Confidentiality Brochure

Results of Census Bureau
Surveys Provide a Wealth of
Information—Reflecting Our
Nation's Economic and Social
Environment!

Attachment D

U.S. Census Bureau
Regional Offices
If you have additional concerns regarding
confidentiality of Census Bureau data, please
contact your local regional office:

The U.S. Census Bureau
Respects Your Privacy and
Keeps Your Personal
Information Confidential
It's the Law! (Title 13, U.S. Code)

How Census Data Affect Our
Economy .. .
Data on every subject and aspect of social,
economic, and cultural matters are distributed
through a constantly growing group of
data users—the general public as well as
governments worldwide. For example,
these data form the basis for the national
unemployment rate, official poverty/income
statistics, Consumer Price Index, monthly
housing statistics, and other economic
indicators.

Confidentiality of personal
information is recognized by the
U.S. Census Bureau as a major
factor in gathering accurate data.

Atlanta

1-800-424-6974

Boston

1.800-562-5

Charlotte

1.800-331.7360

Chicago

1-800-865-6384

Dallas

-800-835-9752

Denver

1-800-852-6159

Detroit

1-800-432-1495

Kansas City

1-800-728-4748

Los Angeles

1-800-992-3530

New York

1-800-991-2520

Philadelphia

1-800-262-4236

Seattle

1-800-233-3308

www.census.gov
How Census Data Affect Your
Community .. .
The surveys undertaken by the Census Bureau
provide vital information about emerging
social problems, such as the condition of
education in the United States, pregnancy
and infant death, the prevalence of alcohol
consumption, and crime. The data also
describe the health, housing, employment,
unemployment, income, and consumer
expenditures of the population.

U.S. Department of Commerce

Economics and Statistics Administration
U.S. CENSUS BUREAU

Issued March 2009
BC-1428RV

USCENSUSBUREAU
Helping You Make Informed Decisions

The Public's Privacy
No idle pledge!
Safeguards for Your Privacy__

Confidentiality Is a Must

Technology Safeguards

The Law .. .
Title 13, U.S. Code

Only authorized Census Bureau employees
can see your personal identifiable
information.

Modernized automated computer systems
and programs, used to store and process
information collected, are configured to
ensure that an individual's information is
protected from any unauthorized access—for
any reason!

Simply stated, information collected by the
U.S. Census Bureau is used only for statistical
purposes.
When the Census Bureau says it will keep
your information confidential, that also
means it will not release results that could be
used to identify you. That's the law!

The Oath . . .
All Census Bureau employees, including
temporary employees, swear under oath that
they will not disclose any information about
individuals or businesses gathered by the
agency.

Even copies of census questionnaires cannot
be used as evidence in a court of law.
Census data on individuals or establishments
are not subject to disclosure under the
Freedom of Information Act.
No authority can obtain personal identifiable
data from the Census Bureau. The airtight
law applies to the White House, U.S. Supreme
Court, Internal Revenue Service, U.S.
Citizenship and Immigration Services, police,
military, and welfare agencies—everybody!

The Census Bureau even withholds statistical
totals if they represent a geographic area
so small that the numbers might identify
someone.
Access to Census Bureau computer systems
from outside the Census Bureau is strictly
controlled through secure technology,
including passwords, firewalls, encryption,
and auditing, to prevent unauthorized access.

The Penalties ..
Substantial penalties are in place for
violators of the law. Disclosing confidential
census information is a felony; the penalty
for wrongful disclosure is up to 5 years
imprisonment and/or a fine. (Under the
Sentencing Reform Act, the fine for wrongful
disclosure currently is up to $250,000.)

Names and addresses are separated from the
electronic files that contain an individual's
answers when no longer needed, to protect
the respondent's confidentiality.

The law protects you
and your information!