SPAN Questions and Answers (Q&As)
Questions and Answers about the Social Security Number (SSN), Privacy Attitudes, and Notification Experiment (SPAN).
General
Q.	What does Astatistical purposes@ mean?
A.	Data collected for statistical purposes means that the information is used only to produce a summary description for a group of persons or businesses such as the income level of a town or the ages of a group of  people living in a community.  Individual people cannot be identified from data collected for statistical purposes. 
Q.	Why don=t other people have to provide SSNs on their forms?
A.	Your home was randomly selected to participate in a research project called AThe Census 2000 Test Program.@
Q.	What is the Census 2000 Test Program?
A.	Every ten years during the census, research is done to see how people react to national and local advertizing campaigns, partnerships with communities, and to test the forms and letters you receive in the mail.  The forms and letters that you received are part of one of three tests in AThe Census 2000 Test Program.@ 
Q.	Do I have to participate in this test?
A.	The form you received is your official census questionnaire.  It is required by law that you  fill it out.  Providing your SSN on the form, however, is voluntary and  you do not have to provide it unless you want to.
Q.	What is the Census Bureau=s authority for conducting this test?
A.	This test has been approved by the Office of Management and Budget.  The OMB is responsible for reviewing research projects to make sure that they are worthwhile and follow the right procedures.  When a project gets approval from the OMB, it is given a control number like the one printed on your questionnaire; it is 0607-0862.
Q.	Is my Congressperson aware of this test?

A.	In general, yes.  General plans for the TEST program are outlined in the latest "Census 2000 Operational Plan," which was provided to Congress in January, 1999.  In addition, details on each test were published in the Federal Register for a 60 day period.
Q.	Can I get a copy of the results?
A.	Yes.  Analysis from the test is scheduled to be completed in March, 2001.  To receive a copy send a POSTCARD to: U.S. Bureau of the Census; Planning, Research, and Evaluation Division; Washington, DC 20233; ATTN: ATest Results Request.@  Please be sure that your name and complete address are on the card, as well as your census FORM number--it is in the lower left corner of the first page of your census form.
Notification Questions
Q.	If you can get my information from other agencies, why do I need to fill out this form?
A.	The form you received is your official census questionnaire.  It is required by law that you  fill it out.  Right now we only get a limited amount of information from other government agencies and it is only used to improve our surveys or for research purposes, not for counting people in the decennial census. 
Q.	Why do you get information from other agencies?
A.	Right now we only get a limited amount of information from other government agencies, and it is only used to improve our surveys or for research purposes, not for counting people in the decennial census. .  The information is used to estimate the answers for questions not answered and those that are obviously inconsistent or wrong.  This reduces the number of times we have to contact a household, which reduces the cost of taking the survey and means we don=t have to bother survey respondents as often.
Q.	Who are the other government agencies?
A.	It depends on the purpose, but we do get information from the Social Security Administration and the Internal Revenue Service.
Q.	What information does the Census Bureau get from the Internal Revenue Service and/or Social Security Agency?
A.	The information the Census Bureau receives from the Internal Revenue Service and the Social Security Administration is limited by federal law and is used only for very specific purposes.  Generally, it is limited to name, address, date of birth, gender, and race and income information, if available.

READ AS NECESSARY:
[The Census Bureau receives a very limited amount of Federal tax information from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), as provided for by Congress in Title 26, United States Code (USC).  The information we receive is limited to specific items by Section 6103(j)(1)-1 of the Code of Federal Regulations.  The Census Bureau also receives a limited amount of income and benefit information and business industry information from the Social Security Administration.  This is authorized by Section 1106 of the Social Security Act (as amended, Title 41, USC, Section 1306), and by the Privacy Act (Title 5, USC, Section 552a(b)4)).  These data are made available to the Census Bureau to use only for very specific purposes.]
Q.	Does the Census Bureau already have this information about me from the other government agencies?
A.	For census taking, the Census Bureau does NOT get information from other government agencies.  However, other survey programs conducted by the Census Bureau may have information about you, which are kept confidential per United States Code Title 13.
Q.	What does my IRS and/or SSA information say about me?
A.	The IRS gives the Census Bureau the same tax return information that you give to them.  The SSA gives the Census Bureau the earnings data that are provided by your employer or by you if you are self-employed.  The SSA also gives us a limited amount of information about social security and supplemental income benefits which you have received.
Q.	Who are the government agencies you refer to as Aproviding public housing assistance?@
A.	These agencies could include the Federal government=s Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Department of Agriculture.  (In rural communities, the Department of Agriculture provides rental assistance programs, home improvement and repair loans and grants, and self‑help housing loans to low income individuals and families.)  The government agencies also could include state and local housing authorities. 
Q.	Why didn=t the IRS and/or SSA tell me that they give my information to the Census Bureau?

