2010 Census_Supporting Statement_Part A_0607-0860_IslandAreas

SUPPORTING STATEMENT

U.S. Department of Commerce

U.S. Census Bureau

2010 Census – American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands

OMB Control No. 0607-0860

Part A. Justification

1. Necessity of the Information Collection

The U.S. Census Bureau (Census Bureau) requests authorization from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to collect data from the public in American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, and the U.S.Virgin Islands (collectively referred to as the Island Areas) as part of the 2010 Census. The United States Constitution mandates that a census of the Nation’s population be taken every ten years. In Title 13, U.S. Code, the Congress gave the Secretary of Commerce (delegated to the Director of the Census Bureau) authority to undertake the decennial census. The geographic scope of the decennial census is specified in Title 13 U.S.C., Section 191 as covering the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands of the United States, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, and any other areas as may be determined by the Department of State. In the 2010 Census, we also will enumerate the Pacific Island Area of American Samoa. Census data are used to determine funding allocations for the distribution of federal and state funds each year.

From the 2010 Census of the Island Areas, the Census Bureau will collect demographic, social, economic, and housing characteristics specifically elaborated in Title 13 U.S. Code. Title 13 of the United States Code also provides for the confidentiality of responses to various surveys and censuses.

In the process of developing our data collection instruments for the 2010 Census, the Census Bureau has attempted to reduce respondent burden by including only those questions that are required in Federal or local law, or implied in the data requirements for the participation in Federal or local government programs.

2. Needs and Uses

This clearance request covers the Island Areas. To enumerate these areas, there are planned operations that will be performed by various staffs at headquarters and at local census offices. These operations are intended to improve the accuracy of census coverage and reduce operational risk compared to Census 2000.

Information quality is an integral part of the pre-dissemination review of the information disseminated by the Census Bureau. Information quality is also integral to the information collections conducted by the Census Bureau and is incorporated into the clearance process required by the Paperwork Reduction Act.

Operations

The Census Bureau will develop and sign a Memorandum of Agreement with the Governor of each of the Island Areas that outlines the mutual roles and responsibilities of each party in the conduct of the 2010 Census for each Island Area. The Census Bureau will place a Census Advisor on each Island to oversee all field operations, and employees of the governments of each Island Area will conduct all field activities.

A. Delivery Strategy for Questionnaires and Letters

The Census Bureau will conduct a blanket mailing of unaddressed Advance Census Reports (ACRs) to residents in each of the Island Areas. Housing units also will receive an advance letter before questionnaire delivery. Enumerators will visit each housing unit and pick up a completed ACR or conduct an interview with an Enumerator Questionnaire (EQ) if the respondent did not complete the ACR. Enumerators also will develop an address list for the area and map spot the location of each housing unit at the time of enumeration. This operation is called list/enumerate.

In summary, mailings will include:

• An advance notice letter that alerts households that the census form will be sent to them soon, and

• An initial mailing package that includes the ACR

If the ACR is incomplete when the enumerator arrives for pickup, an interview will be conducted using an EQ.

2. Group Quarters (GQ) Operation

1. Group Quarters Advance Visit (GQAV): The GQAV operation informs the GQ contact person of the upcoming GQ enumeration, addresses privacy and confidentiality concerns relating to personal identifiable information, and identifies any security issues, such as restricted access, required credentials, etc. Crew leaders visit all GQs and conduct an interview with the designated contact person to verify the GQ name, address, contact name, and phone number, and obtain an agreed upon date and time to conduct the enumeration and an expected Census Day population. The information collected during the interview is used to prepare the correct amount of census materials needed to conduct the enumeration at the facility.

2. Group Quarters Enumeration (GQE): The GQE operation will be conducted at the Group Quarters on the date agreed upon during the Advance Visit. During the GQE, three different enumeration methods can be used to enumerate the population: (1) interview residents in group quarters like college dormitories; (2) distribute questionnaire packets for residents in colleges and universities to complete; and (3) use administrative records in places where it is disruptive or unsafe for Census personnel, such as prisons. Enumerators will visit group quarters to develop a control list of all residents and distribute census questionnaires (Individual Census Reports or ICRs) for residents to complete, interview the residents and enter the data on the ICR, or use administrative records to complete the ICR. Enumerators collect and review completed ICRs to ensure that they are complete and legible. They also will complete an ICR for any resident on the control list who did not complete one.

