
K2582 (Cemetery).
•
C3022 (Summit or Pillar).
•
C3081 (Locale or Populated Place).
•
C3061 (Cul-de-sacs).
In order to submit updates, make sure you have run the 2) Create Changes tool as described in
Section 2.3 for each type of change you want to submit. That tool creates an empty feature
class called bas__pointlm_changes or bas__arealm_changes based
on the requested input. The types of updates that can be submitted for point and area
landmarks are laid out in Table 7.
Table 7: Methods for Updating Landmarks
Area
(arealm_changes)
Update Type
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary Corrections
(adding and removing area)
✓
Create New
✓
Points
(pointlm_changes)
✓
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
19
Remove
✓
✓
Name changes
✓
✓
Each area landmark or hydrographic area update must have the required attributes and
corresponding change type populated (refer to Table 8). The steps below document how to
properly update your point and area landmark changes layer(s).
Table 8: Required Attribution for Point Landmark, Area Landmark, and Hydrographic Area Updates
FULLNAME
Boundary Correction
(Area landmarks only)
✓
Delete Landmark
CHNG_TYPE
RELATE
MTFCC
AREAID/POINTID
✓
B
✓
X
✓
✓
Change Landmark Name
✓
✓
G
New Landmark
✓
✓
E
✓
✓
✓
(Note: ✓ = Required Field)
1. To modify the shape of an area landmark, create the change polygons using the built-in ArcGIS
Editing tools in the Create Features window. This window should list all the appropriate types of
landmark edits you may want to make. Select the Boundary Correction template for these
changes and draw the areas that should be added or removed from the landmark.
2. Once you have completed the change polygon, modify the attribution for the features using
your preferred editing method:
a. Enter the feature name in the FULLNAME field. If you’re not sure of the name, you can use
the identify tool to get the name from the bas_arealm and/or bas_water layer.
b. Fill-out the RELATE field to designate if the area is being added (IN) or removed (OUT) from
the area landmark.
c. Make sure the CHNG_TYPE field has the appropriate designator (B). If it doesn’t, change it
to B.
3. To add new features, use the built in ArcGIS editing tools to create new point/area landmarks or
to copy/paste landmarks from another data source.
a. Enter the name of the new feature in the FULLNAME field.
b. Enter an MTFCC in the MTFCC field. The acceptable MTFCC codes for new landmarks are
listed at .
c. Make sure the CHNG_TYPE field has the appropriate designator (E). If it doesn’t, change it to
E.
When adding new area landmarks, please only add the following types of areas:
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
20
•
Water bodies.
•
Glaciers.
•
Airports.
•
Cemeteries.
•
Golf courses.
•
Parks.
The Census Bureau cannot add other types of areas at this time (although some may already
exist in MAF/TIGER).
Note: If adding an MTFCC K2457 (Airport – Area Representation) area landmark, please limit the
updates to major airports (major regional and international airports). The feature should show
the full extent of the airport facility, that is, do not limit the addition to simply the landing strips.
4. To delete any type of landmark, copy and paste the records from the bas_arealm, bas_pointlm,
or bas_water feature class that you want to remove into the appropriate changes feature class.
Edit the CHNG_TYPE field so that they are marked with a ‘X’.
5. To modify the location of a point landmark, mark the feature for deletion and re-add it in the
correct location using the steps laid out above. Only do this if the feature is very far off or in the
wrong position relative to boundaries or other features.
6. If a landmark has an incorrect name and/or MTFCC, copy and paste the records from the
bas_arealm, bas_pointlm, or bas_water feature class that you want to remove into the
appropriate changes feature class. Enter ‘G’ in the CHNG_TYPE field. Populate the correct
MTFCC in MTFCC and/or the correct name in FULLNAME.
3.6
Attribute Check Tool
This tool is used to verify that there are no inconsistencies with the data included in the
submission. Run this tool during or after change polygons have been reviewed for spatial
accuracy to produce a report of attribution errors. It may also run for all levels of geography
that have changes since it is run on each individual change file.
1. Double click on the 5) Attribute Check tool.
Figure 22. Partnership Tools Menu with Attribute Check Selected
2. In the Attribute Check window:
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
21
•
The Change File should be the change file created in tool 2) Create Changes for which to
generate a report.
•
In Geography Type, choose the type of geography being worked on from the dropdown. The
same options as the Create Changes tool are available here.
•
The last input is the optional check box for Includes Changes in Georgia. This box only needs
to be checked if responding in the state of Georgia.
Figure 23. Attribute Check Window
3. Click OK to run the tool.
4. There should now be a text file in the working folder called attribute_check_.txt
containing all the discrepancies identified in the change file that still need to be fixed.