A.	The Census Bureau treats all individual data confidential under United States Code Title 13.  Because of this, the IRS or SSA are not required to notify you.  In other words, Title 13 permits the Census Bureau to ask for this information, permits the IRS and the SSA to release the information, and requires the Census Bureau to keep this information confidential. We have informed both the IRS and SSA of our plans to collect this information from you in order to understand how people respond to the possibility of using administrative records in a future decennial census.
Social Security Number Questions
Q.	Isn=t asking for my SSN against the law?
A.	No, the federal government is allowed to ask for your Social Security Number (SSN) under certain conditions.  For example, the government must tell you whether giving your SSN is mandatory or voluntary, and how the SSN will be used.  Title 13, Sec. 6. of the Federal code  gives the Census Bureau the authority to ask for your SSN.
Q.	Why do you need my SSN?
A.	We are requesting your SSN as part of the Census Bureau=s Census 2000 Test Program, a research project in which your home was randomly selected to participate.  Every ten years during the census, research is done to see how people react to national and local advertizing campaigns, partnerships with communities, and to test the forms and letters you receive in the mail.  The forms and letters that you received are part of one of three tests in AThe Census 2000 Test Program.@  We are asking you to give your SSN to see how people react to the request.  SSNs provided to the Census Bureau will be validated against the Social Security Administration=s SSN file.
Q.	What if my roommate [spouse, friend, or any household member] refuses to give me his/her SSN?
A.	Please fill in the segmented boxes with NINEs instead of the SSN.
Q.	What if the householder (or household member) does not remember or cannot readily find out the SSN?
A.	Please fill in the segmented boxes with EIGHTs instead of the SSN.
Q.	What if a household member is not a citizen of the United States [regardless if they have a green card or not]?
A.	Please fill in the segmented boxes with SEVENs instead of the SSN. 
Q.	What if a household member does not have a SSN (For example, they only have a Tax Payer ID)?
A.	Please fill in the segmented boxes with SIXes instead of the SSN.

Q.	Is providing the SSN mandatory?
A.	No.  However, by providing it, you are helping the Census Bureau with its Census 2000 Test Program.
Q.	Will I be prosecuted if I do not provide the SSN?
A.	No, providing your SSN is voluntary.
Q.	How will my SSN be used?  What is it for?
A.	We are requesting your SSN as part of the Census Bureau=s Census 2000 Test Program, a research project in which your home was randomly selected to participate.  Every ten years during the census, research is done to see how people react to national and local advertizing campaigns, partnerships with communities, and to test the forms and letters you receive in the mail.  The forms and letters that you received are part of one of three tests in AThe Census 2000 Test Program.@  We are asking you to give you SSN to see how you react to the request.
Q.	I responded using the Internet, but it did not ask for my SSN.  Should I go ahead and mail the form in too?
A.	No.  Please recycle your form.
Q.	Why do you only want the SSN for the person completing the form, i.e., APerson One?@
A.	We are requesting your SSN as part of the Census Bureau=s Census 2000 Test Program, a research project in which your home was randomly selected to participate.  We are asking only you to give your SSN to see how that compares to other households where we ask for all SSNs.
Q.	When will the Census Bureau decide whether or not to request the SSN on their census forms?
A.	It is difficult to say when this decision will be made, but it might be as soon as 2005.  There are other factors that will be considered in addition to the results of this test.  For example, the Census Bureau will also ask for advice from Congress, external advisory groups, other Federal agencies, and the Office of Management and Budget in making this decision.