House Report 106-97 - MEASURES TO IMPROVE MARKETING, OUTREACH, AND PROMOTION OF THE 2000 CENSUS

[House Report 106-97]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]

106th Congress Report
1st Session HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 106-97

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MEASURES TO IMPROVE MARKETING, OUTREACH, AND PROMOTION OF THE 2000
CENSUS

_______

April 19, 1999.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the
State of the Union and ordered to be printed

_______

Mr. Burton of Indiana, from the Committee on Government Reform,
submitted the following

R E P O R T

together with

MINORITY VIEWS

[To accompany H.R. 1010]

[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

The Committee on Government Reform, to whom was referred the
bill (H.R. 1010) to improve participation in the 2000 decennial
census by increasing the amounts available to the Bureau of the
Census for marketing, promotion, and outreach, having
considered the same, report favorably thereon with an amendment
and recommend that the bill as amended do pass.

CONTENTS

Page
I. Summary of Legislation...........................................2
II. Background and Need for the Legislation..........................2
III. Legislative Hearings and Committee Actions.......................2
IV Committee Hearings and Written Testimony.........................3
V. Explanation of the Bill..........................................3
VI. Compliance with Rule XIII........................................3
VII. Budget Analysis and Projections..................................3
VIII.Cost Estimate of the Congressional Budget Office.................3

IX. Specific Constitutional Authority for This Legislation...........5
X. Committee Recommendation.........................................5
XI. Congressional Accountability Act; Public Law 104-1...............5
XII. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act; Public Law 104-4, Section 423......5
XIII.Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) Section 5(b)......5

The amendment is as follows:
At the end of the bill add the following new section:

SEC. 3. USE OF FUNDS FOR CONTRACTS WITH CERTAIN ENTITIES.

The Bureau of the Census shall make every effort to utilize
funds authorized under section 2 to contract with entities that
have a demonstrated record of making an impact through
marketing, promotion, or outreach campaigns on urban and rural
communities that have historically been undercounted by
censuses, including communities with significant numbers of
individuals--
(1) of color;
(2) with an income less than the poverty-line; or
(3) who have limited proficiency in English.

I. SUMMARY OF LEGISLATION

H.R. 1010 authorizes $300,000,000 for fiscal year 2000 to
be appropriated to the Bureau of the Census to carry out
promotional, outreach, and marketing activities in connection
with the 2000 decennial census.

II. BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

One major improvement of the 2000 Census relative to the
1990 Census is the introduction of a paid advertising campaign.
Previously, the only public advertisements reminding
inhabitants of the importance of being counted in the census
were public service announcements (PSAs). The Census Bureau has
hired Young and Rubicam, Inc. to conduct the campaign and the
efforts will be aimed at increasing mail response.
For FY '99, the President requested $51 million for
marketing, communications and partnerships. Congress feels that
the President's request (FY '99) is not sufficient for a
nationwide campaign. For instance, the National Youth Anti-Drug
media campaign was funded at $198 million in 1998. The
President's request is insufficient to successfully inform the
public of the importance of the census and Congressional action
is needed to increase funds available to promote the 2000
Census.

III. LEGISLATIVE HEARINGS AND COMMITTEE ACTIONS

H.R. 1010 was introduced on March 4, 1999 by the Honorable
Dan Miller (R-FL), Chairman of the Subcommittee on the Census,
Government Reform Committee. The bill was referred to the
Committee on Government Reform on March 4, 1999 and then
referred to the Subcommittee on the Census on March 11, 1999.
The Subcommittee held a legislative hearing on March 2, 1999. A
markup was held by the Subcommittee on March 11, 1999. Mr.
Davis (D-IL) offered an amendment to the bill which would
require the Bureau of the Census to make every effort to
utilize funds to contract with entities that represent
undercounted communities of color with income less than the
poverty-line or who have limited proficiency in English. Mr.
Souder (R-IN) offered and withdrew an amendment to the
amendment offered by Mr. Davis (D-IL). The amendment offered by
Mr. Davis (D-IL) was defeated by voice vote. The measure was
ordered favorably reported to the full Committee by a voice
vote.
On March 17, 1999, the Full Committee met to consider the
bill. Mr. Davis (D-IL) offered an amendment to the bill which
would require the Bureau of the Census to make every effort to
utilize funds to contract with entities that have a
demonstrated record of making an impact on undercounted
communities with significant numbers of individuals of color,
with incomes less than the poverty-line, or who have limited
proficiency in English. The amendment offered by Mr. Davis (D-
IL) passed by voice vote. The committee approved the bill, as
amended, by voice vote. The committee then favorably reported
the bill, as amended, to the House by voice vote.

