What the Census Bureau Does the Other Nine Years

Many Americans think the Census Bureau only works every 10 years, when we count the total population of the United States for the decennial census (also known as the Census of Population and Housing.) When you read newspapers or magazines, watch TV, or listen to the radio, there's a good chance that you will see or hear about work that the Census Bureau does consistently throughout a decade, but you were not aware of it’s connection to us.

The Census Bureau utilizes staff in 12 regional offices to manage its current and demographic survey operations. Surveys are utilized because it costs too much and takes too long to ask every American the same question on every survey. While each survey is a representative sample of an entire population, the sample is scientifically selected so that one household is representative of many households. Therefore, surveys allow us to achieve an authentic cross-section of households, individuals, or special populations.

The Census Bureau has a core staff of professional field representatives who gather data either in person or by telephone. These representatives collect information from households and businesses from within the area covered by the Philadelphia Regional Office – Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maryland, 11 counties in Southern New Jersey, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and three counties in West Virginia.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics, National Center for Health Statistics and the Department of Housing and Urban Development are among the various agencies which sponsor various surveys.