[House Hearing, 111 Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
STATUS OF THE 2010 CENSUS OPERATIONS
=======================================================================
HEARING
before the
SUBCOMMITTEE ON INFORMATION POLICY,
CENSUS, AND NATIONAL ARCHIVES
of the
COMMITTEE ON OVERSIGHT
AND GOVERNMENT REFORM
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
ONE HUNDRED ELEVENTH CONGRESS
FIRST SESSION
__________
MARCH 5, 2009
__________
Serial No. 111-4
__________
Printed for the use of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform
Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.gpoaccess.gov/congress/
index.html
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COMMITTEE ON OVERSIGHT AND GOVERNMENT REFORM
EDOLPHUS TOWNS, New York, Chairman
PAUL E. KANJORSKI, Pennsylvania DARRELL E. ISSA, California
CAROLYN B. MALONEY, New York DAN BURTON, Indiana
ELIJAH E. CUMMINGS, Maryland JOHN M. McHUGH, New York
DENNIS J. KUCINICH, Ohio JOHN L. MICA, Florida
JOHN F. TIERNEY, Massachusetts MARK E. SOUDER, Indiana
WM. LACY CLAY, Missouri TODD RUSSELL PLATTS, Pennsylvania
DIANE E. WATSON, California JOHN J. DUNCAN, Jr., Tennessee
STEPHEN F. LYNCH, Massachusetts MICHAEL R. TURNER, Ohio
JIM COOPER, Tennessee LYNN A. WESTMORELAND, Georgia
GERRY E. CONNOLLY, Virginia PATRICK T. McHENRY, North Carolina
ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON, District of BRIAN P. BILBRAY, California
Columbia JIM JORDAN, Ohio
PATRICK J. KENNEDY, Rhode Island JEFF FLAKE, Arizona
DANNY K. DAVIS, Illinois JEFF FORTENBERRY, Nebraska
CHRIS VAN HOLLEN, Maryland JASON CHAFFETZ, Utah
HENRY CUELLAR, Texas AARON SCHOCK, Illinois
PAUL W. HODES, New Hampshire
CHRISTOPHER S. MURPHY, Connecticut
PETER WELCH, Vermont
BILL FOSTER, Illinois
JACKIE SPEIER, California
STEVE DRIEHAUS, Ohio
------ ------
------ ------
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Ron Stroman, Staff Director
Michael McCarthy, Deputy Staff Director
Carla Hultberg, Chief Clerk
Larry Brady, Minority Staff Director
Subcommittee on Information Policy, Census, and National Archives
WM. LACY CLAY, Missouri, Chairman
PAUL E. KANJORSKI, Pennsylvania MICHAEL R. TURNER, Ohio
CAROLYN B. MALONEY, New York PATRICK T. McHENRY, North Carolina
ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON, District of LYNN WESTMORELAND, Georgia
Columbia JOHN L. MICA, Florida
DANNY K. DAVIS, Illinois JASON CHAFFETZ, Utah
STEVE DRIEHAUS, Ohio
DIANE E. WATSON, California
Darryl Piggee, Staff Director
C O N T E N T S
----------
Page
Hearing held on March 5, 2009.................................... 1
Statement of:
Mesenbourg, Thomas, Acting Director, U.S. Census Bureau;
Robert Goldenkoff, Director, Strategic Issues, U.S.
Government Accountability Office; David A. Powner,
Director, Information Technology, U.S. Government
Accountability Office; and Glenn S. Himes, Ph.D., executive
director, civilian agencies, Center for Enterprise
Modernization, the Mitre Corp.............................. 20
Goldenkoff, Robert....................................... 26
Himes, Glenn S........................................... 60
Mesenbourg, Thomas....................................... 20
Powner, David A.......................................... 48
Letters, statements, etc., submitted for the record by:
Clay, Hon. Wm. Lacy, a Representative in Congress from the
State of Missouri, prepared statement of................... 3
Goldenkoff, Robert, Director, Strategic Issues, U.S.
Government Accountability Office, prepared statement of.... 28
Himes, Glenn S., Ph.D., executive director, civilian
agencies, Center for Enterprise Modernization, the Mitre
Corp., prepared statement of............................... 62
Maloney, Hon. Carolyn B., a Representative in Congress from
the State of New York, prepared statement of............... 18
McHenry, Hon. Patrick T., a Representative in Congress from
the State of North Carolina, prepared statement of......... 9
Mesenbourg, Thomas, Acting Director, U.S. Census Bureau,
prepared statement of...................................... 23
Powner, David A., Director, Information Technology, U.S.
Government Accountability Office, prepared statement of.... 49
Towns, Hon. Edolphus, a Representative in Congress from the
State of New York, prepared statement of................... 13
Watson, Hon. Diane E., a Representative in Congress from the
State of California, prepared statement of................. 91
STATUS OF THE 2010 CENSUS OPERATIONS
----------
THURSDAY, MARCH 5, 2009
House of Representatives,
Subcommittee on Information Policy, Census, and
National Archives,
Committee on Oversight and Government Reform,
Washington, DC.
The subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 10 a.m., in
room 2154, Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. Wm. Lacy Clay
(chairman of the subcommittee) presiding.
Present: Representatives Clay, McHenry, Maloney, Norton,
Driehaus, Towns, Westmoreland, Chaffetz, and Issa.
Staff present: Darryl Piggee, staff director/counsel; Jean
Gosa, clerk; Michelle Mitchell and Alissa Bonner, professional
staff members; Charisma Williams, staff assistant; Leneal
Scott, information systems manager; Lawrence Brady, minority
staff director; John Cuaderes, minority deputy staff director;
Jennifer Safavian, minority chief counsel for oversight and
investigations; Dan Blankenburg, minority director of outreach
and senior advisor; Adam Fromm, minority chief clerk and Member
liaison; Kurt Bardella, minority press secretary; Chapin Fay,
minority counsel; and Dr. Christopher Bright, minority senior
professional staff member.
Mr. Clay. The Information Policy, Census, and National
Archives Subcommittee of the Oversight and Government Reform
Committee will come to order.
Good morning and welcome to today's hearing. We will
receive a progress report from the Bureau on its preparations
for the 2010 census. We will also examine recommendations made
by GAO for improvements needed to address the Bureau's
operational challenges and discuss GAO's most recent report on
the Bureau's overall readiness for conducting the decennial
census.
Without objection, the Chair and ranking minority member
will have 5 minutes to make opening statements, followed by
opening statements not to exceed 3 minutes by any other Member
who seeks recognition.
We will also recognize each side after the opening
statements for 10 minutes each, in agreement with both sides.
Without objection, Members and witnesses may have 5
legislative days to submit a written statement or extraneous
materials for the record.
I will open with my statement and recognize our esteemed
colleague, Mr. McHenry, for his opening statement.
We are at a critical stage of preparation for next year's
decennial census. This will be the Bureau's largest and most
expensive census operation, costing taxpayers over $14 billion.
The Bureau must use all of these resources to ensure an
accurate, fair, and complete count on April 1, 2010.
As chairman, my mission is to help the Bureau to conduct
the most accurate census in U.S. history.
Last time, in 2000, the census missed 3 million Americans
and 1.4 million homes. Most of those that were missed were
poor, many were minorities, and the majority were from urban
areas; and that is just not good enough.
My standard is very simple: everyone counts and every
person must be counted.
The undercount is extremely damaging to States and local
communities. It deprives them of proper political
representation, Federal formula dollars, and vital information.
For every person the Bureau misses, their local community will
lose thousands of dollars of Federal funding for 10 years. And
given the economic emergency we all face, no city or State can
afford to miss anyone.
The Bureau has less than 1 month to complete preparations
for address canvassing. This essential operation will ensure
the accuracy of its master address list automation, and it will
play a critical role in the success of the 2010 census.
For the first time, addresses will be collected and
verified using handheld computers. Today we will focus on the
Bureau's progress toward strengthening its integrated IT
systems and how they can reduce any risks that would jeopardize
an accurate enumeration.
I want to thank all of our witnesses for appearing here
today, and I look forward to their testimony.
We will also be joined today by our chairman on the
Oversight Committee, Mr. Towns or New York, and the ranking
member of the full committee, Mr. Issa of California. Thank you
both for joining us.
[The prepared statement of Hon. Wm. Lacy Clay follows:]
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Mr. Clay. I will now yield to the distinguished ranking
minority member, Mr. McHenry of North Carolina, for a 5-minute
opening statement. Thank you.
Mr. McHenry. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I want to
congratulate you on attaining the chairmanship. It is certainly
historic for Congress and historic for your family, because
your father had the same jurisdiction during his chairmanship,
and I know that he is certainly proud of the legacy.
Mr. Clay. Stop making me blush. Thank you.
Mr. McHenry. But it is an historic moment and I certainly
appreciate it. I want to work in a bipartisan way with you to
ensure all the things that you said in your opening statement,
I concur, and I do have this hope that we can work in a
bipartisan basis to ensure that all Americans are counted. I
have the same concerns as Chairman Clay about the undercount. I
am looking forward to hear the Bureau explain their procedures
for the undercount and the overcount.
