2020 Census
The Census Bureau faces challenges as it works to ensure that the 2020 Census is secure from cyber threats, efficient, accurate, and completed on schedule.
Overview
The 2020 Census is likely to be the most expensive in U.S. history—it is projected to cost over $15 billion. Its success will depend on how well the Census Bureau manages upcoming peak operations in the midst of the COVID-19 virus that has spread across the country; recruits and hires its workforce; develops, tests, and secures its IT systems; and ensures participation by developing community partnerships, combating disinformation, and protecting the privacy of data. The Census Bureau is working on these activities, but faces significant challenges that could hurt the quality, cost, schedule, and security of the count. The 2020 Census is on our High Risk list.
The Census Bureau is required by the Constitution to conduct a decennial census of the U.S. population. Census data is used to apportion seats in the House of Representatives, redraw congressional districts, and allocate federal funds. This data also provides a social, demographic, and economic profile of the nation to guide policy decisions at each level of government.
Census Enumerator
The Census Bureau began its 2020 count of the U.S. population by counting its first residents in Toksook Bay, Alaska, in January 2020. By December 31, it must deliver the apportionment counts to the President. (Census Day for the 2020 Census is April 1—i.e., the Census Bureau wants to know where you live as of April 1.)
Related Key Issue Pages
Learn more about specific issue areas in our related key issue pages.
GAO Contacts
Related Reports
2020 Census: The Bureau Concluded Field Work but Uncertainty about Data Quality, Accuracy, and Protection Remains
GAO-21-206R,
Dec 9, 2020
2020 Census: Census Bureau Needs to Ensure Transparency over Data Quality
GAO-21-262T,
Dec 3, 2020
2020 Census: Census Bureau Needs to Assess Data Quality Concerns Stemming from Recent Design Changes
GAO-21-142,
Dec 3, 2020
2020 Census: Key Areas for Attention Raised by Compressed Timeframes
GAO-20-720T,
Sep 10, 2020
2020 Census: Recent Decision to Compress Census Timeframes Poses Additional Risks to an Accurate Count
GAO-20-671R,
Aug 27, 2020
2020 Census: COVID-19 Presents Delays and Risks to Census Count
GAO-20-551R,
Jun 9, 2020
2020 Census: Update on the Census Bureau's Implementation of Partnership and Outreach Activities
GAO-20-496,
May 13, 2020
2020 Census: Bureau Generally Followed Its Plan for In-Field Address Canvassing
GAO-20-415,
Mar 12, 2020
2020 Census: Initial Enumeration Underway but Readiness for Upcoming Operations Is Mixed
GAO-20-368R,
Feb 12, 2020
2020 Census: Operations Are Underway with Challenges Remaining
GAO-20-367T,
Feb 12, 2020
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Blog Post
Census Operations During COVID-19
Wednesday, April 1, 2020
April 1st is Census Day—an important marker for reporting where you live as of April 1, 2020, for the…
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Our staff are in the field this week observing the Census Bureau’s last complete test of operations…
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The Census Bureau gets just one chance each decade to count the country’s population—and this week…
