Census Scientific Advisory Committee 2023 Spring Virtual Meeting

The U.S. Census Bureau will host the Census Scientific Advisory Committee virtual meeting March 9-10, 2023. Experts and representatives of various organizations from across the nation will attend the virtual meeting to discuss census programs, operations and innovative processes. 

New ACS Data Products Available for the 2022 State Legislative Districts

The U.S. Census Bureau will release new social, economic, housing and demographic statistics for the 2022 state legislative districts. The four data profiles will be available for all 6,832 state legislative districts (1,958 upper chamber and 4,874 lower chamber) for the 50 U.S. states, Washington D.C., and Puerto Rico. They will be available on the Census Bureau's FTP site and a web-based lookup tool on the ACS website. These data products will be produced from the 2017-2021 American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates. More information about the ACS is available on the ACS website. (Scheduled for release March 16.)

Household Pulse Survey

The experimental Household Pulse Survey is an effort by the U.S. Census Bureau and other federal statistical agencies to provide near real-time data on how the social and economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and other emergent issues are affecting people’s lives to inform federal and state response and recovery planning. Data collection for phase 3.8 is expected to begin March 1, with data dissemination, including detailed data tables and public use data files, on a monthly basis. (Tentatively scheduled for release March 22, April 19 and May 17.) 

School Pulse Panel

The Census Bureau has begun collecting data from schools for the new School Pulse Panel (SPP) as part of efforts to monitor the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on students and staff in U.S. public schools. The SPP is sponsored by the National Center for Education Statistics and collects data on instructional mode offered, learning loss mitigation strategies, staffing levels, safe and healthy school mitigation strategies, use of technology and more. To learn more, visit the School Pulse Panel webpage.

2021 Annual Capital Expenditures for Robotic Equipment

The Census Bureau will release new Annual Capital Expenditures Survey (ACES) estimates. ACES estimates by kind of business add detail to national-level estimates of investment in machinery and equipment. Capital expenditures for both industrial and service robotic equipment were collected for the first time in the 2018 ACES. Beginning with the 2020 ACES, the estimates reflect data requested for North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) industries in which the robotic investment was made. (Scheduled for release March 22.)

ACCESS BROADBAND Dashboard

The U.S. Census Bureau and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) will unveil the first release of their joint interactive dashboard that allows users to compare U.S. state, county and census tract-level maps displaying broadband availability and adoption statistics to maps of select social and economic indicators. (Scheduled for release late February/early March.)

New Total Business Ownership by Demographics Webpage

The U.S. Census Bureau will launch a new webpage that brings together several sources of business owner demographic data into one convenient location for data users. The Total Business Ownership by Demographics page provides a comprehensive hub for data on selected economic and demographic characteristics for businesses and business owners by sex, ethnicity, race and veteran status. Webpages that previously hosted data from the Survey of Business Owners, Annual Survey of Entrepreneurs, Annual Business Survey and Nonemployer Statistics by Demographics will be redirected for 90 days once the Total Business Ownership Demographics site is up. (Tentatively scheduled for release in March.)

First-look 2022 Annual Business Survey

The U.S. Census Bureau will release a new infographic from the Annual Business Survey (ABS) detailing employees’ working from home status before, during and after the first year of the coronavirus pandemic by sex, race, ethnicity and veteran status. Data are shown for the percentage of employer businesses in 2019, 2020, and 2021. Also being released are preliminary data from the 2022 ABS. Data will show the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on businesses by demographic characteristics. The ABS is conducted jointly by the U.S. Census Bureau and the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics (NCSES) within the National Science Foundation. (Tentatively scheduled for release in March.)

Business Trends and Outlook Survey

The U.S. Census Bureau launched a new survey to measure business conditions on an ongoing basis. The Business Trends and Outlook Survey (BTOS) is the successor to the Small Business Pulse Survey (SBPS), a high-frequency survey that measured the effect of changing business conditions during the coronavirus pandemic and other major events like hurricanes on our nation’s small businesses.

BTOS experimental data products are representative of all single-location employer businesses in the U.S. economy, excluding farms. The data allows greater insight into the state of the economy by providing continuous, timely data for key economic measures. The first data were released October 13, 2022 and will continue to be released biweekly and available by sector, state and the 25 most populous metropolitan statistical areas.

Monthly Business Formation Statistics

Business Formation Statistics (BFS) provide timely and high-frequency data on business applications and employer business formations on a monthly basis. The data are available at the state, regional and national level and by industry sector at the national level. The next monthly BFS release is March 10 and will include February 2023 data. Business Formation Statistics - Release Schedule (census.gov).