Back in 2008, the full Oversight and Government Reform
Committee met to discuss the challenges and funding problems
facing the Census Bureau, and identify ways to facilitate a
full and accurate count in 2010.
Today, almost a year later, we have the opportunity to ask
the Bureau exactly where they are in their preparations for the
decennial census; where it should be; and how, with Congress's
help, it can get there.
The decennial census is a huge undertaking, the largest
peacetime mobilization this country has ever seen. The data
that are collected affect how government and businesses
allocate the resources from the State level all the way down to
the small towns and communities in my district, in Chairman
Clay's district, and all across America. Therefore, it is
important that the Bureau be as open and honest as possible
about their preparation for a full count in 2010 and any
associated problems that they might incur.
I think I speak for both myself and the chairman when I say
this subcommittee will not point fingers if problems exist--
they always will with such a massive undertaking--and we will
certainly work with you to change existing plans, and we will
work with you early and often to make that happen. This
includes letting us know about any funding needs that may come
up along the way. The Bureau recently received $1 billion in
the stimulus and another $2.7 billion is currently in the 2009
omnibus before the Senate today, as well as appropriations for
2010.
Congress has demonstrated its intent to ensure the Census
Bureau has every resource it needs to conduct a full and
accurate count. With a sufficiently funded Census Bureau, we
can ensure a fair and thorough 2010 census that counts everyone
and leaves no justification for using any accounting methods.
Finally, I would like to stress the importance of
protecting the integrity of the census without manipulation
from either party. I know that is rare to hear in Congress.
As was reported today, yesterday, in a meeting with the
Senate Commerce Committee leaders, Commerce Secretary Designee
Gary Locke expressed his desire for a Census Bureau free of
political pressure from the White House. I am encouraged by his
comments and hope that President Obama accepts the Governor's
wishes, and restores control of the Census Bureau to the
Department of Commerce. Following that, the next census
director, who the President has yet to appoint and name, must
also state his opinion on a non-partisan and accurate census.
Based on new reports, Governor Locke did express his
intention to employ statistical sampling as a ``accuracy
check.'' I am certain that during the Governor's confirmation
hearings he will clarify what exactly that means. And what it
must not mean is that sampling will be used in any way to
manipulate the census data for partisan gain.
Chairman Clay and I share this goal to ensure that every
American, every individual in this country, regardless of any
race or socioeconomic status or any locational issues or
challenges, or any other characteristic, is not counted. We
want to make sure every American is counted.
All ideas brought before this subcommittee to help us
achieve this goal will be given thorough consideration, and I
am confident that together we can formulate a plan to ensure a
full and accurate count in 2010.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
[The prepared statement of Hon. Patrick T. McHenry
follows:]
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Mr. Clay. Thank you, Mr. McHenry. I look forward to our
endeavors together. Thank you.
Now I recognize the chairman of the Oversight and
Government Reform Committee, the gentleman from New York, Mr.
Towns. Welcome to the subcommittee.
Chairman Towns. Thank you very much. Let me thank you and,
of course, the ranking member, Mr. McHenry, and, of course, the
ranking member of the full committee, Congressman Issa.
This is a very, very important subject, and, of course, the
census is a top priority for the committee, and I will be
following it very, very closely and will be willing to work
with you to make certain that we are getting a fair and
accurate count.
There is no question that the census is a sensitive issue
from a political point of view, because it has a direct impact
on how seats are apportioned among the States for this body and
the House of Representatives. But my goal is for the committee
to carry out its oversight work in a responsible, non-partisan
manner. I hope we can keep our focus on the management
practices and making certain that they have enough staff to do
the job that needs to be done; and let's not get caught up in
the political stuff that really does not help us to be able to
come up with an accurate count.
Of course, I look forward to working with you, Chairman
Clay, Mr. McHenry, and, of course, the members of the
committee, as well as the ranking member in the full committee,
to make certain that this time we get it right. I do believe
that we can get it right, but it is going to require all of us
focusing on accurate counting rather than the politics of the
situation.
So thank you very much, Mr. Chairman, and I yield back on
that note.
[The prepared statement of Hon. Edolphus Towns follows:]
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Mr. Clay. Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
I now recognize the gentleman from California, Mr. Issa.
Mr. Issa. Thank you, Chairman Clay.
Since 1790, America has endeavored to count accurately all
the persons in the United States. It is certainly, today, not
as automated as we would like in this coming census, but we
have tools we didn't have in 1790. We don't have to go up river
and check and see who heard that there was a trapper somewhere
beyond the last station that anyone knew existed. So in many
ways we will have a more accurate count than we did at our
founding.
It is a given, though, that we will not have a perfect
count. But since estimates begin after the account, it is
critical that we have an actual count from which so many
estimates are made of other materials. That is the goal of this
committee. I can see that it is the goal of this committee on a
bipartisan basis.
And the chairman of the full committee, as well--talked
about the importance of an accurate count and of the census in
general, I think he did so for a reason that many people today,
at this hearing, may not yet understand, and that is that we
have the shortest Constitution in the world and, yet, it
includes the requirement to count every 10 years every person
in the United States. Not every citizen; not every voter. Every
person. For that reason, it is something that has been non-
partisan since our founding, and I am sure will remain so.
Today, I look forward to hearing from our witnesses how we
may strive to be more efficient, if possible, but more
effective than ever before in that endeavor, because I am sure
that the man or woman up the river in 1790 didn't get counted
for reasons of difficulty in getting to that count, and I am
sure there will be people like that in this decade. But I would
like to hear how we can reduce to the absolute minimum any
undercount or error in counting.
With that, Mr. Chairman, I thank you and yield back.
Mr. Clay. I thank the gentleman from California and I
appreciate your comments and your historic perspective on the
census.
I now would like to recognize our colleague from Ohio, Mr.
Driehaus, for an opening statement.
Mr. Driehaus. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you very
much for calling this hearing this morning.
As has already been stated by the Members, it is critically
important that we get the count right when it comes to the
census. I happen to represent, Mr. Chairman, the city of
Cincinnati in my congressional district, and the city of
Cincinnati led the charge in challenging the count in the last
census because we had so many people, especially in low income
and minority communities in Cincinnati, that were not counted.
Obviously, this is an issue that is near and dear to our mayor,
Mark Mallory, who has led the charge on behalf of the mayors of
cities across the country to make sure that we are in fact
ensuring an accurate count of all people, as has been mentioned
by Mr. Issa.
So I fully support the efforts of the committee, and I
would like to invite you, Mr. Chairman, and the committee, if
you are considering field hearings on the topic, to come on out
to Southwest Ohio and Cincinnati. I am sure our mayor would
greet us with open arms, and we certainly want to make sure, in
Cincinnati, that we have a fair count.
So I thank you and I look forward to the testimony today.
Mr. Clay. I thank the gentleman for the invitation. Your
mayor is a wonderful leader of that community and we look
forward to the visit.
I want to recognize the gentleman from Utah, Mr. Chaffetz.
Mr. Chaffetz. Thank you. I simply want to echo the
sentiments of the chairman and of the ranking member, the idea
and the notion that we have a fair and accurate count. I also
just want to express--and I hope it can be carried back to the
men and women who will be the foot soldiers, if you will, who
will be out there participating in this census.
I hope they understand the important duty they take on, but
also the thanks from their Government. It is going to be tough,
difficult work over a long period of time, but there is a great
deal of appreciation for the men and women who will serve and
spend their time, effort, and talents in order to execute this
census in a fair manner. Just please know that this committee,
this body of the U.S. Congress, appreciates their service, to
all those who are serving this country for this very important
endeavor.
With that, I yield back the balance of my time. Thank you.
Mr. Clay. I thank the gentleman from Utah for his opening
statement. I know they have a stake in this upcoming census.
Mr. Chaffetz. I am just glad to be counted on this panel,
Mr. Chairman. [Laughter.]
Mr. Clay. I recognize the gentlewoman from New York, Mrs.
Maloney.
Mrs. Maloney. Thank you so much, Chairman Clay, for calling
this hearing. And thank you also to Chairman Towns for
attending, as well as Ranking Members Issa and McHenry. Thank
you so much for being here on this important issue.
Well, it must be the year before the decennial, since the
census is so much in the news. As Yogi Berra used to say,
``it's deja vu all over again.'' This is just like it was in
1999. We have press conferences, press releases, charges,
countercharges, accusations. So the census must be next year.
Today we have a hearing to see how the census is doing in
getting ready for 2010. But this hearing is where the
similarities to 2000 end. The controversies of the 2000 census
were over the attempts by the scientists at the Census Bureau
to use methods to improve a more accurate count. These were
ideological differences over how to accomplish that goal.
Today we have a census that has real operational problems,
a census that is facing many last minute operational changes
that have not gone through field testing to the extent that
operational issues were field-tested in 2000. We are not
anywhere near the level of attention and testing that took
place in 2000.
Let's just look at one area: the fingerprinting operation.
This was added just last summer by the Bush administration.
