The file layout requirements for submitting TAZ equivalencies to the Census
Bureau are in the Reference Section (page 7) of the TAZ-UP User Manual. For
those who said they were not using TAZ-UP, we included a paper copy of the
directions with the mailout of the TIGER Line/98 CD.
The TAZ-UP software automatically creates this file. However, this
documentation is included specifically for those who are not using TAZ-UP.
>>> berwyned(a)mcs.com 08/21/99 11:58pm >>>
i received this and was wondering if any others could help with some
advice or insight. has anyone developed amls or other software to
support their TAZ efforts out side of TAZ-UP?
-----------
From: Kirk Eby <keby(a)tompkins-co.org>
Tompkins County (FIPS 36109) currently has its TAZs in Arc/Info format.
Except
for 2 zones and one minor civil division change, all of the TAZs are
based
entirely on census blocks and MCDs. We have determined that for all but
6
census blocks, the TAZ number can easily be placed in a "table of
equivalency"
for the Tiger/Line 98 files. (If you are curious, all I did was take
the
centroids from the 98 Tiger files and use ArcView to spatially join them
with
the TAZ polygons from Arc/Info, thus allowing the TAZ number to be
easily
populated in the Tiger 98 table.)
Rather than having to spend the time and resources to do the update in
TazUp,
and having to repeat in Arc/Info any changes that may be made in the
"non-equivalent" zones, the County would prefer to change only the
Arc/Info
file, then create the required "table of equivalency." None of the
information
we have seen describes the format of this "table of equivalency" in any
detail.
Is there technical documentation of the format (required fields, file
types,
etc.) of the required "table?" Also, has anyone already developed an
AML,
Avenue, or other application to automatically generate the required
"table?" Or
is there at least a "sample" of the "table" somewhere?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
J. Kirk Eby Tompkins County
GIS Project Leader Information Technology Services
i received this and was wondering if any others could help with some
advice or insight. has anyone developed amls or other software to
support their TAZ efforts out side of TAZ-UP?
-----------
From: Kirk Eby <keby(a)tompkins-co.org>
Tompkins County (FIPS 36109) currently has its TAZs in Arc/Info format.
Except
for 2 zones and one minor civil division change, all of the TAZs are
based
entirely on census blocks and MCDs. We have determined that for all but
6
census blocks, the TAZ number can easily be placed in a "table of
equivalency"
for the Tiger/Line 98 files. (If you are curious, all I did was take
the
centroids from the 98 Tiger files and use ArcView to spatially join them
with
the TAZ polygons from Arc/Info, thus allowing the TAZ number to be
easily
populated in the Tiger 98 table.)
Rather than having to spend the time and resources to do the update in
TazUp,
and having to repeat in Arc/Info any changes that may be made in the
"non-equivalent" zones, the County would prefer to change only the
Arc/Info
file, then create the required "table of equivalency." None of the
information
we have seen describes the format of this "table of equivalency" in any
detail.
Is there technical documentation of the format (required fields, file
types,
etc.) of the required "table?" Also, has anyone already developed an
AML,
Avenue, or other application to automatically generate the required
"table?" Or
is there at least a "sample" of the "table" somewhere?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
J. Kirk Eby Tompkins County
GIS Project Leader Information Technology Services
To all MPO and State DOT contacts:
For those of you who have responded to my query about which counties you are
planing to create TAZs for, I appreciate your swift response. For the rest of
you, I still need the information. If you need the email again, let me know.
Otherwise just send me the counties you are planning to include in your TAZ
plan, indicating whether you are intending to do the full or partial county. I
would appreciate responses by Thursday, August 12. Keep in mind the entire
county does need to be covered, be that by you, another MPO, or by the state
DOT. I would also like to know if some agency other than you is submitting
your TAZ plan.
There are a few things to think about when working on you TAZ plans. It is due
October 1, 1999. The Place/Municipal boundaries in TAZ-UP are from 1990 but
they are not all still valid boundaries. If they are on a road or rail line
then they are fine to use, but if they are a non-visible feature then you may
not use them for your 2000 TAZs. If you have any questions about this, call the
CTPP hotline at 202 366 5000.