3. Service-Based Enumeration (SBE): The SBE is designed to enumerate people experiencing homelessness and who may otherwise be missed during the enumeration of housing units and group quarters. People are enumerated at places where they receive services and at targeted non-sheltered outdoor locations. SBE locations likely will include shelters for people experiencing homelessness (emergency and transitional shelters, and hotels and motels providing shelter for people experiencing homelessness), domestic violence shelters, soup kitchens, regularly scheduled mobile food van stops, and targeted non-sheltered outdoor locations. This operation is conducted to provide an opportunity for people experiencing homelessness to be included in the census.

4. Military Group Quarters Enumeration: Military Group Quarters Enumeration is a special component of the GQE designed to enumerate military personnel assigned to barracks, dormitories, military treatment facilities, and disciplinary barracks and jails. Military Census Reports (MCRs) are distributed to the residents of the military facilities. (Military families living in housing units on bases are enumerated using the list/enumerate methodology). For people living or staying in Military GQs, the Census Bureau provides enumeration procedures, training and questionnaires to military personnel on the base who then conduct the actual enumeration. During the military enumeration, designated base personnel distribute census questionnaires to all military personnel assigned to the GQs, including all people in the disciplinary barracks and jails. Within a few days, base personnel collect the completed questionnaires, obtaining census information for any missing cases. Census staff returns to the base to collect the completed questionnaires.

5. Military/Vessels Enumeration (MVE) in the Pacific Island Areas (PIAs): The MVE is a special component of Group Quarters Enumeration designed to enumerate people residing on U.S. military ships in operation in the PIAs at the time of the census. This is also sometimes called “Shipboard Enumeration.” The MVE uses questionnaires (Shipboard Census Reports or SCRs) that are distributed to every military vessel home-ported in the PIAs. The Census Bureau provides enumeration procedures, training, and questionnaires to personnel on the vessels who then conduct the actual enumeration. Designated vessel personnel distribute the census questionnaires to those living on the vessels, collect the completed questionnaires, and return them to the Local Census Offices in the PIAs.

C. Field Follow-Up (FFU) Operations

The field follow-up operation tries to improve data quality and coverage by correcting Assignment Areas (AAs) with failed edit or missing questionnaires. Additionally, enumerators will also confirm that housing units are correctly classified as vacant units.

Failed-Edit Questionnaires: During the clerical edit operation, questionnaires are examined by the Local Census Office (LCO) clerks for completeness. Missing person or housing data are identified. Questionnaires which fail the office edit operation are assigned to LCO clerks to attempt a telephone interview with the households for which telephone numbers were provided on the questionnaires. Households that did not provide telephone numbers must be visited by enumerators to obtain the missing data.

Missing Questionnaires: After the initial field office merge operation is conducted, addresses are identified in the address registers for which there are no questionnaires. Enumerators will visit these addresses and complete questionnaires for each address.

Vacant Check (VC) Field Operation: The VC Operation is an independent follow-up of selected addresses that are classified as vacant. These addresses are assigned to a different enumerator than the enumerator who made the original classification. Enumerators will verify the Census Day (April 1, 2010) status of the assigned addresses and complete a census questionnaire for all VC cases. In some cases, the enumerator must conduct an interview with a proxy respondent (e.g., neighbor or mailman) to confirm that the housing unit was vacant on Census Day. If the housing unit looks occupied, an interview will be conducted with a household member to confirm the status of the unit on Census Day. Although the VC workload is comprised of only cases identified as vacant, the VC enumerator may determine that a case is vacant or occupied.