Hundreds of thousands of applicants that census will want to
hire will have to be fingerprinted. The images run through the
Justice Department's computers and then the results returned to
the field offices next year. None of this operation has been
field-tested anywhere close to the type of testing that was
done prior to 2000 for similar operations. What if it fails or
slows the hiring process? This would really hurt the operations
of the census.
Or let us look at the proposed second mailing of census
forms. Here you have an operation that was looked at in 2000,
and rejected in 2000, that has been added to 2010 without a
clear explanation as to how the problems that led to its
rejection in 2000 would be dealt with.
Or how the management systems that handle payroll and the
enumerators work, since we have had to revert to a paper
census, after going to a handheld seemed unworkable after
spending millions of dollars.
None of them have been given testing anywhere close to what
was done in 2000.
Hopefully, we will hear good news today. But I suspect that
we will not hear enough that will convince us that there is not
real operational problems in the Census Bureau.
Mr. Chairman, as we look at the 2010 census in the coming
months, I hope that you and the committee will also take the
time to start looking at 2020--something I know that the
Government Accountability Office is already doing--as to how we
can avoid this type of situation in the future. As you know, I,
along with Chairman Dent and Charlie Gonzalez and many others,
have put forth bipartisan legislation to make the Census Bureau
an independent agency, to allow it to work over the next 10-
year cycle of the census without interference, without changing
guidelines, without having its budget diminished and changed
and moved around. I hope that the committee will be able to
look at that in the coming months as we deal with the problems
we will be facing in 2010.
Thank you very much, and I thank all the panelists for
being here and all my colleagues.
[The prepared statement of Hon. Carolyn B. Maloney
follows:]
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Mr. Clay. I thank the gentlewoman for her opening statement
and realize that the census is a work in progress, and we have
to continue to attempt to perfect it. So I thank you and look
forward to working with you.
If there are no additional opening statements, the
subcommittee will now receive testimony from the witnesses
before us today.
I want to start by introducing our panel. We have with us
Mr. Thomas Mesenbourg, the Acting Director of the U.S. Census
Bureau. Welcome.
Mr. Robert Goldenkoff, Director of Strategic Issues at the
GAO. Thank you for being here. Mr. Goldenkoff's
responsibilities include directing work on the 2010 census.
He is accompanied by Mr. David Powner, Director of
Information Technology Management Issues. Good to see you
again, Mr. Powner.
And last, but certainly not least, Mr. Glenn Himes, who is
executive director of the Center for Enterprise Modernization
at the MITRE Corp.
I want to welcome all of you all to our hearing today.
It is the policy of the Oversight and Government Reform
Committee to swear in all witnesses before they testify. Would
all of you please stand and raise your right hands?
[Witnesses sworn.]
Mr. Clay. Thank you. Let the record reflect that all of the
witnesses answered in the affirmative.
Each of you will have 5 minutes to make an opening
statement. Your complete written testimony will be included in
the hearing record. The yellow light will indicate it is time
to sum up; the red light will indicate your time has expired.
Mr. Mesenbourg, you may proceed with your opening
statement.
STATEMENTS OF THOMAS MESENBOURG, ACTING DIRECTOR, U.S. CENSUS
BUREAU; ROBERT GOLDENKOFF, DIRECTOR, STRATEGIC ISSUES, U.S.
GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE; DAVID A. POWNER, DIRECTOR,
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY, U.S. GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE;
AND GLENN S. HIMES, PH.D., EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, CIVILIAN
AGENCIES, CENTER FOR ENTERPRISE MODERNIZATION, THE MITRE CORP.
STATEMENT OF THOMAS MESENBOURG
Mr. Mesenbourg. Chairman Clay, Chairman Towns, Ranking
Member McHenry and Issa, and members of the subcommittee, I
appreciate the opportunity to report on the Census Bureau's
preparations for the 2010 census. The census is upon us. April
1, 2010 is only 392 days from today and I can report we are
well on our way toward a successful enumeration.
A complete and accurate address list is the cornerstone of
a successful census. Throughout the decade, we regularly
updated the address list we used in census 2000. In 2007, we
invited tribal, State, and local governments to review our
address list for accuracy and completeness as part of the Local
Update of Census Address Programs [LUCA]. 11,500 government
entities registered for LUCA, and over 8,100 provided updates.
That accounted for an additional 8 million addresses that we
have added to our address list.
Address canvassing, the first major operation in the 2010
census, starts on March 30th and runs through July 17, 2009.
During address canvassing, 140,000 Census Bureau employees will
walk almost every street in America, checking and updating 145
million addresses. Then, in late September, we will validate
the listings for group quarters, which include dormitories,
group homes, prisons, and the like. This is the first time that
group quarters are part of address canvassing, and their
inclusion will improve the accuracy and the coverage of the
final count.
In December 2008, we conducted the address canvassing
operational field test. The test provided an opportunity for
our field staff to test the key functionality of the handheld
computers in an environment that approximates a real census.
Headquarters staff and all of our 12 regional directors
participated in the test. The Government Accountability Office
and the Commerce Department's Inspector General staff observed
the test. The positive results demonstrated the significant
improvement that we have made since dress rehearsal and
reinforced our confidence in the operation's production
readiness.
In April 2008, the Secretary announced the decision not to
use handhelds to collect data during the nonresponse followup
operation. Late last spring, we completed the high level plan
for enumerators to use paper forms to collect information from
non-respondents, just as we have done in previous censuses.
In October 2008, we re-scoped the field data collection
automation contract responsibilities. The Census Bureau took
over responsibility for a number of operations, including the
help desk and the operational control system, which is the
nerve center for our 494 local census offices that will be
responsible for 2010 data collection operations. We made these
re-scoping decisions to reduce the overall risk to the census.
We have done these operations before and we are confident in
our ability to do them again.
At the end of January 2009, we completed the schedule for
development, testing, and deployment of the 2010 operational
control system that will support 2010 data collection
activities, including nonresponse followup. We are making good
progress on system development and testing is scheduled to
begin April 20, 2009. We will also continue to closely monitor
the development and testing of the paper-based operations
themselves.
We agree with GAO for the need of a comprehensive testing
program. We believe, over the past 11 months, we have
established a very robust testing program that is responsive to
the recent GAO testing recommendations. GAO made nine
recommendations outlining 28 steps that should be taken to
strengthen our testing program. We have already implemented 16
of the steps they specified, and 8 others are planned to be
implemented. Of the remaining four steps, two of the steps take
place later in the cycle and we will implement them at the
appropriate time, and an additional step we are going to seek
clarification from GAO about their intent on those.
We are also taking steps to address GAO's concerns related
to cost estimates. We appreciate GAO's recommendations and we
recently provided them with an action plan, and we certainly
are committed to implementing those steps outlined in that
plan.
In closing, I believe that our current plan has
significantly reduced the risk to the 2010 census, and we are
prepared to meet the challenges that lie ahead. Members of the
subcommittee, the Census Bureau is on track for a successful
census, and I am happy to take your questions.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Mesenbourg follows:]
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Mr. Clay. Thank you for your testimony, Mr. Mesenbourg.
Mr. Goldenkoff, you may proceed for 5 minutes.
STATEMENT OF ROBERT GOLDENKOFF
Mr. Goldenkoff. Chairman Clay, Chairman Towns, Ranking
Members McHenry and Issa, and members of the subcommittee,
thank you for the opportunity to be here today to provide a
progress report on the 2010 census. I am here with Dave Powner,
a Director in GAO's Information Technology team.
As requested, in our remarks today, I will provide a broad
overview of the status of key census-taking operations and Dave
will focus on the finding and recommendations contained in our
report on IT testing, which we are releasing today.
This morning's hearing is particularly timely. Exactly 1
year ago today, GAO designated the 2010 census a high risk area
for three reasons. First, there were weaknesses in the Census
Bureau's IT acquisition and contract management function;
second, there were problems with the performance of handheld
computers used to collect data; and, third, the ultimate cost
of the census is uncertain, although it is currently estimated
at more than $14 billion.
At the same time, just over 1 year from now, it will be
census day. Little time remains to address the challenges that
have emerged thus far and make final preparations for the
numerous operations that will take place throughout 2010. The
poster board to my right, which is a timeline of key census-
taking activities, shows some of the work that lies ahead and
the need to stay on schedule in order to keep the census on
track. Because of legally mandated deadlines, the Bureau can't
call a timeout or press a reset button.
In short, today's hearing is a convenient weigh station on
the road to census day, a time to look back on the Census
Bureau's efforts over the past year to address the operational
challenges that have emerged thus far, as well as to look ahead
to what the Bureau needs to do in the coming months to help
ensure a successful headcount.
Importantly, the Bureau has made commendable progress over
the past year in rolling out key components of the census and
has strengthened certain risk management efforts. Still, the
census remains high risk because the dress rehearsal of all
census operations that was planned for 2008 was curtailed. As a
result, critical activities, including some that will be used
for the first time in a census, were not tested in concert with
one another or under census-like conditions.
