2010 Census Quality Survey

Attachment E

2010 Census Quality Survey (Internet)
Instruction/FAQ/Help Text
DRAFT - 4/22/2010

SURVEY INSTRUCTIONS
Display a list of hyperlinks for each topic with the expanded text below. A clicked hyperlink will
scroll the person to that specific topic, with the remaining content still visible above and below.
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Who should respond to the survey?
How do I make corrections?
Can I stop and come back later?
How do I submit my completed survey?

Q. Who should respond to the survey?
We would like this survey to be completed by the same person who completed the 2010 Census
form for this household. The 2010 Census form was the blue questionnaire your household
received in late March.
If this person is unavailable or you do not know who completed the 2010 Census form, then this
survey can be completed by the person who owns or rents the living quarters or any other person
who is at least 15 years of age.

Q. How do I make corrections?
For questions where you must choose a single response from a list, clicking the correct response
will change your answer to that response.
If it is a “check all that apply” question, you may click on a selected check box to unselect the
box and remove it as one of your answer choices.

Q. Can I stop and come back later?
Yes. While we expect that this short survey can be completed in just 10 minutes, we realize that
technical problems or other matters may intervene. If you log out before submitting the survey
you will need your PIN in order to get back into the survey. Your PIN will be provided to you
during the survey, once we have confirmed the address for which you are completed this survey.

Q. How do I submit my completed survey?
Once you have finished answering all the questions, you will be given the option to submit your
survey by clicking a “Submit” button.

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FAQs
Display a list of hyperlinks for each topic with the expanded text below. A clicked hyperlink will
scroll the person to that specific topic, with the remaining content still visible above and below.
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Why was I selected for this survey?
Do I have to do this survey?
Is it possible to complete my survey over the telephone?
How long will it take to complete this survey?
Why do I have to do this survey when I already answered the 2010 Census?
What types of questions will I be asked?
What is the Census Bureau’s authority for conducting this survey?
Do you share data with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Internal Revenue
Service, courts, or the police?
How does the Census Bureau protect the privacy of my survey data?
Why are you asking me to do this when I heard that people were not able to provide their
Census information online?
Is it safe to complete this survey online?
What is the Privacy Act?
Can I get a copy of the results?

Q. Why was I selected for this survey?
The U.S. Census Bureau chose your address, not you personally, as part of a randomly selected
sample. We need your answers, and the answers of the other households we talk to, so we can
evaluate how well the census counted people and to improve our procedures for the next census
in 2020.

Q. Do I have to do this survey?
This survey is not mandatory. However, by completing the survey you help us make sure that
the 2010 Census results are as accurate as possible. Counting the number of people living in the
United States is a huge challenge, and your help with this effort is greatly appreciated.

Q. Is it possible to complete my survey over the telephone?
No. At this time we are not able to accept information over the telephone. If you are unable to
complete the survey online, there is no need to contact us. We will mail a paper questionnaire to
you in a few weeks.

Q. How long will it take to complete this survey?
The U.S. Census Bureau estimates that, for the average household, this form will take about 10
minutes to complete, including the time for reviewing the instructions and answers.

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Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this burden to: Paperwork
Reduction Project xxxx-xxxx-x, U.S. Census Bureau, AMSD-3D138, 4600 Silver Hill Road,
Washington, DC 20233. You may e-mail comments to paperwork@census.gov; use “Paperwork
Project xxxx-xxxx-x” as the subject.
Respondents are not required to respond to any information collection unless it displays a valid
approved number from the Office of Management and Budget.

Q. Why do I have to do this survey when I already answered the 2010 Census?
You probably have completed a 2010 Census form already, but this is a different survey. We
need your answers to the questions on this survey to help us make sure that the 2010 Census
results are as accurate as possible.

Q. What types of questions will I be asked me?
Similar to the 2010 Census form you completed, this survey will ask if the housing unit is rented
or owned, how many people live in the household and, for each person living in the household,
we ask name, sex, age/date of birth, Hispanic origin, race, and whether or not the person
sometimes lives or stays somewhere else.

Q. What is the Census Bureau’s authority for conducting this survey?
We are conducting this survey under the authority of Title 13 United States Code Section 182.
This survey has been approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). For this
survey, the OMB approval number is xxxx-xxxx.

Q. Do you share data with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Internal Revenue
Service, courts, or the police?
No, individual responses are not shared with anyone, including government agencies or private
organizations.

Q. How does the Census Bureau protect the privacy of my survey data?
Your data is kept private in three ways:
1. Federal Law: Title 13 of the United States Code protects the confidentiality of all your
information. Violating this law is a crime with severe penalties.
2. Privacy Principles: Our Privacy Principles are guidelines that cover all of our activities.
These principles encompass both our responsibilities to protect your information and
your rights as a respondent. They apply to the information we collect and the statistics we
publish.