Stats for Stories provides links to timely story ideas highlighting U.S. Census Bureau statistics that relate to current events, observances, holidays and anniversaries. The story ideas are intended to assist the media in story mining and producing content for their respective audiences.

• Ohio 220th Anniversary of Statehood (1803): March 1, 2023
• International Women’s Day: March 8, 2023
• 95th Oscars®/Academy Awards: March 12, 2023
• Sunshine Week & Freedom of Information Day: March 12-18 & March 16, 2023
• Equal Pay Day: March 14, 2023
• Pi Day: March 14, 2023
• Potato Chip Day: March 14, 2023
• St. Patrick’s Day: March 17, 2023
• Certified Nurses Day: March 19, 2023
• National Poultry Day: March 19, 2023
• National Single Parent Day: March 21, 2023
• National Agriculture Day & Week: March 21 & March 21-27, 2023
• World Water Day: March 22, 2023
• National Mom and Pop Business Owners Day: March 29, 2023
• National Vietnam War Veterans Day, March 29, 2023
• National Doctors Day: March 30, 2023

The Opportunity Project Summit 2023

February 22 — The Opportunity Project (TOP) Summit 2023 kicked off today. Hosted by the U.S. Census Bureau’s Census Open Innovation Labs (COIL), TOP is a three-day virtual conference that showcases new products created through TOP’s 2022 sprints, featuring innovative technology and other solutions that use federal open data and bring together leading data experts and community leaders.

Meet Dr. Sallie Ann Keller, our New Chief Scientist - YouTube

Curious about our vision for the future of statistics? In a new video, Dr. Sallie Ann Keller describes how new data sources and data science innovations are allowing us to better meet the growing demand for information about our people, places, and economy with data that are more complex, more timely, and more accurate than ever before. Dr. Keller is the Census Bureau’s new chief scientist and associate director of research and methodology. Learn more about how we are re-envisioning the nation’s infrastructure in Deputy Director Ron Jarmin’s recent blog, “Changing Small Habits Can Lead to Transformation.” 

Tribal Consultation on Detailed Demographic and Housing Characteristics File A Proof of Concept

February 23 — The U.S. Census Bureau held a virtual tribal consultation for tribal leaders, their designated tribal representatives and/or proxies to seek tribe’s feedback to the Proof of Concept for the 2020 Census Detailed Demographic and Housing Characteristics File A (Detailed DHC-A). More information is available in the data products newsletter, Detailed DHC-A Proof of Concept Coming Later This Month.

Census Bureau Releases New Educational Attainment Data

February 16 — The U.S. Census Bureau released findings from the Educational Attainment in the United States: 2022 table package, which uses statistics from the Current Population Survey Annual Social and Economic Supplement to examine the educational attainment of adults 18 and older by demographic and social characteristics such as age, sex, race and nativity.

New National Experimental Data Product About Wellbeing

February 14 — The U.S. Census Bureau released the first set of estimates from the National Experimental Wellbeing Statistics (NEWS) project, an experimental data product that uses new methodology to calculate income and poverty estimates. The NEWS project is a research-driven trial with the aim of looking at different ways to enhance how we currently produce income and poverty statistics. Among the innovations — using a broader set of data sources as well as conducting additional statistical analysis to produce the new income, poverty and resource estimates for 2018. The year 2018 was chosen as a proof of concept and first step in the work for version 1.0 of the NEWS project.

My Community Explorer

February 15 — The Census Bureau’s equity mapping tool My Community Explorer has been updated in release 2.3 with Nonemployer Statistics (NES) for 2019, new Community Resilience Estimates (CRE) frequently asked questions, and new Census Business Builder reports for Census Tract level data.  My Community Explorer shows the Equity Supplement of Community Resilience Estimates, the American Community Survey components that make up the CRE, and business data from County Business Patterns, Nonemployer Statistics in an interactive map at the state, county and Census Tract. 

“The Disproportionate Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Women in the Workforce”

February 14 — The U.S. Census Bureau and the Local Employment Dynamics (LED) Partnership and the Council for Community and Economic Research (C2ER) and the Labor Market Information (LMI) Institute will present, “The Disproportionate Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Women in the Workforce” webinar. Women in the workforce faced steeper job losses and slower job recovery than men across the nation due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Research prepared using the LEHD program’s Quarterly Workforce Indicators data show the breakdowns of which industries were heavily impacted, how the impacts to women differed by state, and what recovery looks like in the latest available data.