The bottom line is that key census-taking activities,
including those that will ultimately drive the final cost and
accuracy of the count, continue to face challenges and the
Bureau's overall readiness for 2010 is uncertain.
One such challenge is building the Bureau's address list.
Because a complete and accurate address list is the foundation
of a successful census, the Bureau has a number of operations
aimed at including every residence in the country and works
with the U.S. Postal Service, agencies at all levels of
Government, as well as a number of non-governmental entities.
In a few weeks, the Bureau will send thousands of workers
to walk every street in the country to update the census
address list and maps in an operation called address
canvassing. Census workers will use handheld computers to
collect data. As you know, when the devices were tested, they
experienced performance problems such as freeze-ups and
unreliable transmissions. The Bureau took steps to fix these
issues, and the results of a small scale test held last
December are encouraging. Nonetheless, more information is
needed to determine the Bureau's overall readiness for address
canvassing, as the field test was not an end-to-end systems
test, did not validate training, help desk support, and other
requirements, and did not include urban areas.
Uncertainties also surround the Bureau's ability to
implement operations that will be used for the first time in a
decennial census, including a targeted second mailing to reduce
the nonresponse followup workload and the need to fingerprint
temporary census workers. The Bureau's readiness for these
activities is uncertain because they have not been tested under
census-like conditions.
Another challenge facing the Bureau is reducing the
undercount. As with past numerations, the Bureau is putting
forth tremendous effort to reach groups that are often missed
by the census, such as minorities, renters, and people with
limited English proficiency. For example, the Bureau plans to
provide language assistance guides in 59 languages, an increase
from 49 languages in 2000. The Bureau also plans to deploy a
comprehensive communications campaign consisting of, among
other efforts, paid advertising and the hiring of as many as
680 partnership staff who will be tasked with reaching out to
local governments, community groups, and other organizations in
an effort to secure a more complete count.
Although the effects of the Bureau's communication efforts
are difficult to measure, the Bureau reported some positive
results from its 2000 census marketing efforts with respect to
raising awareness of the census. Still, a longstanding
challenge for the Bureau is converting that awareness of the
census into an actual response.
In summary, just 13 months remain until census day. At a
time when major testing should be complete and there should be
confidence in the functionality of key operations, the Bureau,
instead, finds itself managing late design changes and
developing testing plans. The Bureau has taken important steps
toward mitigating some of the challenges that it has faced to
date, yet much remains uncertain, and the risks to a successful
census continue.
I will now turn it over to my colleague, Dave Powner, who
will discuss the Bureau's management.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Goldenkoff follows:]
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Mr. Clay. Thank you so much, Mr. Goldenkoff.
Mr. Powner, you are recognized for 5 minutes.
STATEMENT OF DAVID A. POWNER
Mr. Powner. Chairman Clay, Chairman Towns, Ranking Member
McHenry, and members of the subcommittee, the accuracy of the
2010 census depends in large part on the proper functioning of
IT systems, both individually and when integrated together.
Mr. Chairman, your oversight of the Bureau's acquisition of
IT systems was critical last year. In particular, the field
data collection system is no longer spiraling out of control,
and that contract is $500 million less than the initial
estimates provided at your hearings last summer. Your oversight
is needed once again in the technology area to ensure that
between now and census day these systems are rigorously tested.
Today, we are releasing our latest report, completed at
your request, which highlights that significant testing
remains. Six major systems need to complete systems testing,
and much integration testing needs to occur. Plans for
conducting this testing are not completely in place. In order
to ensure effective test execution, the Bureau needs
comprehensive metrics to monitor test completion and effective
executive level oversight to keep the pressure on and to manage
risks.
Our report contains 10 detailed recommendations that the
Bureau has agreed to address. For example, integration testing
includes testing of the interfaces or the handshake between
systems. Our work found that not only were there not complete
plans or schedules for integration testing of these interfaces,
but there was not even a master list or inventory of
interfaces. Not having such basic information at this stage is
unacceptable, and our recommendations call for the Bureau to
develop a master list of interfaces, prioritize the interfaces
based on criticality and need date, and to use this to develop
all needed integration plans.
To the Bureau's credit, we are seeing more plans and better
metrics, but there is still much work ahead in both areas.
I would like to stress the need to prioritize. It is likely
the Bureau will not have enough time to test everything, and
testing the most important aspects of certain systems,
interfaces, and operations is critical given the limited time
remaining.
Mr. Chairman, again, thank you for your leadership, and I
look forward to your questions.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Powner follows:]
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Mr. Clay. Thank you so much, Mr. Powner, and thank you for
this report outlining what remains ahead for the Bureau. We
certainly will exercise that oversight to ensure that they meet
these standards.
Dr. Himes, you are recognized for 5 minutes.
STATEMENT OF GLENN S. HIMES
Mr. Himes. Thank you, and good morning. Thank you for the
opportunity you have given to The MITRE Corp. to update the
committee on critical operations for the 2010 decennial census.
The MITRE Corp. is a not-for-profit organization chartered to
work in the public interest. MITRE manages three federally
Funded Research and Development Centers [FFRDCs]: one for the
Department of Defense, one for the Federal Aviation
Administration, and one for the Internal Revenue Service.
Governed by Part 35.017 of the Federal Acquisition
Regulations, FFRDCs operate in the public interest with
objectivity, independence, freedom from conflict of interest,
and full disclosure of their affairs to the respective
Government sponsors. It continues to be our privilege to serve
with the talented engineers and other professionals who support
the Census Bureau in its efforts to prepare and conduct the
2010 decennial census.
We are pleased to report that since MITRE's last appearance
before this committee in July, that the Bureau has demonstrated
continued improvements in managing and overseeing preparations
for the 2010 decennial census. These improvements include an
increase in processes and tools to monitor program progress and
to identify potential risks.
We are also pleased to report that many significant issues
with the field data collection automation control have been
resolved. Approximately a year ago we expressed concerns about
the cost, schedule, and performance risks for the FDCA program
to the Census Bureau.
A risk reduction task force established by the Secretary of
Commerce and the Director of the Census Bureau recommended a
rebalancing of work from the contractor to the Government. The
goal was to enable the contractor to focus on the software
system necessary to perform the address canvassing operation.
Based on our observations, it appears that the rebalancing has
achieved its intended effect, and the risks to the address
canvassing operation are substantially reduced.
Although the rebalancing was essential, much of the
progress is due to positive steps by the Census Bureau's FDCA
program management office and the contractor's development
team. Both organizations should be commended for establishing
an effective working relationship and overcoming the large
challenges they faced in the past year.
Although we are cautiously optimistic about the address
canvassing operation, risks remain within it and other
operations for the 2010 decennial census. These risks are
natural for such large programs. Census Bureau personnel update
and monitor these risks on a regular basis, and constant
attention will be required until the decennial is completed.
We remain committed to helping the Census Bureau prepare
for a successful 2010 decennial census. Thank you for inviting
us to this hearing, and I would be happy to answer your
questions.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Himes follows:]
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Mr. Clay. Thank you so much, Dr. Himes, for your testimony.
We will begin under a 10 minute rule for each side, and I
will start with Mr. Mesenbourg.
Mr. Mesenbourg, it sounds like the Bureau has come a long
way since our last meeting. I commend you and your staff. A lot
of the work was inspired by GAO findings, so I want to also
commend Mr. Powner and Mr. Goldenkoff, along with Mr.
Goldenkoff's predecessor, Matthew Siree, for the great work
their teams have done on the 2010 census.
It was GAO that first brought to this committee's attention
the problems with FDCA. They recommended consistent oversight,
to which this subcommittee has been committed. I also want to
commend Dr. Himes for the important role MITRE has played in
helping the Bureau to resolve problems.
Let's go straight to testing. GAO made 10 recommendations
to ensure that testing activities for key systems are
completed. What action is the Bureau taking or planning to
address GAO's recommendations?
Mr. Mesenbourg. Mr. Chairman, we have provided a detailed
response to GAO, but let me just sum up some of the major steps
that we have done.
Last April, when the decision was made to re-plan the
census and to shift from the handheld use in the nonresponse
followup to a paper base, we did a thorough review at that
point of our testing program. We did an inventory of the
testing and we found some data gaps, and then we addressed
those by adding additional tests.
We also, later last year, appointed a testing officer with
responsibility over all testing for the decennial census, and
we have made testing metrics a key part of every operational
review. So we look at the census. We have about 51 key
operations that we are doing, and those are things like
nonresponse followup. We have 25 systems that those operations
interact with, and we have 244 interfaces between systems.
So late last year we also appointed an integration manager
who has responsibility to make sure all of the activities that
we took out of the FDCA contract now will fit together and will
be integrated.
We clearly face some challenges, given the de-scoping of
the census. So we took over about 11 key paper operations. And
I think we are being responsive to Mr. Powner's comment of
trying to prioritize.
So we are implementing what we would call a thread test,
and those are key activities within a process, for example, our
first focus is on nonresponse followup and group quarters
evaluation. Testing on those activities and the operational
control system will begin on April 20th. We think those two
operations test a huge amount of the functionality that we will
use in the other nine operations.
