Transcript for: 2020 Census Update Description: What happens once a decade, is constitutionally required, and counts every American? The census. Join us as we discuss what to expect in 2020. Related GAO Work: GAO-18-543T: 2020 Census: Actions Needed to Mitigate Key Risks Jeopardizing a Cost-Effective and Secure Enumeration Released: May 2018 [ Background Music ] [ Robert Goldenkoff: ] Responding is critical. At the end of the day, it's how America knows what America needs. [ Matt Oldham: ] Welcome to GAO's Watchdog Report, your source for news and information from the U.S. Government Accountability Office. I'm Matt Oldham. The information that comes from the United States census is used to apportion the seats of the House of Representatives, it's used to redraw congressional districts, and it's used to allocate hundreds of billions of dollars each year in federal financial assistance. In other words, it's kind of a big deal. I'm here with Robert Goldenkoff. He's a director on our strategic issues team. He recently gave testimony to Congress on the 2020 census and he's here to speak with me about the same thing. Thanks for coming in, Robert. [ Robert Goldenkoff: ] Thank you, it's great to be here. [ Matt Oldham: ] I had no idea the census costs billions of dollars. Could you help me understand what that money buys? [ Robert Goldenkoff: ] Sure. Well, you are--you are correct, the census is very expensive. As a matter of fact, the Census Bureau estimates that the 2020 enumeration will cost around $15.6 billion. That's a lot of money and it helps ensure that our nation of roughly 330 million people gets counted once, only once, and in the right place. It sounds fairly straightforward, but the reality is is that it's a complex task. The reason for that is because our society is becoming larger, more diverse, and less willing to participate in the census. So, as a result, the Census Bureau has to devote a higher level of effort to ensure that everybody gets included. [ Matt Oldham: ] You mentioned that people are less willing to participate in the census. Does that have anything to do with a concern for the Census Bureau to keeping personal information secure and safe? [ Robert Goldenkoff: ] The Census Bureau really goes to great length to ensure that the confidentiality and the privacy of the information. For one thing, the answers are protected by law. The information cannot be shared with law enforcement authorities, tax collection agencies, can't be shared with any other government agencies. The information can't be used in court. All employees who have access to the protected data, they have to take an oath. They swear that they will not release that information and it's not just for that particular census, it's a lifelong oath. And for those people who do, there are severe penalties. I believe it's $250,000 and possibly a prison sentence if you do release the information. And the other thing that the Census Bureau does to protect privacy and confidentiality is before they release the publicly available data, they go through a fairly elaborate disclosure review process to make sure that no one's personal information can be identified from the census responses. [ Matt Oldham: ] So, what changes can people expect on this next census from, you know, our recent memory of 2010 or maybe even 2000. [ Robert Goldenkoff: ] So, essentially the Census Bureau has had to invest more money and is getting the same result. It's like going up the down escalator. And so, a new way, new approaches needed to be considered in order to break that conundrum and one of the things that the Census Bureau is doing is it's considering a whole range of new census-taking methods. For example, the Census Bureau plans to make greater use of automated data collection methods, so when they're out in the field collecting data, used to be done by paper and pencil for when they were following up with non-respondents, now census takers are going to have handheld devices. The Census Bureau is also leveraging data already collected by the government to plug gaps in the data. The Census Bureau also plans on verifying addresses through in-office means. Basically, they're going to sit in an office, they're going to look at a computer screens and look at imagery, aerial imagery, and to allow people to respond via the internet. In the past, the main way you could respond was by mailing back your census questionnaire. Now the Census Bureau hopes most people will respond via the internet. [ Background Music ] [ Matt Oldham: ] So, it sounds like despite the rising price tag, the Census Bureau is exploring ways to cut costs and they're using new technologies that we don't know right now how well they'll perform. So, Robert, how has the Census Bureau done with GAO's recommendations in the past? [ Robert Goldenkoff: ] Well, over the last decade, we've made 84 recommendations aimed at improving the cost and quality of the 2020 census. The Census Bureau has generally agreed with all of our recommendations and to date they've closed 54 of them. Though the recommendations that they've closed have dealt with prioritizing its research and testing, they've also implemented a congressional outreach strategy, but 30 recommendations still remain to be closed and those deal with implementing and securing critical IT systems, for example. So, it's great that the Census Bureau has embraced our recommendations; they're working with us to close the recommendations. A lot of work still needs to be done. [ Matt Oldham: ] So, Robert, last thing. What do you think is the most important aspect that the listener should know about the 2020 census? [ Robert Goldenkoff: ] Responding is critical. It results in a more accurate census, it helps save money, it provides information that is critical to our foundation of governance. At the end of the day, it's how America knows what America needs. [ Matt Oldham: ] Robert Goldenkoff is a director in our Strategic Issues team and he was speaking with me about the upcoming 2020 census. Thank you for your time, Robert. [ Robert Goldenkoff: ] Thank you. [ Background Music ] [ Matt Oldham: ] And thank you for listening to the Watchdog Report. To hear more podcasts, subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts. [ Background Music ] [ Matt Oldham: ] For more from the congressional watchdog, the U.S. Government Accountability Office, visit us at gao.gov.