UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 
Economics and Statistics Administration

BAS-9(L)

U.S. Census Bureau 
(9-2012) 

Washington, DC 20233-0001 
OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR 

FROM THE DIRECTOR 

U.S. CENSUS BUREAU 
The U.S. Census Bureau conducts the Boundary and Annexation Survey (BAS) to update our records 
regarding changes to legal boundaries, names, and governmental status of all governmental units 
effective on or before January 1 of the survey year. This voluntary survey is an important opportunity 
for you to ensure that we have the correct boundary and legal name for your county, as well as the 
governments within your jurisdiction. The Census Bureau will use the boundary information you provide 
to report data from the Population Estimates Program (PEP), the American Community Survey (ACS), 
and other Census programs and surveys. 

Please review your county boundary for accuracy, and also your BAS form for the functional status of 
governments within your county. You may include changes for the entities within your jurisdiction, but it 
is not required. 

The Census Bureau offers consolidation agreements to reduce the burden on local governments and 
avoid a duplication of effort. At the county level, a county government can provide updates for their 
county boundary, as well as for entities within the county that agree to the consolidation. Counties 
participating in a consolidation agreement are required to obtain the permission of the entities for which 
they will report changes and updates. If your state has legislation in place requiring governments to 
report boundary changes to the county, you may provide us this legal documentation in lieu of obtaining 
permission from the individual entities. The Census Bureau will not mail BAS materials to the indicated 
entities next year or any subsequent year after an agreement has been completed. You can find more 
information about BAS consolidation agreements on our Web site at 
<http://www.census.gov/geo/www/bas/bashome.html>. 

The enclosed checklist contains information about the materials in your BAS package. These materials 
reflect the response method that your county previously requested. Information describing how to 
update the enclosed materials is available in the BAS Respondent Guide. This information is also 
provided on the BAS Web site. 

All annexations received by March 1 will be included in this year’s boundary delivery for the PEP and 
the ACS. All annexation and boundary corrections received by May 31 will be included in your BAS 
materials for next year. The Census Bureau will attempt to include street and landmark updates as 
resources permit. Please note that your response to the BAS does not replace any state reporting 
requirement. 

The Census Bureau appreciates your response to this important voluntary survey. If you need any 
assistance with this request, please e-mail <geo.bas@census.gov>, telephone 1–800–972–5651, or 
visit our Web site at <http://www.census.gov/geo/www/bas/bashome.html>. 

Sincerely, 

Thomas L. Mesenbourg, Jr. 
Acting Director 

Enclosures 


census.gov