[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 69 (Thursday, May 13, 1999)]
[House]
[Page H3152]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              CENSUS 2000

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from California, Mr. Martinez, is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. MARTINEZ. Mr. Speaker, I have heard the debate on Census 2000, 
and cannot help but come to one conclusion--this is simply a matter of 
common sense. It is common sense that we should not except counting our 
population from the advancements that have improved every aspect of our 
national life, from communicating with each other, to growing our food.
  It is not common sense, in the midst of the Internet revolution, to 
even consider horse and buggy methods of census reporting. How can it 
be that 1990 was the first year that census reporting was not improved 
since 1940? Can you think of any other aspect of our daily lives in 
which that was the case? That innovation and improvement ceased? That 
we have actually grown worse?
  What makes all this especially galling is that innovation in this 
field already exists. Just ask those who know best how to conduct this 
effort--the Census Bureau. These trained professionals have alerted us 
to improved technology that is faster, cheaper, and more accurate--
statistical sampling. We must use whatever method is most effective to 
ensure that all Americans are counted. The Census Bureau tells us that 
this is sampling.
  It is not common sense for Congress to instruct a bureau to avoid 
programs proven so effective. This is not a political battleground--
this is a means of counting our population. We must use the best 
available means to do that. This is simply a matter of common sense.

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