IV. COMMITTEE HEARINGS AND WRITTEN TESTIMONY

The committee held no hearings and received no written
testimony on H.R. 1010. The subcommittee on the Census held a
hearing on March 2, 1999, entitled Examining the America Counts
Today (ACT) Initiatives to Enhance Traditional Enumeration
Methods, where Kenneth Prewitt, Director of the Census Bureau,
supported a more extensive advertising campaign.

V. EXPLANATION OF THE BILL

Section 1. This section lists the following Congressional
findings:
(1) A national media campaign is essential to increase the
mail response for the 2000 decennial census.
(2) Promotional events will emphasize the importance of
participating in the census, and will motivate people to
respond.
(3) More resources are needed to ensure the Bureau of the
Census is able to carry out an effective marketing, promotion,
and outreach campaign, especially in the hardest-to-count
communities.
Sec. 2. This section authorizes $300,000,000 for fiscal
year 2000 to carry out the purposes of this Act.

vi. compliance with rule xiii

Pursuant to rule XIII, clause 3(c)(1) of the Rules of the
House of Representatives, under the authority of rule X, clause
2(b)(1) and clause 3(e), the results and findings from this
committee oversight activities are incorporated in the bill and
this report.

vii. budget analysis and projections

The budget analysis and projections required by section
308(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 are contained in
the estimate of the Congressional Budget Office.

viii. cost estimate of the congressional budget office

U.S. Congress,
Congressional Budget Office,
Washington, DC, March 25, 1999.
Hon. Dan Burton,
Chairman, Committee on Government Reform,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 1010, a bill to
improve participation in the 2000 decennial census by
increasing the amounts available to the Bureau of the Census
for marketing, promotion, and outreach.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Mark Hadley.
Sincerely,
Barry B. Anderson
(For Dan L. Crippen, Director).
Enclosure.

H.R. 1010.--A bill to improve participation in the 2000 decennial
census by increasing the amounts available to the Bureau of the
Census for marketing, promotion, and outreach

Summary: H.R. 1010 would authorize the appropriation of
$300 million in fiscal year 2000 for promotional, outreach, and
marketing activities in connection with the 2000 census. The
bill also would require the Bureau of the Census to contract
with entities that have successfully reached those communities
that have been undercounted by past censuses.
Assuming appropriation of the authorized amount, CBO
estimates that implementing H.R. 1010 would cost $300 million
over the 2000-2001 period. H.R. 1010 would not affect direct
spending or receipts; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures would
not apply.
H.R. 1010 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA)
and would impose no costs, on state, local, or tribal
governments.
Estimated Cost to the Federal Government: For purposes of
this estimate, CBO assumes that H.R. 1010 will be enacted by
the end of fiscal year 1999. The estimated budgetary impact of
H.R. 1010 is shown in the following table. The costs of this
legislation fall within budget function 370 (commerce and
housing credit).

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By fiscal year, in millions of dollars--
-----------------------------------------------
1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004
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SPENDING SUBJECT TO APPROPRIATION

Spending Under Current Law:
Budget Authority \1\........................................ 101 0 0 0 0 0
Estimated Outlays........................................... 85 24 0 0 0 0
Proposed Changes:
Authorization Level......................................... 0 300 0 0 0 0
Estimated Outlays........................................... 0 276 24 0 0 0
Spending Under H.R. 1010:
Authorization Level \1\..................................... 101 300 0 0 0 0
Estimated Outlays........................................... 85 300 24 0 0 0
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\1\ The 1999 level is the amount that the Bureau of the Census dedicated to marketing, communications, and
partnerships out of the $1.2 billion appropriated for periodic censuses and programs for that year.

