ATLANTA REGIONAL OFFICE
U.S. CENSUS BUREAU
Mr. James F. Holmes, Director
101 Marietta St., NW, Ste 3200
Atlanta, GA 30303-2700                                           CB03-R.01
Telephone: 404-730-3832                              For Immediate Release


              Census Bureau Survey Gauges Level of Financial Support 
                          and Other Measures of Well Being

  A survey beginning in June will measure whether the amount of financial
assistance people provide to members of another household has changed in
recent years. Field representatives of the Commerce Department's Census
Bureau will visit 37,500 households during the Survey of Income and
Program Participation (SIPP).

  "It is important that those selected participate in the SIPP because
results from this survey enable policy-makers to address a multitude of
critical issues," said James F. Holmes, director of the Census Bureau's
Atlanta regional office. "Among these critical issues is the prevalence of
people with lapses in health insurance coverage; the characteristics of
people with disabilities; the presence of provisions for health-care costs
in child support agreements; and whether more people enter or exit poverty
during a given year."
                                             
  The survey also tracks changes in the type of work people perform,
whether they are actively looking for work and their educational level.
Respondents also may be asked about other topics such as how they finance
their own or their children's college education, retirement and pension
plan coverage, child-care arrangements, payments made for adults living in
another household or an institution (such as an elderly parent in a
nursing home) and fertility history. Since SIPP is designed to measure
change over time, many selected households will remain in the survey
through 2003.

  By law, the Census Bureau keeps all information about survey respondents
and their households confidential. Households selected for the survey will
receive a letter from Census Bureau Director Louis Kincannon. The field
representatives who conduct initial interviews carry official photo
identification cards. Some follow-up interviews may be conducted by
telephone.


June 2003

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