Plans and Status for
2010 Census Coverage
Measurement
Harland H. Shoemaker, Jr.
Decennial Statistical Methods Division
Prepared for:
The 2007 Annual Meeting of the Census Information Centers
October 10, 2007
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2010 Census Coverage
Measurement (CCM) Goals
• Help to improve coverage in future
censuses
– coverage error components
• Understand differential coverage in the
2010 census
– net coverage error
2
CCM Definitions
• Coverage Error Components
– Omissions
• Persons or housing units not enumerated in the
census, but should have been
– Erroneous enumerations
• Persons or housing units enumerated in the
census who should not have been
– Duplicates
– Non-residents
– Born after or died before Census Day
– Enumerated in wrong location (not an issue for U.S.
estimate)
3
CCM Definitions (2)
• Net Coverage Error
– Net error = CCM estimate – Census count
• Used for persons or housing units
• CCM estimate uses dual-system estimation
methodology
– Net error overall undercount or
overcount
4
Major CCM Research Issues
• Improve measurement of Census Day
residence
• Improve techniques to detect and
resolve duplicate census enumerations
• Develop methods for measuring
components of coverage error
• Improve techniques to estimate net
coverage error
5
CCM Program Limitations
• No estimates of coverage error for
persons in group quarters or for group
quarters facilities
• Scope for estimating how component
errors relate to census operations
depends on information available from
the final census files
6
2006 CCM Census Test
• Included:
– data collection and matching for persons
only
– automated person interview (PI, laptop)
• people living or staying at sample address on
Interview Day
– paper followup
• non-matches, possible matches, cases needing
more information
– computer and clerical matching
7
2006 CCM Census Test (2)
• Evaluated ability to determine correct
Census Day residence
• Tried to determine if data collected met
needs for estimating components
• No production of coverage estimates
8
2008 CCM Dress Rehearsal
• Will include person and housing unit
operations:
– Independent listing of housing units in
CCM sample areas
• 2 sites: San Joaquin, CA; South-Central NC
– Housing unit matching to the census
(preliminary address list)
• computer and clerical matching
– Housing unit followup (paper)
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2008 CCM
Dress Rehearsal (2)
– Automated PI (hand-held computer)
– Person matching
• computer and clerical
– Person followup (paper)
– Housing unit matching to the census (final
address lists)
• clerical only
– Housing unit followup (final)
10
2008 CCM
Dress Rehearsal (3)
• Will include Operational Assessments:
– Initial Housing Unit operations
– Person operations
– Final Housing Unit operations
• Will produce estimates of coverage
(limited by nature of site test)
– net error
– components of error
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2010 CCM Survey
• Plan to list about 1M HUs in about
13,000 sample areas (U.S. and Puerto
Rico)
• Plan Person Interview in about 300,000
HUs in U.S.
– (+15,000 HUs in Puerto Rico)
• State sample allocation
12
2010 CCM Survey (2)
• Automated CCM person interview
(hand-held computer)
• Nationwide computer match for persons
– to detect possible census duplicates
• Produce estimates of coverage error
– net error
– components of error
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?? Questions ??
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Thank You
harland.h.shoemaker.jr@census.gov
donna.l.kostanich@census.gov
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