Keys to Understanding the Census Or just about any survey. 1.Content 2.Products 3.Geography Why Geography is Important Katy Rossiter, Geographer, US Census Bureau Geography is at the heart of taking a census. The U.S. Census Bureau is tasked with counting everyone in the United States once every ten years, but we do not just count people; we count people where they live. 4 Metropolitan Areas, 1999 5 Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Areas, 2003 Hierarchy of Census Geographic Entities 11 Census Geographic Concepts Statistical Areas Examples: Census county divisions Census designated places Census tracts Metropolitan and micropolitan statistical areas Urban areas Public Use Microdata Areas Traffic Analysis Zones Census Geography and AFF2 Geography may be the most improved area of the new AFF. 18 Census Geographic Concepts Legal/Administrative Areas Examples: States Counties Minor civil divisions Incorporated places Congressional districts Legislative areas School districts 21 County Subdivisions Census county divisions (CCDs) CCDs exist where: There are no legally established MCDs. The legally established MCDs do not have governmental or administrative purposes. The boundaries of the MCDs change frequently. The MCDs are not generally known to the public. Census county divisions (CCDs) AlabamaHawaiiOregon ArizonaIdahoSouth Carolina CaliforniaKentuckyTexas ColoradoMontanaUtah DelawareNevadaWashington FloridaNew MexicoWyoming GeorgiaOklahoma Minor civil divisions (MCDs) are the primary governmental or administrative divisions of a county in many states (parishes in Louisiana) and the county equivalents in Puerto Rico and the Island Areas. Minor civil divisions (MCDs) ArkansasMichiganOhio ConnecticutMinnesotaPennsylvania IllinoisMississippiRhode Island IndianaMissouriSouth Dakota IowaNebraskaTennessee KansasNew HampshireVermont LouisianaNew JerseyVirginia MaineNew YorkWest Virginia MarylandNorth CarolinaWisconsin MassachusettsNorth Dakota * Tennessee, a CCD state in 2000, reverted to a MCD state in 2008 In nine statesMaine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, and Wisconsinall incorporated places are independent places Minor civil divisions (MCDs) The MCDs in 12 states (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Wisconsin) also serve as general-purpose local governments that can perform the same governmental functions as incorporated places. The Census Bureau presents data for these MCDs in all data products for which place data are provided Minor civil divisions (MCDs) The Usual Suspects Wisconsin Dane County Madison MSA Madison, WI Urban Area Place: Madison City Blocks Census Tracts Block Groups 29 Places Incorporated Places Legally bounded entity Referred to as cities, boroughs, towns, or villages, depending on the state Census Designated Places (CDPs) Statistical entity Created to present census data for an area with a concentration of population, housing, and commercial structures that is identifiable by name, but not within an incorporated place Example: Columbia, MD; Paradise, NV Using AFF2 to select Geographies Mississippi House Districts partially in Lafayette County