4. Reinterview Operation

Reinterview involves the verification of some of the information on the enumerator completed questionnaires to detect falsification of data. A sample of each enumerator’s work is selected for reinterview. During the reinterview, the original respondent or proxy respondent is asked some of the same questions that the original enumerator asked on the initial contact with the household.

The Field Operations Supervisor (FOS) is responsible for the reinterview and is assisted by an FOS clerk, crew leader, and crew leader assistants that he/she supervises for reinterview.

3. Use of Information Technology

The telephone interview for failed-edit questionnaires requires the use of telecommunication to collect and verify census data. For questionnaires that have failed the clerical edit and have a telephone number on them, clerks will call the household and attempt a phone interview to correct the questionnaire.

The Decennial Budget Integration Tool (D-BIT), Island Areas Module (IAM), is an automated office control system for checking in address registers and questionnaires received from the field. The D-BIT IAM will be used in an effort to ensure that a questionnaire has been filled out for every address listed in the address register and that every questionnaire checked in has a listing in the address register.

4. Efforts to Identify Duplication

To our knowledge, this effort does not duplicate information collected by any other agency.

5. Minimizing Burden

In the process of developing our data collection instruments (or questionnaires) for the 2010 Census and ensuring a minimum number of questions needed to meet legal mandates to conduct an accurate count, the Census Bureau has attempted to reduce respondent burden by including only those questions that are required in Federal or local law, or implied in the data requirements for the participation in Federal or local government programs. Many of the questions included on the questionnaires are the same as those on the stateside decennial census short form and the American Community Survey long-form questionnaires. Other questions, as recommended by the Island Areas Interagency Committees, are modifications of stateside questions, or questions that reflect the unique social, economic, and climatic characteristics of these areas.

The Island Areas Interagency Committees were formed in each area at the request of the Census Bureau. The Census Bureau asked each governor to form an Interagency Committee with members that reflect a diverse array of data users.

6. Consequences of Less Frequent Collection
The Census Bureau is mandated by the United States Constitution (Article I, Section 2, Clause 3) to conduct a census every 10 years. Title 13, United States Code, Sections 141 and 193 provides the authority to do so (i.e., the conduct of the census itself, and related activities such as, post-enumeration surveys, census tests, etc.)

7. Special Circumstances

No special circumstances exist.

8. Consultations Outside the Agency

We asked each Island Area to form an Interagency Committee, composed of data users from the public and private sectors, to review the Census 2000 questionnaire and make recommendations for the 2010 Census.

The Census Bureau published a notice in the Federal Register in order to inform the public of our intent to conduct the 2010 Census. See Federal Register dated June 20, 2008 (Volume 73, No. 120, pp. 35121-35123).

The Census Bureau received one public comment from the Federal Register as follows:

Summary of Public Comment from the Federal Register

1. Immigration

The writer alleges that illegal immigration in these areas is a large problem about which the U.S. government should be concerned. The writer proposes that the Census Bureau include a question on citizenship in its evaluation of these areas.

The 2010 Census questionnaires for the Island Areas do contain a question on citizenship.

The question reads as follows for the Pacific Islands (American Samoa, The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and Guam):

Is this person a CITIZEN or NATIONAL of the United States?

The question reads as follows for the U.S. Virgin Islands:

Is this person a CITIZEN of the United States?

9. Paying Respondents

Respondents participating in this survey will not receive any form of compensation for their participation.

10. Assurances of Confidentiality

The 2010 Census mailing package explains that participation is required by law, Title 13, United States Code, and includes the Census Bureau’s assurance that the personal information requested will be treated as confidential, as required by the same law.

Each household and Group Quarters we contact will receive a Form D-31 PI or D-31 VI, Confidentiality Notice. The notice explains that participants are required to respond. It includes the Census Bureau’s assurance that all information that could identify individuals will be held in the strictest confidence under applicable federal statues. Respondents also are told that their information only will be used for statistical purposes, and they are informed that Census Bureau employees are subject to fines or jail sentences if they violate their oath to protect respondents’ confidentiality. This information also is included on the paper questionnaires or in the letters that respondents receive.