Mr. Clay. OK, let me stop you right there and ask you in
the report, GAO stated that in May 2008 the Bureau established
an inventory of all testing activities specific to all key
decennial operations, but that the inventory had not been
updated since that time. What is the current status of testing
activities for the 2010 census?
Mr. Mesenbourg. At this point, we do have a comprehensive
inventory of all of the testing that we need to do. Given the
time constraints that we are under, there will be some
operations that we have performed in the past that we will not
test as thoroughly as we will some of the new activities.
Mr. Clay. Where is the Bureau on the development of the
operations control system for paper-based operations?
Mr. Mesenbourg. OK, at the end of January, we integrated
the schedule for the operational control system that will
control 11 paper-based operations in the census. We integrated
that into the master activities schedule. So that is done. And
we do have a detailed plan at this point, and schedule, for
what we are calling Release-0. Release-0 will focus on the
nonresponse followup and the group quarters enumeration. Then
we will follow with a Release-1, which will take on additional
operations such as remote Alaska. So I believe we have a
detailed plan that we can move ahead, and each one of those
releases will have testing as part of the sign-off.
Mr. Clay. And at what date certain can we expect you to
report to this subcommittee that adequate plans for total end-
to-end testing are in place?
Mr. Mesenbourg. To be honest, there will not be end-to-end
testing of all operations, because what we will have to do is
we will test at key functionality, which will show up in other
operations. What we are going to do, for example, the push of
the nonresponse followup into the--that functionality we can
test based on the dress rehearsal responses. We will put up a
mock environment that will send workload to be identified for
nonresponse followup, and we will be able to test that in the
operational control system that will control nonresponse
followup.
Mr. Clay. Now, you heard Mr. Powner say time is of the
essence, and you still have six major systems that still need
to be tested. Are you cognizant that time is of the essence,
that we are closing in on a year to go?
Mr. Mesenbourg. Mr. Chairman, we are very cognizant that
time is of the essence. We have an extremely tight schedule,
and it is going to be critically important that we stick to
that schedule.
Mr. Clay. OK, thank you for that response.
Mr. Driehaus, you may followup.
Mr. Driehaus. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I just have one very
brief question for Mr. Mesenbourg.
Mr. Mesenbourg, I am particularly concerned about the
number of houses that are currently in foreclosure across the
country, and the transience we are seeing in our population.
You know, the movements of population that we are seeing,
especially in the inner cities, that are traditionally
difficult to count, you know, we are seeing folks move around
at record levels; and I am concerned as to whether or not the
Census Bureau is taking the necessary steps to account for that
movement and how you are coping with that.
Mr. Mesenbourg. It is a growing problem, there is no doubt
about that. The address canvassing operation that we will start
at March 30th will visit every address, whether occupied or
vacant. So the critical first step is to ensure that we have a
complete address list for the 2010 decennial census. So that is
job one, to make sure we have the list.
Mid-March of next year we will mail out report forms to
almost every household in the United States. If that address is
vacant, then they will not respond the form and they will go
into the nonresponse followup operation. We will send an
enumerator to that address to see if anyone is there. If they
are there, we will collect the data. We will go back six times
to make sure that we can reach a person. If it is unoccupied,
of course, we will miss them.
We have taken some steps to address this issue, so we have
added two questions to the 10-question 2010 census form that
gets at coverage problems. One of those questions relates to do
you have a relative living with you that you may not have
listed on the report form. That will kick off an action to put
that into a followup activity that will try to identify why
that person wasn't listed. So that will be one way that we will
attempt to address the issue of foreclosures and people moving
in to non-traditional living arrangements.
But I think a key message of both our advertising and our
partnership program will be is to get out into the local
community and to convince them, through trusted voices in the
community, that if you are doubling up or if you are living in
a non-traditional living arrangement, that it is important that
you be counted and that you are listed on the report form.
Mr. Clay. Thank you so much.
Mr. McHenry, you are recognized for 10 minutes.
Mr. McHenry. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Thank you all for testifying today. We certainly appreciate
it. This is an important matter that we take very seriously,
and I know you do as well.
Mr. Mesenbourg, thank you for your service. I know it has
only been brief. You are serving Government only 36 years, and
we thank you for it. When the short-timer, Mr. Jackson, sitting
behind you, is only there for 20 years, we certainly know you
have expertise and great knowledge based on experience, so
thank you.
So, Mr. Mesenbourg, it is my understanding there are plans
to conduct a post-enumeration survey as part of the 2010
census. Is this correct?
Mr. Mesenbourg. We do have plans to do a coverage
measurement program as part of the 2010 census.
Mr. McHenry. OK. What is the sample size of this service?
Mr. Mesenbourg. Sample size is going to be about 300,000
housing units.
Mr. McHenry. OK. Is this comparable to the 2000 census?
Mr. Mesenbourg. It is comparable to the 2000 census.
Mr. McHenry. Is it the same number or----
Mr. Mesenbourg. It is very close to the same number.
Mr. McHenry. Do you recall what the 2000 number was?
Mr. Mesenbourg. I don't, off the top of my head, but
certainly we can get you that number.
Mr. McHenry. Certainly. And has the Bureau increased or
changed the post-enumeration survey for this census?
Mr. Mesenbourg. We have made some changes to do a better
job trying to identify duplicates in the census. That was an
issue in 2000. The focus of the 2010 coverage measurement
program is to provide better information about the components
of error. So we will be providing data not only on the net
error, but also components of error such as duplicates,
omissions, and so on.
Mr. McHenry. Has this been changed in the planning process
or is this a change from the 2000 census?
Mr. Mesenbourg. This has been the plan during the entire
decade.
Mr. McHenry. OK. And how does the Bureau tend to use the
post-enumeration survey? You outlined generally, but more
specifically?
Mr. Mesenbourg. We are using it primarily to provide
measures of the error and as input to improving the 2020
decennial census.
Mr. McHenry. OK. And is there any thought that the Bureau
would use this survey to adjust or change the 2010 count?
Mr. Mesenbourg. The plan does not include any plans to use
the coverage measurement for adjustment.
Mr. McHenry. OK. Are there any other thoughts to that or
any other considerations to that?
Mr. Mesenbourg. Not in our current plan there isn't.
Mr. McHenry. OK. Yesterday, as I mentioned in my opening
statement, it has been reported that Commerce Secretary
Designee Gary Locke met with leaders of the Senate Commerce
Committee and, according to the news reports, stated that ``so-
called sampling will be used minimally as an accuracy check.''
I believe he is referring to the post-enumeration survey. Is
that how you would read it?
Mr. Mesenbourg. Well, the coverage measurement will provide
estimates of the number of housing units and the number of
persons. Then you will have the apportionment number also. But
I am not sure what Governor Locke had in mind.
Mr. McHenry. Yes, it is hard to impute from politicians
what they mean. So that would be somewhat in keeping with what
you have outlined, just as a survey to check the accuracy. OK.
Now, in terms of a fair and accurate census, what is your
definition of a fair and accurate census?
Mr. Mesenbourg. Well, we see job one as to count everyone,
and we see an expanded advertising and partnership program as a
key part of doing that. We also have done a number of
additional things from an operational perspective that we hope
will improve the count. This will be the first time we are
using a short form only census, so 10 questions, 10 minutes to
fill it out. We also will be using a bilingual form, English-
Spanish, that will target 13 million households in areas where
English is not often spoken at home.
We will be using a second mailing, a targeted second
mailing, doing a blanket mailing to traditionally low response,
low mail response areas, and then sending a replacement form
out to another group, to the non-respondents. And we hope and
expect that a much more robust partnership program will get the
message out to the local community that it is critical to
participate in the census.
Mr. McHenry. So, in short, do you believe the Bureau's main
goal for the 2010 census is to count every person once, only
once, and at the right place?
Mr. Mesenbourg. That has always been our goal.
Mr. McHenry. All right. So that means a count of people.
That means an exact enumeration in counting.
Mr. Mesenbourg. We will make every effort we can to get a
response, an actual response back from every household in the
United States.
Mr. McHenry. Two of the greatest challenges, you have
mentioned this and I am glad the Bureau has really thought
through the undercount and overcount numbers, and appreciate
the fact that you have programs directly focused on the
undercount. Would you describe the challenge of the undercount
and the overcount as one of the most challenging of the
challenges the Bureau faces in the 2010 census?
Mr. Mesenbourg. Well, I think it would be clear getting
people to participate is the biggest challenge. So missing
people is, in my mind, a more significant challenge than
addressing the duplicates. We have done both things, we have
added two coverage questions to the 2010 census.
One is to help us get at undercount, where someone
incorrectly or mistakenly left a person off the report form
that should have been on the report form; and we have added
another question to help address the overcount, where someone
may have included, let's say, for example, a college student
that should have been counted at the dorm where they spend most
of their time. So there are two questions there, and answers to
those questions will generate a telephone call as part of our
coverage followup operations to try to gather more information
to get the person counted in the right place.