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3. Statistical Safeguards: Statistical methods ensure that the statistics we release do not
identify individuals or businesses. These methods include extensive review and analysis
of all our data products, as well as disclosure avoidance methodologies such as data
suppression and modification.
Your information is confidential and we will never identify you individually. For more
information, visit the Census Bureau’s Data Protection and Privacy Policy webpage at:
http://www.census.gov/privacy/.

Q. Why are you asking me to do this when I heard that people were not able to provide their
Census information online?
Although the 2010 Census did not use the Internet to collect data, the 2010 Census Quality
Survey marks the start of our Internet testing phase for the next census. We are using the
Internet to collect survey data in an effort to conserve national resources, save taxpayers’ money,
and process your data more efficiently.
Your participation will help us improve our procedures for the next Census in 2020. We assure
you that this survey is a legitimate and necessary part of improving the quality of data collected
by the U.S. Census Bureau. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has approved this
survey. The OMB approval number is xxxx-xxxx.

Q. Is it safe to complete this survey online?
In addition to the three privacy guidelines above (Federal Law, Privacy Principles, and Statistical
Safeguards), the following additional policies apply to personally-identifiable information
provided in an online survey. More information on this topic can be found on the Data
Protection and Privacy Policy webpage at: http://www.census.gov/privacy/.
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For each online survey, we are required to provide an explanation to respondents about
the confidentiality of the data and the laws that protect those data (e.g., Title 13, United
States Code Section 9 (a)).

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All web data submissions are encrypted in order to protect your privacy, even in the
remote chance that your survey responses are intercepted.

Q. Can I get a copy of the results?
The Census Bureau plans to make results of this study available to the general public.
Information quality is an integral part of the pre-dissemination review of the information
disseminated by the Census Bureau (fully described in the Census Bureau’s Information Quality
Guidelines at http://www.census.gov/quality/quality_guidelines.htm). Information quality is also
integral to the information collections conducted by the Census Bureau and is incorporated into
the clearance process by the Paperwork Reduction Act.

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QUESTION SPECIFIC HELP
When a person clicks the “help” link on a specific question screen, only the text for that question
should be displayed.
CONFIRM – Address confirmation page
We need to make sure that you are completing this survey for the correct address. The address
below should match the one to which we mailed your survey initiation letter. If this address is
not the same, please answer “no”.

ADDRESS – Were you living there 11/1/09?
Answer “yes” if:
 You were living and sleeping at the address in this question on November 1, 2009.
-OR You were staying at the address in this question on November 1, 2009 and had no
permanent place to live.
Otherwise, answer “no.”

TIME – Is there anyone living there now who was there 11/1/09?
Answer “yes” if anyone other than yourself is staying there now and was ALSO:
 Living and sleeping at that address on November 1, 2009.
-OR Staying at that address on November 1, 2009 and had no permanent place to live.
Otherwise, answer “no.”

ADDAWAY – Snowbird question
Answer “yes” if anyone who usually lived at the address in this question was temporarily away
on November 1, 2009.
Examples of living situations that should be considered when answering “yes” to this question
include:
 People who lived at a seasonal or second residence for part of the year, but lived most of
the year at the address in this question.
 People who were away on vacation or on a business trip.
 Children in a shared custody situation who were away temporarily, but lived most of the
time at the address in this question.
 People who lived at more than one residence during the week, month, or year, but they
lived at the address in this question most of the time (during the week, month or year).

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PEOPLE – Roster question
In the spaces provided, type in the name (first, middle initial, and last) of every person who was
living and sleeping at this address on November 1, 2009.
Enter the person's legal name, that is, the name used to sign checks and other important papers.
If a person uses a first initial and a middle name enter the initial and name in the First Name field
and leave the Middle Initial field blank. If the person uses junior or senior, enter the last name
and the suffix in the Last Name field. For a newborn infant who does not yet have a given name,
enter "infant" in the First Name field.
If you have more people to report than the number of spaces provided, click on the link directly
below the last space to add more names.

MISS – Undercount question
Answer “yes” to this question if you need to add more names to the list of people who lived or
stayed at that address on November 1, 2009.
The list of examples in this question contains the types of people that are sometimes forgotten or
not included because:
 They are not related to you.
 They are distant relatives.
 They did not normally live there, but they were there on November 1, 2009 and had no
permanent place to live.

STAY – Undercount question’s collection of additional names
In the spaces provided, type in the name (first, last, and middle initial) of those (additional)
people.
If you have more people to report than the number of spaces provided, click on the link directly
below the last space to add more names.