Figure 24. Projects Submenu Showing an attribute_check Text File
5. Reopen the working mxd and correct any attribution errors identified in the error text file. Use
the tables in the above sections to assist in correcting those errors.
3.7
Export Submission Tool
Upon review of the changes file and the attribute error report, the finalized changes may be
exported for submission to the Census Bureau. This tool can also be used to provide updated
contact information with the submission.
Note: This tool does not submit the changes, it just makes a file for submission. Please follow steps
listed in Chapter 4 to submit the changes through the Secure Web Incoming Module (SWIM).
1. Double click on the 6) Export Submission Files tool.
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
22
Figure 25. Partnership Tools Menu with Export Submission Files Selected
2. In the Export Submission Files tool window:
•
Enter the 11-digit BAS ID in the BAS ID field.
•
Parcel data can be included as supplemental information in the Parcels field. This is an
optional field so it can also be left blank.
•
Under Additional Files, drag in or navigate to any additional files to be included in the
submission. This can include streets data, maps, legal documentation, or any other helpful
supporting data. This is an optional field so it can also be left blank. There is no need to add
the changes layers here as the tool will handle those already based on the BAS ID.
•
For BAS Contact, Entity Name, Contact Title or Department Name, Address, Email, and
Phone Number, please include any or all contact information updates that are to be sent to
the Census Bureau. These fields can be left blank if there are no updates, though if someone
other than the BAS Contact prepared the submission, include the contact information.
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
23
Figure 26. Export Submission Files Window
3. Click OK to run the tool.
4. When the tool completes, a new browser window will open and load the SWIM webpage. The
zip file with your submission will be located inside the BAS ID folder and named
BAS__return.zip.
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
24
CHAPTER 4
SUBMIT CHANGES TO THE CENSUS BUREAU
All participants must use the Secure Web Incoming Module (SWIM) to submit their changes to
the Census Bureau. Due to security requirements, the Census Bureau cannot accept
submissions via File Transfer Protocol (FTP), email or any protocol other than the SWIM site.
To upload and transmit update files to the Census Bureau, participants must access their SWIM
account.
Open a web browser window and enter the SWIM URL: .
SWIM runs on the two most recent versions of each of these major browsers:
•
Microsoft Edge®
•
Google Chrome®
•
Mozilla Firefox®
•
Apple Safari®
Participants who already have a SWIM account should proceed to Step 4 to log in.
Participants who do not have a SWIM account click ‘Register Account’:
•
Enter the 12-digit token provided by the Census Bureau.
•
Create a password following the five criteria below:
a. Username and password are case sensitive.
b. It must be at least eight characters in length.
c. It must have at least one upper case character.
d. It must have at least one lower case character.
e. It must have at least one number.
f. It must have at least one special character (valid characters are: #, !, $, &, ?, ~).
•
Complete the registration information form.
Log in to SWIM using your email address and password.
Upload a BAS submission:
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
h.
Select the Start New Upload button.
Select the BAS radio button.
Select the Entity type (State, Place, County, MCD, Tribal Area, or Consolidated City).
Select the State and County.
Click the + Add File button.
Select the .zip file to upload.
Double-click on the .zip file to upload. Add additional files in the same manner.
Add any additional information to the Comments field.
Click the Next button. A Thank You screen will appear.
Logout of SWIM.
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
25
4.1
Troubleshooting SWIM
If you are having trouble accessing your SWIM account, here are some tips for using SWIM:
•
SWIM email addresses and passwords are case sensitive.
•
If you forgot your password, participants may reset their password using the “Forgot your
password?” link on the login page. Follow the prompts to enter the case-sensitive email
address and provide the security answer (not case-sensitive). If the security answer is
correct, the SWIM system sends a password reset link to the email account for use in
resetting the password. Once logged into SWIM, users can modify their password and
security answer by selecting the ‘Change Security’ link at the top, right-hand side of the
page.
•
If you cannot recover your password through the “Forgot your Password?” menus, please
email with the subject line “SWIM Account Assistance” with a brief
description of the issue.
•
SWIM accounts are specific to users, not to your government so we do not advise sharing an
account. You may always request another account for a new BAS Contact.
•
If you already created an account through another decennial program such as PSAP, LUCA,
or GSS, you do not need another account. You may use the same previously established
login information.
U.S. Census Bureau
Boundary an Annexation Survey (BAS) Partnership Toolbox How-to Guide
26
| File Type | application/pdf |
| File Title | 2020 Census: Document Name Respondent Guide with Extra Room for Three Lines of Title Space |
| Author | Lauren Ely (CENSUS/GEO FED) |
| File Modified | 2021-09-08 |
| File Created | 2021-09-08 |