Mr. McHenry. Well, I think we all understand the
sensitivities of ensuring that undercounted communities and
people are focused upon and ensure that we actually get them
counted, which takes a lot of effort, a lot of resources, and
we want to be of assistance to that with you and the
stakeholders in this.
With that, I would like to yield the remainder of my time
to the deputy ranking member, Congressman Westmoreland, from
Georgia.
Mr. Westmoreland. Thank you, Congressman McHenry.
First to Mr. Goldenkoff and Mr. Powner. You know, I have
been in quite a few of these oversight hearings and I have seen
a lot of reports from the GAO, and I have never seen one that
said you all are doing a good job. So I know that you all do a
very good job. But this comes pretty close, when it says that
there are no new recommendations. Now, is that because you
didn't go in and look at everything again, or are you just
going on a past report? Either one of you.
Mr. Goldenkoff. I think what you are referring to is our
testimony today, and the reasons that there were no new
recommendations is that all our recommendations----
Mr. Clay. Maybe if you move it closer to you, Mr.
Goldenkoff.
Mr. Goldenkoff. I think what you are referring to is our
testimony where we said that there were no new recommendations.
That was just because our testimony was based on previously
issued work, most of which did contain recommendations.
Mr. Westmoreland. OK.
Mr. Powner. And, Congressman Westmoreland, I just want to
be clear.
Mr. Westmoreland. OK.
Mr. Powner. We are releasing a report today on system
testing, so not to disappoint. We have 10 new recommendations
today that we are releasing for the first time, on testing.
Mr. Westmoreland. OK. One of the other things that you had
talked about was the complete and accurate address list. Is
that correct?
Mr. Goldenkoff. That is correct.
Mr. Westmoreland. When do you think the best time would
have been to get a complete and accurate address list?
Mr. Goldenkoff. It is something that goes on throughout the
decade. The Bureau is constantly working with the Postal
Service, through the Postal Service's delivery sequence file,
to update the address list.
And now, as was already mentioned, or starting in April,
the Bureau will go out and actually walk every street in the
country to verify on the ground housing units, occupied housing
units; and it is a difficult task because it is not always
clear what meets the eye. There could be several families
living in there, so you really have to go within six inches of
a house sometimes to see double doorbells, two names on a
mailbox that could indicate that there might be somebody living
in the basement or in the shed in the back. So it is a very
challenging task.
Mr. Westmoreland. I understand. But the reality of it is, I
guess, the last address check is going to be the most accurate,
and to me, at least, the Census Bureau, from information and
testimony I heard today from Mr. Mesenbourg, is that they have
asked local cities and counties and others to do that, and they
are trying to make sure that the information that they have
before they do the mailing is also the most recent and most up
to date and the most correct information. Would you agree with
that?
Mr. Goldenkoff. That is correct. You need to do it as close
as possible to census day, but at the same time allow for the
updating to take place so they can do the mail-out. So there
needs to be some buffer in there.
Mr. Westmoreland. Thank you.
Mr. Clay. Thank you, Mr. Westmoreland.
My friend from New York, Mrs. Maloney, is recognized for 5
minutes.
Mrs. Maloney. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I would like to ask the representatives from GAO to respond
to the earlier question on whether or not the operational
testing on payroll, personnel changes, etc., were up to the
systems of 2000? Are they at the same level? Are you pleased
and agree with the prior answers to this question, that
operational testing was correct, in place, and happening to the
degree that it should to make sure that our systems do not
falter or fail?
Mr. Goldenkoff. I would disagree with that. One of the
issues is that there was no dress rehearsal, and the dress
rehearsal, as the name implies, is essentially a test census,
as close to census-like conditions as one can possibly get
without actually conducting the census. So because it was
curtailed, what was done during the dress rehearsal was fairly
limited, there were certain operations that just weren't
tested, so the Bureau is going into 2010 now conducting the
actual census, in some respects, flying blind.
For example, there was no load testing. The number of
millions of forms, millions of pieces of paper need to be
process, and the Bureau never had an opportunity to test under,
in a lot of cases, anything close to a load test of what would
be a simulated census. So it really fell quite short of that.
Mrs. Maloney. Well, what are the contingencies if these
systems falter or fail? What are the contingencies?
Mr. Goldenkoff. In some cases, the Bureau, if it starts
falling behind, the Bureau has been good in the past with
workarounds and patches. It all depends on how bad the problem
is. You know, in some cases the Bureau will fall behind
schedule, and that has implications for downstream operations.
In other cases things might cost more money. But that is one of
the issues, that in some cases there is no backup or there is
no contingency; it has to be done and done right.
Mrs. Maloney. I would like to followup with a question on
the budget. You really can't move forward without a proper
budget. Do you have a full 10-year cycle cost estimate for the
decennial operations that you could give the committee today?
Mr. Mesenbourg. Yes. Our expectation is the life cycle cost
is going to be between $14 billion and $15 billion for the
decennial census.
If I could, I would like to just respond briefly on the
payroll system. The decennial applicant payroll system is up
and running. This is the key tool that we use to process
applicants and then to pay them. So at this point in time we
have over a million applicants in that system. We are actually
only going to hire about 140,000 people for address canvassing,
but the demand for jobs has been so huge that we have had over
a million applicants; and right now we have about 10,000 people
that are getting paid through this system, and in another
couple weeks that will jump up by about 140,000.
Mrs. Maloney. How much money were you given in the stimulus
plan?
Mr. Mesenbourg. We were given $1 billion.
Mrs. Maloney. $1 billion?
Mr. Mesenbourg. $1 billion.
Mrs. Maloney. And what are your plans for spending the
additional money you were given in the stimulus plan?
Mr. Mesenbourg. The whole focus of this is to do as good a
job as we can improving the count, and the bill language
directed us to focus that money on enhanced and improved
advertising and partnership activities, and that certainly is
our intention. We also hope to invest additional moneys in our
coverage followup operation, adding about another million to
the workload; and then the remainder of the funds would be
there to support key 2010 activities. But in the short term, in
terms of 2009, the expenditures will be primarily focused on
expanded media buys and advertising and our partnership
program.
Mrs. Maloney. And with the remaining money to make other
choices, what is your basis for making these choices? Do you
have an analysis of what needs to be done or other areas that
you need help and support to make a more accurate census?
Mr. Mesenbourg. Our criteria have been to focus on those
activities that will contribute the most to the census.
Actually, we have provided a plan to the Office of Management
and Budget in terms of what our focus is, and we are awaiting
their response at this point.
Mrs. Maloney. Thank you very much. My time is expended, is
no longer. I have used up my time. Thank you. Thank you for all
your hard work.
Mr. Clay. Thank you so much, Mrs. Maloney.
I now go to the gentleman from Utah, Mr. Chaffetz, for 5
minutes.
Mr. Chaffetz. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Mesenbourg, you are a career civil servant, correct?
Mr. Mesenbourg. Yes, I am.
Mr. Chaffetz. With more than adequate funding, do you
believe the Bureau has the talent and capability to oversee a
professionally implemented and successful 2010 census?
Mr. Mesenbourg. I do.
Mr. Chaffetz. I would like your opinion, as the Census
Bureau professional, on an important matter. You are currently
operating without a Presidentially appointed, Senate-confirmed
director, correct?
Mr. Mesenbourg. That is true.
Mr. Chaffetz. Do you believe the Bureau has the talent and
expertise to continue planning for and implementing a
successful 2010 census without a Presidentially appointed,
Senate-confirmed director?
Mr. Mesenbourg. Well, I am doing two jobs at this point,
and I guess what I see my job is right now is to continue to
execute the plans to conduct a successful 2010 census. I have
no ambitions to be permanent director of the Census Bureau, but
my job is to keep that train moving down the track so, when we
do get a Census Bureau director, we are in a better place than
we were before.
Mr. Chaffetz. But do you believe that the Bureau has the
talent and expertise currently in place right now to execute?
Mr. Mesenbourg. I believe we have the talent to keep the
train moving down the track. I am not going to take a position
whether we should have a director or not have a director. We
have always had a director and I would----
Mr. Chaffetz. Fair enough.
Mr. Mesenbourg [continuing]. I think a director would be
useful for us.
Mr. Chaffetz. As you know, the results of the 2010 census
are used for appointment, redistricting at all levels of
government, and the allocation of Federal funds. All of this is
correct, right?
Mr. Mesenbourg. That is true.
Mr. Chaffetz. So, in your opinion, is it better to conduct
a census that is free from political influence, or do you think
politicians should be telling you how to do your job?
Mr. Mesenbourg. Well, the Census Bureau, in my 36 years, we
have made decisions, technical decisions and program decisions,
on the technical merit of the issues. We have not made
decisions based on any kind of political pressure. That has
been my experience over 36 years.
Mr. Chaffetz. The census is based on the Constitution,
correct?
Mr. Mesenbourg. That is true.
Mr. Chaffetz. Do you recall which article or whatnot?
Mr. Mesenbourg. That is embarrassing to say, not.
Mr. Chaffetz. Article 1 of the Constitution deals with the
powers of Congress, the legislative branch of our Government,
correct?
Mr. Mesenbourg. True.