I can be reached via phone at 301 457 2454, also by fax at 301 457 2481 through
email at clara.a.reschovsky(a)ccmail.census.gov
Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter.
Clara Reschovsky
From: Census2000 <Census2000(a)ccmc.org>
Census 2000 Funding Survives in the House After Heated Debate over
"Emergency" Tag
Legislators Must Reconcile House and Senate Bills As New Fiscal Year
Approaches on October 1st
Funding for Census 2000 survived a heated debate in the U.S. House of
Representatives yesterday, as legislators considered a spending bill for
the fiscal year starting October 1, 1999. The Fiscal Year 2000 (FY00)
Commerce, Justice, State, and The Judiciary Appropriations bill (H.R.
2670) includes $4.476 billion for Census 2000 activities, $11.3 million
short of President Clinton's request of $4.512 billion. (Most of the
funding "cut" resulted from shifting money for development of the
American Community Survey from the Census 2000 account to a separate
account.)
The measure designates money for Census 2000 as "emergency spending,"
meaning that the funds do not count against the tight caps Congress set
earlier in the year for the Commerce-Justice-State budget account. The
House is expected to complete action today on the $35.8 billion Commerce
spending bill. The committee report explaining provisions of the
appropriations bill is House Report (H. Rept.) 106-283.
Dozens of lawmakers joined in the debate over an amendment offered by
Rep. Tom Coburn (R-OK), to cut $2.8 billion from the census allocation
of $4.476 billion. The Administration originally requested that amount
for census operations next year but later asked for an extra $1.7
billion after the Supreme Court ruled that federal law required a direct
count without sampling methods to calculate the state population totals
for congressional apportionment. The amendment was defeated, 171 to
257, with 95 Republicans and 76 Democrats voting for the Coburn
proposal.
Rep. Coburn, saying the debate "wasn't even about the census," argued
that calling the census an emergency was "pulling the wool over the
American people's eyes." He charged that in adopting the 1997 balanced
budget law, Congress failed to provide money for the census in 2000.
Rep. Coburn also questioned the cost of the census, calling the $24 per
household cost "abhorrent." "[The high cost] we're inefficient," the
congressman said. Many legislators from both political parties who
spoke in favor of the amendment said the debate was about the
"integrity" of the budget process. "This [debate] is about the
credibility of every Member of this body," said Rep. George Miller
(D-CA).
But Rep. David Obey (D-WI), senior Democrat on the appropriations
committee, said the Census Bureau would not have enough money to carry
out the census next year if the Coburn amendment passed. The House
Rules Committee, which sets the rules for debating bills on the House
floor, did not allow Rep. Obey to offer an amendment to lift the
emergency designation from the Census 2000 account. The congressman
said that while he favored removing the emergency tag, it would be far
worse to cut funds needed for the decennial count.
Rep. Dan Miller (R-FL), chairman of the census oversight subcommittee,
also opposed the Coburn amendment, calling it "irresponsible." Rep.
Miller said the Census Bureau needs more money to reduce the
disproportionate undercount of racial minorities, immigrants, the
homeless, and other hard-to-count populations. Rep. Carolyn Maloney
(D-NY), the ranking Democrat on the census subcommittee, noted that the
census would have cost less if congressional Republicans had not
challenged the use of sampling in the original Census 2000 plan in
court. Rep. Tom Sawyer (D-OH), chairman of the census subcommittee
during the 1990 count, said that protracted wrangling over funding for
the census could jeopardize activities, such as buying advertising
slots, that must be done quickly after the new fiscal year starts.
The Administration issued a "statement of policy," setting forth its
views on the committee-approved version of the Commerce spending bill.