11. Justification for Sensitive Questions

The Census Bureau perceives no question as sensitive.

12. Estimate of Hour Burden

The respondent universe consists of approximately 11,100 households in American Samoa, 19,400 households in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, 52,500 households in Guam, and 55,300 households in the U.S. Virgin Islands. To calculate the burden hours, we assume a theoretical 100 percent response rate. The burden hour estimates differ between the areas because the average household size varies by area. The household form for American Samoa will take approximately 64 minutes to complete, approximately 47 minutes to complete for households in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, approximately 43 minutes for households to complete in Guam, and approximately 42 minutes for households in the U.S. Virgin Islands to complete.

We estimate the total group quarters population of all Island Areas to be 20,400. This includes approximately 3,520 respondents in military installations and approximately 16,880 respondents in other types of group quarters facilities. We estimate the ICR, MCR, and SCR questionnaires will take approximately 24 minutes to complete. Household forms and Field Follow-up will take approximately the same amount of time to complete. Approximately 10% of households will require Field follow-up to improve data quality and coverage by correcting Assignment Areas (AAs) with failed edit or missing questionnaires.

In addition to the original enumeration process, a sample of each enumerator’s work will be selected for reinterview. The first five Enumerator Questionnaires each enumerator completes will require reinterview. We estimate that reinterview will take approximately 6 minutes for each household.

In order to minimize the burden in the 2010 Census, we will attempt to obtain the required information from only one person in each household.

Table 1—Total Burden Hours based on Responses and Time Estimates for Response

Entity	Responses	Estimated Time for Response	Total Burden Hours
Total household units in American Samoa	11,100	64 minutes	11,840
Field Follow-up in American Samoa	1,110	64 minutes	1,184 (burden included above)
Reinterview in American Samoa	200	6 minutes	20 hours
Total household units in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands	19,400	47 minutes	15,197
Field Follow-up in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands	1,940	47 minutes	1,519 (burden included above)
Reinterview in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands	210	6 minutes	21 hours
Total household units in Guam	52,500	43 minutes	37,625
Field Follow-up in Guam	5,250	43 minutes	3,763 (burden included above)
Reinterview in Guam	550	6 minutes	55 hours
Total household units in the U.S. Virgin Islands	55,300	42 minutes	38,710
Field Follow-up in the U.S. Virgin Islands	5,530	42 minutes	3,871 (burden included above)
Reinterview in the U.S. Virgin Islands	470	6 minutes	47 hours
GQ Workload Military Non-Military	3,520 16,880	24 minutes 24 minutes	1,408 6,752
Total			111,675 hours

13. Estimate of Cost Burden

There is no cost to respondents, except for the time it takes to respond to the questions.

14. Cost to the Federal Government

The estimated cost for the actual implementation and evaluation of the 2010 Census as requested in the President's Fiscal Year (FY) 2009 Budget Request is approximately $8,520 million; spread over six fiscal years (FY 2008 through FY 2013). This includes costs for the 2010 Census of the Island Areas. An inter-divisional Census Bureau team developed the data collection methodologies, and the Census Bureau’s Decennial Management Division allocated the resources for the implementation of the 2010 Census.

15. Reason for Change in Burden

This is a reinstatement with change from the 2000 Census of American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The total hours of burden to the public is increased by 39,054 hours due to an estimated increase in population in the four Island Areas. Additionally, due to the addition of new questions requested by the Island Area governments, the length of time to complete the questionnaires has increased.

16. Project Schedule

Operation	Start Date
Open Local Census Offices	October 1, 2009
Recruit, Hire, and Train Management Staff	October 2009
Group Quarters Update (Local Knowledge)	January 2010
Train Office/Field Personnel	February 2010
Census Day	April 1, 2010
Begin Field Follow-up (FFU)	May 2010
Close Local Census Offices	August 2010
Complete Release of All Data Products	December 2012

17. Request to Not Display Expiration Date

No exemption is requested. The Census Bureau will display the expiration date on the information collection forms.

18. Exceptions to the Certification
There are no exceptions to the certification.

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