Mr. Chaffetz. So regarding anything having to do with the
conduct of the census, it should be the Congress that has the
authority and jurisdiction, do you agree?
Mr. Mesenbourg. You are getting me into territory I am not
an expert on. It is clear the Congress has a responsibility to
oversee our operations, yes. I would agree with that.
Mr. Chaffetz. How will the Bureau protect the integrity of
the census from outright fraud?
Mr. Mesenbourg. From, I am sorry, outright?
Mr. Chaffetz. Just outright fraud. What protectors are in
place to make sure that doesn't happen?
Mr. Mesenbourg. We have a whole series of quality control
operations that we have in place that check the operations. So,
for example, when we start address canvas--well, I will give
you a better example. Right now we are about 90 percent done
with the large block enumeration, and after that--now we have
started to send QC people, other enumerators out to check the
quality of that work. Every operation that we do will have a QC
operation attached to it, and that will be one check.
Another check in terms of housing unit counts, in-person
counts, will be our pop estimates programs that makes most of
those. That is another quality check that we have.
Mr. Chaffetz. So if you have an enumerator who fraudulently
fills out data and then submits these facts, do you believe
there is a check and a balance in place to deal with that?
Mr. Mesenbourg. I do believe that we have a check in place
that will identify that problem, yes.
Mr. Chaffetz. What is to keep somebody who gets the form in
the mail and then knowingly fills it out incorrectly, I mean
grossly incorrectly? How do we deal with that?
Mr. Mesenbourg. Well, there will be some additional checks
against some administrative records, information that we have
access to. But that is going to be very, very difficult to
catch every one of those, if a person added an extra individual
in the process. But we will do some re-interviewing there, so
if it is systematic on the part of an enumerator, then we would
catch it.
Mr. Chaffetz. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Clay. Thank you, Mr. Chaffetz.
Mr. Mesenbourg, let's go back to the operational control
system. The OCS is the brains of the whole system of the field
operations. When will end-to-end testing for the OCS be in
place?
Mr. Mesenbourg. The first testing will be done April 20th
through May 1st. So what we have done because of the timing
pressures that we are under, we are going to address key
operations on an incremental process. So the actual final
testing will not be done on all of those interfaces until next
March.
Mr. Clay. Mr. Powner or Mr. Goldenkoff, is that adequate,
as far as the response to ensure success?
Mr. Powner. I think the key is it is a tough challenge for
them because not everything is in place. So part of what they
are dealing with is you want to test what you have now, but I
think it is very important, as was stated, that you come back
and retest. The key here, though, is there is a lot of these
examples in place. We have six major systems, we heard 244
interfaces, 44 operations.
OK, so when you start looking at all that, getting it all
done and testing it in an integrated fashion, end-to-end, as
you are asking, Mr. Chairman, see, we don't see all the
prioritization and the plans in place. So, going forward, what
is very important is that we see the appropriate plans. But
then we have key metrics so we know exactly what is done, how
well it is done, and then what remains ahead to complete. And
the OCS is just one example of many challenges that they face
going forward between now and census day.
Mr. Clay. OK, Mr. Goldenkoff, the Bureau has many
challenges facing its final preparation and conduct of the 2010
decennial census. What do you think places the 2010 census at
greater risk and what can be done about it?
Mr. Goldenkoff. I think there are really two great risks:
one, time is running out and, two, the lack of testing of key
operations. So as was already stated here today, the Bureau
needs to prioritize what it can do, what it can't do; figure
out where, within all those different operations and activities
that haven't been tested, where the Bureau is most vulnerable;
and, second, make sure everything stays on track.
A third area is perhaps more marketing and promotion,
because the non-response or the response rate, rather, is key
to success.
Mr. Clay. You know, address canvassing is set to begin
nationwide within a few weeks. The Bureau never was able to
carry out an end-to-end test of the new handheld devices with
all the procedures in the field. How prepared is the Bureau to
conduct address canvassing and how can the Bureau be confident
that everything will work as the Bureau hopes without having
tested it all?
Mr. Goldenkoff. Well, I think that--you know, the Bureau
does not know what it doesn't know because, again, the lack of
testing. They had the operational field test in Fayetteville,
NC, and what that demonstrated was that, under the conditions
in Fayetteville, NC, the handhelds functioned well. The
problems that we had seen in earlier tests did not reemerge.
The problem is that, obviously, the country does not all
look like Fayetteville, NC; you have urban areas, you have more
rural areas. So the question is how will those handhelds
perform, for example, in an area with lots of skyscrapers? Will
they be able to lock on to a satellite signal? Will they be
able to transmit data? And that is what nobody really knows. It
is a big question mark.
Mr. Clay. Should we be worried about the census being
conducted on time?
Mr. Goldenkoff. I think that, come April 1st, forms will go
out; by law, they need to. The question is really accuracy and
quality of the census. Accuracy and cost, rather. That is
really what it comes down to. Key operations they will get
done, they need to get done. It is just a question of how much
will things cost and how good will the results be. At the end
of the day, the data need to be delivered to the President come
December 31, 2010. So whether they need to compress operations
or speed things up at some point, they are under the gun. So
things will happen on time, it is just a question of cost and
accuracy.
Mr. Clay. Sure. Thank you.
Mr. Powner, when the Census Bureau provided comments on
GAO's report, it stated that it was putting much more focus on
testing new things for 2010 and not testing things that have
worked before. What is GAO's assessment of the Bureau's
comment?
Mr. Powner. We would not agree with that. Clearly, it is
important to test new things, but if you have old things that
are critical and you change software and hardware associated
with that, that needs to be tested; and that was really the
focus of our report. It is really based on a prioritization. So
the prioritization might be new things, but it could very well
be older things also.
Mr. Clay. Thank you for that response.
Now I will recognize the gentleman from Georgia, Mr.
Westmoreland, for 5 minutes.
Mr. Westmoreland. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Just following
up on some of the comments that the gentleman from Utah had.
Mr. Mesenbourg, what quality controls are you going to have
on these enumerators? The gentleman from Utah questioned about
them filling out the forms wrong, but what kind of quality
controls do you have on these enumerators?
Mr. Mesenbourg. OK, every major operation we have a QC
activity related to that, so we will actually go, take a sample
of the enumerations, and we will have a different person go
back and attempt to collect that same data; and that provides
us a clear signal in terms of the quality. If there are issues
related to a specific interview, we call that operation a re-
interview operation to identify problems. If we identify a
problem, then we will zero in on that enumerator and then do
100 percent check of all of their work. But every operation we
do we are going to have a QC step built into it to check the
quality of it.
Mr. Westmoreland. OK. And let's say that you do correctly
identify an enumerator. What kind of corrective actions could
be taken?
Mr. Mesenbourg. They could be terminated, and certainly
they would be out of the enumeratoring business as soon as we
identified that.
Mr. Westmoreland. OK. I know that the Bureau, as you have
mentioned, will automatically mail a second census form to
these traditionally, I guess, hard to count areas or the no
response. That is correct, right, you will do a second mailing?
Mr. Mesenbourg. Second mailing, a blanket second mailing to
areas that have a traditional very low mail response. We will
do a blanket mailing and then we will have another group that
sort of intermediary, possibly, under 50 percent. Then we will
mail the non-respondents, the household that hadn't returned a
form will get a form there.
Mr. Westmoreland. OK. So you feel comfortable that you are
going to hit these under-response areas very well with a second
mailing.
Mr. Mesenbourg. We have tested the second mailing during
the decade. We used it during the dress rehearsal. We are
confident that it will be beneficial.
Mr. Westmoreland. So you believe the second mailing is
going to enhance your response.
Mr. Mesenbourg. Yes.
Mr. Westmoreland. How will you ensure that the data capture
isn't wrongfully counted twice for those returned forms from
both mailings? What is your system in place there to check
that?
Mr. Mesenbourg. OK, in terms of data capture, forms will be
returned and go through one of our automated three data capture
systems, actually do OCR on the forms. Then we will do a
matching operation; every form will have a unique 22 digit
identifier on that. If we can't match, that generates a whole
host of additional investigative work.
Mr. Westmoreland. OK, so----
Mr. Mesenbourg. So we have an automated process to make
sure that we are not getting duplicate returns in.
Mr. Westmoreland. Thank you.
Mr. Goldenkoff, do you believe, because of all the stuff
that we have been hearing in the news about we need a director,
we don't have a director, whatever, you and Mr. Powner, do you
believe that the Bureau has the right talent in-house to
oversee this 2010 census?
Mr. Goldenkoff. The Bureau employees are extremely
dedicated, extremely competent, and they have lots of
experience. The concern is that here it is getting, with 10
yards to go until the goal line, census day, there is no
permanent quarterback in place. And the other issue to
consider, as well, not only who is calling the shots, who is
being held accountable by Congress to the American taxpayers.
This is also the time when the Bureau starts planning for the
next census, the 2020 census.
So you need somebody in place who will take on, who will be
responsible and held accountable for that as well, and making
those sorts of decisions. So clearly the competency is there,
there is no question about that; we have seen it in past
decennials. But we need someone who is a strategic leader and
someone who goes through the conventional selection process.