Basis of Estimate: Based on historical spending patterns
and information from the Bureau of the Census, CBO estimates
that implementing H.R. 1010 would cost $276 million in 2000 and
$24 million in 2001, assuming appropriation of the authorized
amount.
In addition to the costs cited above, H.R. 1010 could
affect spending by the bureau in two other ways, but CBO cannot
estimate their effects. The bureau plans to mail every
household a questionnaire on April 1, 2000. H.R. 1010 could
raise public awareness of the census, thereby increasing the
rate of response by mail. Thus, the bill could reduce the costs
of having temporary employees telephone or visit households
that did not respond to the questionnaire. According to the
bureau, a 1 percent increase in the response rate would save
$25 million in costs for obtaining responses. However, with a
higher response rate, the bureau would also incur additional
costs to process more questionnaires. On balance, CBO expects
that these two additional effects would result in some net
savings because processing questionnaires is less expensive
than calling or visiting households.
Pay-as-you-go considerations: None.
Intergovernmental and Private-Sector Impact: H.R. 1010
contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as
defined in UMRA and would impose no costs on state, local, or
tribal governments.
Estimate Prepared by: Mark Hadley.
Estimate Approved by: Robert A. Sunshine, Deputy Assistant
Director for Budget Analysis.

IX. SPECIFIC CONSTITUTIONAL AUTHORITY FOR THIS LEGISLATION

Clause 3 of Article 1, section 2 and clauses 2 and clauses
1 and 18 of Article 1, section 8 of the Constitution grant
Congress the power to enact this law.

X. COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION

On March 17, 1999, a quorum being present, the Committee on
Government Reform ordered the bill favorably reported.

XI. CONGRESSIONAL ACCOUNTABILITY ACT; PUBLIC LAW 104-1

The original Act does not apply to the House of
Representatives or to the Senate, thus H.R. 1010 does not apply
to Congress.

XII. UNFUNDED MANDATES REFORM ACT; PUBLIC LAW 104-4, SECTION 423

The Committee finds that the legislation does not impose
any Federal mandates within the meaning of section 423 of the
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (PL 104-4).

XIII. FEDERAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE ACT (5 U.S.C. APP.) SECTION 5(B)

The Committee finds that section 5(b) of Title 5 App.,
United States Code, is not applicable because this legislation
does not authorize the establishment of any advisory committee.

MINORITY VIEWS ON H.R. 1010

H.R. 1010 would authorize $300 million for promotion,
outreach, and marketing activities connected with the 2000
Census. We support this bill. As Census Bureau Director, Dr.
Kenneth Prewitt, has stated, ``the advertising and promotion
budgets will need to be increased.''
We are especially pleased that the Davis Amendment was
adopted. It states that the Bureau of the Census should
contract with entities that have a demonstrated record of
making an impact through marketing, promotion, or outreach
campaigns on urban and rural communities that have historically
been undercounted by censuses, including communities with
significant numbers of individuals of color, with an income
less than the poverty-line, or who have limited proficiency in
English.
Although H.R. 1010 is a step in the right direction, it is
unlikely to have a major impact on improving census accuracy.
Advertising is unlikely to reach the hardest to count sectors
of the population. The only way to reduce the racial
differential undercount is to use modern statistical methods.
Even Young and Rubicon, the firm contracted to conduct the
advertising campaign, has said that the purpose of advertising
is to create census awareness and increase the mail response
rate, not reach the hard to count.¹
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\1\ Young and Rubican, Testimony before the Joint Meeting on the
Census Advisory Committees on the African American, American Indian and
Alaska Native, Asian and Pacific Islander, and Hispanic Populations,
Census Advisory Committee of Professional Associations and the Commerce
Secretary's 2000 Census Advisory Committee (October 26, 1998).

Henry A. Waxman.
Tom Lantos.
Bob Wise.
Major R. Owens.
Edolphus Towns.
Paul E. Kanjorski.
Patsy T. Mink.
Bernard Sanders.
Carolyn B. Maloney.
Eleanor H. Norton.
Chaka Fattah.
Elijah E. Cummings.
Dennis J. Kucinich.
Rod R. Blagojevich.
Danny K. Davis.
John F. Tierney.
Jim Turner.
Tom Allen.
Harold E. Ford, Jr.
Jan Schakowsky.