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Economic Census Coverage

Economic Census coverage is virtually economy-wide. It includes businesses that produce 84 percent of all U.S. goods and services. These business activities take place at some 23 million separate locations, and in more than 50,000 localities, nationwide.

To conduct the Economic Census, the Census Bureau obtains information about each of these businesses every 5 years, summarizes it by kind of business and geographic area, and publishes more than 1,700 printed and electronic data products.

Coverage Framework

To conduct the Economic Census, the Census Bureau needs a complete and consistent framework to describe (classify) each covered business. A framework is needed so that information requests can be adapted for different kinds of business, businesses that are similar but in different locations can be treated comparably, and Economic Census statistics can be used with other business statistics.

The framework used to classify businesses in the Economic Census is the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS). NAICS is used for official business statistics in the United States, Canada and Mexico. It provides over 1,100 detailed (industry) classifications that can describe any economic activity, and a hierarchy of classification groups that aggregate detailed classifications into 20 broad business groups (sectors).

Related Programs

In addition to providing virtually complete and comparable U.S. business statistics, the Economic Census includes other related and integral 5-year data collections. These programs supplement basic Economic Census statistics on topics or for areas of special interest. These census-related programs are listed and summarized below.

• Censuses of Puerto Rico, and the Island Areas (U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands, and American Samoa) are separate and complete 5-year censuses of each island economy. They provide island-wide statistics on traditional, emerging and changing economic activities.
  
  
• The Vehicle Inventory and Use Survey covers selected truck and other vehicle owners, and provides information about truck characteristics and uses. Specialized data products provide detail on changing fleet and use characteristics to augment economy-wide Economic Census statistics.
  
  
• The Survey of Business Owners covers selected minority and nonminority business owners, and obtains information about owner characteristics, business acquisition and financing methods. Specialized data products provide useful supplement to economy-wide Economic Census statistics.
  
  
• The Business Expenses Survey (BES) compiles national-level data on detailed operating expenses by kind of business, such as labor costs, depreciation, rent, utilities, and purchased services. In addition to wholesale, retail, and service businesses covered in the survey, the BES publication on the Internet also presents expenses data for manufacturing, mining, construction, and communications industries.
  
  
• The Commodity Flow Survey (CFS) is a joint effort by the Census Bureau and the Bureau of Transportation Statistics. This survey produces data on the movement of goods in the United States. Data from the CFS are used by public policy analysts and for transportation planning and decision-making to assess the demand for transportation facilities and services, energy use, and safety risk and environmental concerns.

Business Classification

Classifying businesses for the Economic Census reflects three considerations--what are their locations (establishments), what is the primary activity at each location, and what is the industry classification of its primary activity? NAICS defines business "activity" in terms of the processes used to produce goods or services at each business location.

To conduct the Economic Census, the Census Bureau uses NAICS industry classifications to organize data collection, process information and design data products. Census forms are identified using NAICS classifications, quality checks include comparability of similar activities, and products feature similar and related industry detail.