While it "appreciates" the overall funding level for Census 2000, the
Administration is concerned that the bill divides the money into
specific operational categories. This earmarking, the statement says,
"would impose unnecessary restrictions" on the Census Bureau's ability
to deal with unexpected circumstances during the census, because the
bill requires the agency to notify Congress 15 days before it intends to
shift money from one activity to another. (See our August 2 News Alert
for a complete description of the operational categories and other
aspects of the committee-approved bill.)
Congress will begin its summer recess period at the end of this week,
returning to work after Labor Day. Legislators must then reconcile
differences between the House and Senate versions of the Commerce
appropriations measure. Each chamber will appoint members to a
"conference committee;" traditionally, "conferees" are members of the
two Appropriations Committees. After the conference committee agrees on
a final spending package, the House and Senate must each approve the
"conference report" before the bill is sent to the President for his
signature or veto.
Correction: In our August 2, 1999, News Alert, we misidentified one of
the witnesses at a July 27 House census subcommittee hearing on the
Census 2000 paid advertising campaign. The witness representing
advertising contractor Young & Rubicam is Ms. Terry Dukes. We apologize
for the mistake.
Questions about the information contained in this News Alert may be
directed to TerriAnn Lowenthal at 202/484-2270 or, by e-mail at
terriann2K(a)aol.com. For copies of previous News Alerts and other
information, use our web site www.census2000.org
<http://www.census2000.org>. Please direct all requests to receive News
Alerts, and all changes in address/phone/fax/e-mail, to the Census 2000
Initiative at Census2000(a)ccmc.org or 202/326-8700. Please feel free to
circulate this information to colleagues and other interested
individuals.
From: Census2000 <Census2000(a)ccmc.org>
House Appropriations Panel Approves Census Funding Bill;
Emergency Designation Draws Protests from Democrats
The Census Bureau's funding bill for fiscal year 2000 (FY00) took
another halting step forward as the House Committee on Appropriations
approved the FY00 Commerce, Justice, State and The Judiciary spending
measure on July 30. The bill (which is not yet numbered) includes $4.476
billion for Census 2000 operations, $3.4 billion over this year's level
but $11.3 million below the Administration's request.
The Commerce-Justice-State bill, one of 13 spending bills for all
federal activities, allocates a total of $4.619 billion for all Census
Bureau programs and expenses. The Census 2000 funds were designated as
"emergency spending," exempting the money from a discretionary spending
cap in the budget resolution adopted last spring. Budget rules allow
lawmakers to designate certain funds as emergency spending, if the
expenditure is "unforeseen, unpredictable, and unanticipated."
The committee report explaining the spending bill states that the
emergency designation is "due to the unanticipated costs associated with
the recent Supreme Court decision regarding the conduct of the 2000
Census, and the delay in receiving the Administration's estimate of the
cost" after the Court's January ruling on the use of sampling. At
Friday's session, Rep. Harold Rogers (R-KY), who chairs the panel's
Commerce subcommittee, said the Clinton Administration's failure in the
past two years to provide a full cost estimate for the census forced
appropriators to declare census operations an emergency.
Democrats tried to eliminate the emergency designation during the
'mark-up' session. Rep. David Obey (D-WI), the committee's senior
Democrat, offered two amendments, one to remove the designation from all
Census 2000 funds and another to retain the emergency classification
only for the $1.7 billion supplemental appropriation the President
requested in June. Both amendments were defeated on party line votes.
The Commerce bill earmarks spending on broad census operational
categories. The $4.476 billion is distributed as follows (rounded to the
nearest million): Program Development and Management, $20 million; Data
Content and Products, $195 million; Field Data Collection and Support
Services, $3.450 billion; Address List Development, $44 million;
Automated Data Processing and Telecommunications Support, $447 million;
Testing and Evaluation, $16 million; census operations in Puerto Rico,
the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Pacific areas, $71 million; and Marketing,
and Communications, and Partnerships, $199 million. The Census 2000
appropriation also includes $3.5 million for the eight-member Census
Monitoring Board. The Census Bureau is required to submit monthly
spending reports to Congress. And in a move that Census Bureau Director
Kenneth Prewitt warned could hamstring the Bureau if unexpected problems
arise during the count, the measure requires the agency to seek approval
from Congress before shifting money from one activity to another.
