Attachment 8e - University Advance Letter
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Dear << CONTACT NAME >>:
You are receiving this letter because the residential units at <>, which are part of your
institution’s student housing quarters, have been selected for inclusion in an official federal government
survey sample by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS). The U.S. Census Bureau is the
designated data collection agent for the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS). This means that an
interviewer from the U.S. Census Bureau, <>, will need to speak with the residents currently
living in those housing quarters to administer the survey questionnaire.
We would like to ask your permission and assistance in gaining access to the housing
quarters. We understand that ensuring the safety of your resident is a top priority. You may verify our
interviewers’ identity via their official U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census identification
badge. Further, all information collected by our interviewers on behalf of NCHS is protected by strict
federal laws: Congress authorized the NHIS data collection in Section 306 of the Public Health Service Act
(42 United States Code 242k). The federal laws that require all information we collect to be held in strict
confidence are Section 308(d) of the Public Health Service Act [42 United States Code 242m (d)],the
Confidential Information Protection and Statistical Efficiency Act (PL 107-347), and the Privacy Act of
1974 (5 U.S.C. § 552a). If any NCHS employee, contractor, or agent gives out confidential information not
authorized by law, he or she can be fired, fined and/or imprisoned. In addition, NCHS complies with the
Federal Cybersecurity Enhancement Act of 2015, which requires the federal government to protect federal
computer networks by using computer security programs to identify cybersecurity risks like hacking,
internet attacks, and other security weaknesses.
The U.S. Census Bureau conducts surveys on topics such as unemployment, education, income, health, and
housing. To ensure they represent the entire U.S. population, these surveys include persons living in student
housing quarters throughout the country. Each residential unit has been randomly selected and cannot be
replaced with another unit.
If you have any further questions, please call <> at <> or our regional office at
<>, <>, on weekdays between 8:00 am and 5:00 pm <