Mr. Westmoreland. OK. Given that this short form--and it is
only a short form for the census--do you think that better
equips the Bureau to conduct this census than in previous----
Mr. Goldenkoff. Most definitely. It should improve the
response late because it is less burdensome than having a short
form and a long form. I mean, back in 2000, studies have shown
that the response rate to the short form was higher than to the
long form. So you would be more willing to spend 10 minutes
than 40 minutes on the long form.
Mr. Westmoreland. Right. It makes it a little easier for
them to fill it out.
Mr. Goldenkoff. That is correct.
Mr. Westmoreland. And probably not as deep questions or
personal questions as it was.
Is my time up, Mr. Chairman?
Mr. Clay. Yes, sir. Thank you, Mr. Westmoreland.
I recognize the gentleman from Utah for 5 minutes.
Mr. Chaffetz. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Powner, do you believe that there is enough talent to
oversee and conduct the 2020 census?
Mr. Powner. From a technology point of view, for 2020, the
Census Bureau needs more IT talent on board, clearly. If you
look at what happened last summer with the FDCA problems,
fortunately, we have organizations like MITRE. They hired some
external folks to come in and help at executive levels. There
are folks that are trying to do a good job there right now, but
going forward we need more IT talent internal to the Bureau.
Mr. Chaffetz. Like previous decennials, the Bureau is using
paper and pencil for nonresponse followup. But unlike previous
years, we have better maps for enumerators, a targeted second
mailing of the census form to the hard-to-count areas, and
likely a better applicant pool from which to hire these
enumerators. Shouldn't all these factors lead to a more
accurate census?
Mr. Goldenkoff. Yes, they should lead to a more accurate
census. You can handle the nonresponse followup workload
faster, which is important because it reduces recall error. So
all those things you mentioned should lead to that direction.
Mr. Chaffetz. And if you could summarize for me again real
quickly the major hurdles you see and if any of these hurdles,
you know, what the consequences would be if we are unable to
overcome those hurdles.
Mr. Goldenkoff. Well, first, time is running out. There is
just no time for missteps. There is no slack in the schedule.
So to the extent that challenges or glitches emerge--and those
things are inevitable--something comes up in testing, there is
not a whole lot of time left to figure what the workaround is.
Second, the population is complex, demographically complex.
So as I said in my statement, a key challenge is converting
that awareness of the census into an actual response. The
Bureau has been very good in terms of getting the word out.
Ninety percent of the population or so is typically aware of
the census, but the actual response rate is much lower. So that
would be another hurdle.
Mr. Chaffetz. Would you concur or disagree that the census
is rooted in Article 1 if the Constitution, which enumerates
the powers of the legislative branch?
Mr. Goldenkoff. I will pass on that one.
Mr. Chaffetz. I guess the question is who do you believe
the census director reports to?
Mr. Goldenkoff. Well, legally, to the Commerce Secretary.
That, I believe, is in statute.
Mr. Chaffetz. And is it your experience from past
decennials that the director often briefed the President, but
never ``reported to him?''
Mr. Goldenkoff. Well, from what we have seen in news
accounts and also from some experience during the Bush
administration, there was some contact between the census
director and the White House, OMB, and that is not necessarily
a bad thing.
Mr. Chaffetz. But communication is a little different than
actually reporting to.
Mr. Goldenkoff. Right, they are two different things. It is
one thing for the White House to be aware of and make sure that
the census stays on track, but that is not a reporting
relationship. But in terms of holding the Bureau accountable,
it is a very powerful tool to have White House involvement. The
thing is that the White House, it has to be that right balance
between focusing on management and operational issues versus
the science of the census. You don't want the White House or
any political influence on the science of taking the census.
Mr. Chaffetz. Very good.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Clay. Thank you, Mr. Chaffetz.
Just one question for Dr. Himes. You know, the Bureau is
working with MITRE on mitigation plans. What are your greatest
concerns about timetables in the plans?
Mr. Himes. Sir, I think, again, our greatest concern would
be those that GAO has put together, the time to test and verify
where the systems are working, particularly from a system view.
So we think that there are tools in place that gives Census
better insights into the status of their systems than they have
had in the past; and the people that are working on them have
substantial experience, but it is still a fairly large burden
considering the amount of time remaining to track that whole
activity end-to-end.
Mr. Clay. Thank you so much for that response, Dr. Himes.
I will yield to Mr. Westmoreland.
Mr. Westmoreland. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I appreciate
that.
I didn't have any other questions, but when Mr. Goldenkoff
passed on the Article 1 if the Constitution question, I felt
like we might want to discuss that a little bit further, that
the GAO understands that we feel like the origin of the census
is rooted----
Mr. Goldenkoff. Oh, no question, Article 1. I misunderstood
the question.
Mr. Westmoreland [continuing]. In Article 1 of the
Constitution, which enumerates the power of the legislative
branch.
Mr. Goldenkoff. Yes.
Mr. Westmoreland. So I just wanted to make sure that you
understood that and you were just passing on the question maybe
for----
Mr. Goldenkoff. No, I guess I misunderstood the question. I
apologize.
Mr. Westmoreland. OK.
Mr. Goldenkoff. But, definitely, it is Article 1, Section
2, and that spells out the basic requirements of the census.
Mr. Westmoreland. Mr. Chairman, I would like to just make a
comment, if I could. We all understand how important this
census is for redistricting, for the allocation of Federal
money, and I am very pleased with the testimony that we have
heard today, because I think that everybody on that panel wants
to have an accurate count, an enumeration of everybody in this
country, people who are here at the time of the census.
So I think that is the reason that there has been so much
about whether the White House wants to have it reported to or
to the Commerce Secretary, there is or is not a director. I
feel very confident from just the information I have heard from
the Census Bureau and the Acting Director there, and from the
GAO and the things that they have looked at, that this process
is going forward about as well as it could, and that there has
been a lot of hard work put into it. So I think that the reason
there is so much going on right now is everybody wants to make
sure that every person is counted.
So I appreciate all of you coming.
I want to thank the chairman for having this hearing,
because I think he recognizes the importance to each and every
one of us, and the fact that we get a very accurate count. So
with that, Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. Clay. Thank you, Mr. Westmoreland.
In conclusion, let me thank the witnesses for their
testimony today.
Mr. McHenry. If I could ask just one.
Mr. Clay. You have another question?
Mr. McHenry. Yes, just one.
Mr. Clay. OK, I will yield to Mr. McHenry.
Mr. McHenry. Sorry, Mr. Chairman. I just wanted to get this
on the record.
Mr. Mesenbourg, from the Census Bureau's perspective--and I
am sure these are questions you would like to answer--any and
all information attained from the census forms cannot be used
for any other person, including tax or law enforcement
purposes, is that correct?
Mr. Mesenbourg. That is correct.
Mr. McHenry. OK. Many of us have received feedback from our
constituents regarding privacy concerns, obviously, very much
in mind today, especially. But information given by people to
the Census Bureau is confidential by law, is that correct?
Mr. Mesenbourg. By law, by Title 13.
Mr. McHenry. All right. And getting people to respond is
one of the main challenges, as you mentioned, so is there--
because people maybe have a mistrust of Government, what
efforts are you taking to ensure that people know that any
information given to them is kept only within the Census Bureau
and not shared with any other Government agency, department, or
any other individual?
Mr. Mesenbourg. Well, that information will be on the
report form that everybody receives but, probably more
importantly, it is going to be a key focus of our advertising
message and our partnership program. So it is one thing for the
Census Bureau to tell people it is confidential. In the hard-
to-reach segments of the population, our partnership program is
aimed to get a trusted voice in that community to tell people
that live in that community--and our partnership specialist
will be hired from the community that they are working in--that
you can trust the Census Bureau that they will hold your data
confidential.
Mr. McHenry. Finally, if you and your staff could prepare a
followup for this. This is too long of a question and our time
is short. I would like to know the Census Bureau's full plan to
minimize the undercounts and overcounts. I know you already
have plans in place, but if we could receive that, I think that
would be important for committee members to hear the full
breadth and depth of our plan so we can also see ways that we
can engage other stakeholders.
Mr. Mesenbourg. Certainly.
Mr. McHenry. Thank you, all.
And thank you, Mr. Chairman. I certainly appreciate it.
Mr. Clay. Very good. Thank you.
The first major operation of the 2010 census, address
canvassing begins on March 30th. There will not be any other
opportunities to build a complete and accurate address list.
Time is of the essence. It is critical that the Bureau work
with GAO, MITRE, and use every resource available to get this
right. Six major systems still need to be tested, the life-
cycle cost estimate needs to be validated, and testing must be
prioritized.
Let me thank all of the witnesses for coming today and
thank the members of this committee for their singular focus
and their commitment to seeing that the 2010 census be
successful.
On that note, this hearing is adjourned.
[Whereupon, at 11:40 a.m., the subcommittee was adjourned.]
[The prepared statement of Hon. Diane E. Watson and
additional information submitted for the hearing record
follow:]
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