The President's budget had included $25 million for the American
Community Survey (ACS) in the Census 2000 account. The committee
instead appropriated $20 million (a freeze at this year's funding level)
for continued development of the ACS in a broader Census Bureau
account. The ACS will provide updated demographic and socio-economic
information every year, starting in 2003 for larger areas and for all
communities by 2008. If fully implemented on schedule, the survey may
eliminate the need for a traditional census long form in 2010.
Additional committee concerns: Rep. Jose Serrano (D-NY), the senior
Democrat on the Commerce appropriations subcommittee, advocated
including the population of Puerto Rico in the total population of the
United States. Currently, when the Census Bureau reports the nation's
population, it includes the 50 states and the District of Columbia.
Rep. Dan Miller (R-FL) opposed the idea, saying it represented a major
policy change that deserved a thorough review. Rep. Miller, chairman
of the census oversight subcommittee and also an appropriations panel
member, pledged a hearing on the issue in the fall. The committee
report explaining the spending bill directs the Census Bureau to study
Rep. Serrano's proposal and report back to Congress by September 1. The
committee also applauded as "a positive development" the decision to
collect most of the same information from residents of Puerto Rico that
is collected on the census short and long forms in the States. Rep.
Serrano is Puerto Rican. In its report, legislators instructed the
Census Bureau to develop methods for counting private American citizens
living overseas in the census "at the earliest possible time," and to
report its plans to Congress. The committee also urged the Bureau to
ensure that deaf persons can participate in the census.
Background on Census Bureau funding: Funding for the decennial census
falls under the Periodic Censuses and Programs account ("Periodics"),
one of two main funding categories for the Census Bureau. Periodics
includes other cyclical programs such as the Census of Governments and
the Economic Censuses, as well as support activities such as data
processing infrastructure and geographic systems. The
committee-approved FY00 bill allocates $4.619 billion for the Periodics
account, about $19.2 million below the President's request (including
the $11.3 million reduction from the request for Census 2000). The
second main category, Salaries and Expenses, pays for ongoing
statistical programs such as the Current Population Survey, which
produce a wide range of economic, demographic, and social information.
The appropriations committee allocated $136 million for these data
activities, a freeze at this year's funding level and about $20.8
million below the Administration's request.
Budget figure correction: The July 23 News Alert included an incorrect
figure of $1.8 billion for this year's (fiscal year 1999) Census 2000
funding level. The correct figure is $1.072 billion (original $1.027
billion allocation plus a $45 million supplemental appropriation in
May). We apologize for the error.
Other legislative news: The House Subcommittee on the Census held a
hearing on July 27 to review plans for a paid advertising campaign to
promote Census 2000. The oversight panel heard testimony from Census
Bureau Director Kenneth Prewitt; Ms. Terry Peel of Young & Rubicam, the
firm developing the ad campaign; Mr. Sam Chisolm of the Chisolm-Mingo
Group, the firm responsible for the portion of the campaign aimed at
African Americans; and Mr. Curtis Zunigha, a member of the Bureau's
Advisory Committee on the American Indian and Alaska Native
Populations. A representative from Scholastic, Inc. was not available
to discuss the Census in the Schools program, as originally planned.
Due to the urgency of funding issues while Congress is in session, we
will provide more information on the advertising oversight hearing in
the near future. Interested stakeholders may request copies of the
written testimony from the Subcommittee on the Census, at 202/226-1973.
Questions about the information contained in this News Alert may be
directed to TerriAnn Lowenthal at 202/484-2270 or, by e-mail at
terriann2k(a)aol.com. For copies of previous News Alerts and other
information, use our web site www.census2000.org
<http://www.census2000.org>. Please direct all requests to receive News
Alerts, and all changes in address/phone/fax/e-mail, to the Census 2000
Initiative at Census2000(a)ccmc.org or 202/326-8700. Please feel free to
circulate this information to colleagues and other interested
individuals.