Women’s History Month: March 2023

February 14 — The roots of National Women’s History Month go back to March 8, 1857, when women from various New York City factories staged a protest over poor working conditions. The first Women’s Day celebration in the United States was in 1909, also in New York City, but Congress did not establish National Women’s History Week until 1981 to be commemorated annually the second week of March. In 1987, Congress expanded the week to a month.

Irish-American Heritage Month (March) and St. Patrick’s Day (March 17)

January 30 — You may not find a pot of gold at the end of this edition of Facts for Features, but you will find it useful and informative. It is filled with statistical information from the Census Bureau’s demographic and economic subject areas on the nation’s Irish American population and other facets of this celebration of all things Irish.

National Black (or African American) History Month: February 2023

January 12 — To commemorate and celebrate the contributions to our nation by people of African descent, the U.S. Census Bureau presents a collection of demographic and economic statistics about the U.S. Black community.

America Counts tells the stories behind the numbers in a new and inviting way. We feature stories on various topics such as families, housing, employment, business, education, the economy, emergency preparedness and the population. New stories include:

• Remote Work During the Pandemic Shifted Daytime Population of Cities (February 21)
• Data Products Built by and for Puerto Rican Communities (February 16)
• Where in the United States Are the High-Tech Jobs? (February 14)
• How Did Self-Care Industries Perform at Start of Pandemic? (February 13)
• Economic Census: What’s in It for Me? (February 10)

Stats for Stories provides links to timely story ideas highlighting the Census Bureau’s newsworthy statistics that relate to current events, observances, holidays and anniversaries. The story ideas are intended to assist the media in story mining and producing content for their respective audiences

• Frozen Food Month & Day: March & March 6, 2023
• Employee Appreciation Day: March 3, 2023
• Red Cross Month: March 2023
• Mardi Gras: February 21, 2023
• Presidents Day: February 20, 2023
• Singles Awareness Day: February 15, 2023
• Valentine’s Day: February 14, 2023
• Super Bowl LVII (57): February 12, 2023
• American Heart Month: February 2023

Emergency Management/Disaster Resources

When major disasters strike, visit our Emergency Management page for demographic and economic data on impacted areas. Each disaster will include data from our key emergency management tools: OnTheMap for Emergency Management, Community Resilience Estimates, Census Business Builder: Regional Analyst Edition and other useful resources.

Learn What Surveys Are Being Conducted in Your Community

See which of the U.S. Census Bureau’s 130-plus annual surveys are being conducted in your community. In a variety of surveys and censuses, evolving from the first census in 1790, the Census Bureau provides official information about America’s people, businesses, industries and institutions. Learn more about surveys currently being conducted in each Census Bureau region:

• Atlanta
• Chicago
• Denver
• Los Angeles
• New York
• Philadelphia
• All Surveys

Data Tools

Listed below are a few of the U.S. Census Bureau’s interactive applications used to access statistics from our 130-plus annual surveys. A complete list can be accessed on the Census Bureau’s Data Tools and Apps webpage.

• Census Geocoder — Provides interactive & programmatic (REST) access to users interested in matching addresses to geographic locations and entities containing those addresses.
• Migration Patterns: Young Adult Migration — Use this resource to discover where people in your hometown moved as young adults.
• Opportunity Atlas — Which neighborhoods in America offer children the best chance to rise out of poverty?

Census Bureau Training Opportunities

Webinars are available on a regular basis to help the public access and use U.S. Census Bureau statistics. These free sessions, which are 60 to 90 minutes each, show users how to navigate Census Bureau databases and mapping tools and find demographic and economic statistics at the local or national level. Descriptions of upcoming sessions are available on our Census Academy page. Login details are provided at least one week before a webinar.

• 2022 Economic Census Informational Webinar (Tuesday, February 28, 2-3 p.m. EST)
• Optimize Your Non-Profit with Census Data (Thursday, March 9, 2:00-3:30 p.m. EST)
• Benefits of Using Census Data to Recruit Students into Liberal Arts Programs (Wednesday, March 15, 1:30-3:30 p.m. EST)
• Comparing the American Community Survey to American Housing Survey (Wednesday, March 15, 2-3 p.m. EST)
• Planning for Community Development (Thursday, March 23, 2:00-3:30 p.m. EST)
• What do Unions do? Wages, Incentives, and Investments (Wednesday, March 29, 1-2 p.m. EST)
• Researching Formal Privacy for the Census Bureau’s CBP Program (Thursday, April 20, -4 p.m. EST)

Archived Training Resources

Visit the Census Bureau’s Educational Resource Library for previously recorded, free training available at your convenience. The library includes presentations, recorded webinars, tutorials and other helpful materials.

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