OMPLETED – Is this the Census respondent?
The 2010 Census form was the blue 10-question form mailed to you in mid-March. There are
several ways in which the form could have been completed.
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You may have completed the form entirely on your own.
You may have completed a portion of the form while another person, like a roommate,
may have completed the rest. Or, you may have completed the form yourself but
received some information from another person.
Somebody else in your household may have completed the form without any assistance
from you. Or, you may be unaware if your household completed a form at all.

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HOME – Tenure
Mark the “Owned with a mortgage or loan” box to describe any house, apartment, or mobile
home that has any type of loan secured by real estate. These liens may be called mortgages,
deeds of trust, trust deeds, and contracts to purchase. Owner-occupied units with reverse
mortgages and home equity loans are considered to be “owned with a mortgage or loan” as are
owner-occupied mobile homes with installment loans.
Mark the “Owned free and clear” box to describe owner-occupied properties without any loans
secured by real estate.
Mark the “Rented” box to describe units where money rent is paid or contracted.
Mark the “Occupied without payment of rent” box if the house or apartment is not owned or
being bought by a member of the household and if money rent is not paid or contracted. For
example – a house or apartment that is provided free to a janitor, caretaker, or superintendent in
exchange for services.

OWNER (OWNS) – Who owns the house, apartment, or mobile home?
 Please select the person who owns the residence at this address.
 If more than one person owns this residence you may select multiple people or you may
choose just one.
 If none of the people on the list own this residence, please select any adult (at least 18
years of age).

OWNER (RENTS) – Who rents the house, apartment, or mobile home?
 Please indicate the person who pays the rent for the residence at this address.
 If more than one person pays the rent for this place, you may select multiple people or
you may choose just one.
 If none of the people on the list pay rent for this residence, please select any adult (at
least 18 years of age).

RELATION – Demographics: Relationship to Person 1
Waiting on approved text from subject matter experts.

SEX – Demographics: Sex
Mark the box that indicates the household member's biological sex.

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AGE – Demographics: DOB and Age
This question consists of two parts: the first part asks for the date of birth, and the second part
asks for the age of the person.
 If you know the date of birth, enter it. The person’s age will be automatically calculated.
 If you do not know the exact date of birth, enter as much as you know.
 If you do not know the date of birth at all, leave it blank and fill in the person’s age.
Date of Birth
Enter the month, day, and year of birth in the spaces provided. Use the two-digit identification
for each month. For example, "06" for June, "12" for December, etc. If you do not know the
month, leave the month field blank. For day, if you do not know the day, leave the day field
blank. For year, enter all four digits of the year. If you do not know the year, leave the year field
blank.
Age
Enter the person’s age on April 1, 2010. Do not round the age up if the person is close to having
a birthday. If you do not know the exact age, an estimate will do. For babies who are not yet
one year old, enter "0."

ORIGIN – Demographics: Hispanic origin
People of Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish origin are those who trace their origin or descent to
Mexico, Puerto Rico, Cuba, Spanish-speaking countries of Central or South America, and other
Spanish cultures. Origin can be considered as the heritage, nationality group, lineage, or country
of birth of the person or the person's parents or ancestors before their arrival in the United States.
People who identify their origin as Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish may be of any race.

Race – Demographics: Race
The concept of race reflects self-identification; it does not indicate any clear-cut scientific
definition that is biological or genetic in reference. The data for race represent self-classification
by people according to the race or races with which they most closely identify. People may
choose to report two or more races. People who identify their origin as Hispanic, Latino, or
Spanish may be of any race.

ELSEWHERE – Overcount question
Answer “no” if this person lived only at the address we have been asking about, and they did not
live at another address around October 1, 2009.
Answer “yes” if this person sometimes lived at another address around October 1, 2009. Choose
the option from the list provided that best describes the person’s alternate residence. Or, choose
“Yes, for another reason” (at the end of the list) if none of the options apply. For example,

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choose “Yes, in college housing” if this person was living away in college housing around
October 1, 2009. You may choose all the options that apply.

FULLSTAY – Overcount question’s collection of other address
Please type in the full address of the other place where this person sometimes stayed around
October 1, 2009. Type in the house number, street name, apartment number (if needed), rural
route address (if needed), city, state, and zip code.
If there is no address, please type a description of the location for this place in the box provided
at the bottom of the screen. For example: “the apartment on the top floor above ‘Baskin
Robbins’ near intersection of Allen St and College Ave, in State College, PA.”

MOST – Which address do they lived and stay most of the time?
Choose the option that best describes where this person was staying MOST OF THE TIME
during the week, month or year around the time of October 1, 2009.

WHERE – Which address staying 10/1/09?
Choose the option that best describes where this person was staying on the day of October 1,
2009.

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