[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 165 (Tuesday, December 14, 2010)]
[House]
[Pages H8311-H8318]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
CENSUS OVERSIGHT EFFICIENCY AND MANAGEMENT REFORM ACT OF 2010
Mrs. MALONEY. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (S. 3167) to amend title 13 of the United States Code to provide
for a 5-year term of office for the Director of the Census and to
provide for the authority and duties of the Director and Deputy
Director of the Census, and for other purposes.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
S. 3167
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Census Oversight Efficiency
and Management Reform Act of 2010''.
SEC. 2. AUTHORITY AND DUTIES OF DIRECTOR AND DEPUTY DIRECTOR
OF THE CENSUS.
(a) In General.--Section 21 of the title 13, United States
Code, is amended to read as follows:
``Sec. 21. Director of the Census; Deputy Director of the
Census; authority and duties
``(a) Definitions.--As used in this section--
``(1) `Director' means the Director of the Census;
``(2) `Deputy Director' means the Deputy Director of the
Census; and
``(3) `function' includes any duty, obligation, power,
authority, responsibility, right, privilege, activity, or
program.
``(b) Director of the Census.--
``(1) Appointment.--
``(A) In general.--The Bureau shall be headed by a Director
of the Census, appointed by the President, by and with the
advice and consent of the Senate.
``(B) Qualifications.--Such appointment shall be made from
individuals who have a demonstrated ability in managing large
organizations and experience in the collection, analysis, and
use of statistical data.
``(2) General authority and duties.--
``(A) In general.--The Director shall report directly to
the Secretary without being required to report through any
other official of the Department of Commerce.
``(B) Duties.--The Director shall perform such duties as
may be imposed upon the Director by law, regulation, or
orders of the Secretary.
``(C) Independence of director.--No officer or agency of
the United States shall have any authority to require the
Director to submit legislative recommendations, or testimony,
or comments for review prior to the submission of such
recommendations, testimony, or comments to Congress if such
recommendations, testimony, or comments to Congress include a
statement indicating that the views expressed therein are
those of the Bureau and do not necessarily represent the
views of the President.
``(3) Term of office.--
``(A) In general.--The term of office of the Director shall
be 5 years, and shall begin on January 1, 2012, and every
fifth year thereafter. An individual may not serve more than
2 full terms as Director.
``(B) Vacancies.--Any individual appointed to fill a
vacancy in such position, occurring before the expiration of
the term for which such individual's predecessor was
appointed, shall be appointed for the remainder of that term.
The Director may serve after the end of the Director's term
until reappointed or until a successor has been appointed,
but in no event longer than 1 year after the end of such
term.
``(C) Removal.--An individual serving as Director may be
removed from office by the President. The President shall
communicate in writing the reasons for any such removal to
both Houses of Congress not later than 60 days before the
removal.
``(4) Functions.--The Director shall be responsible for the
exercise of all powers and the discharge of all duties of the
Bureau, and shall have authority and control over all
personnel and activities thereof.
``(5) Organization.--The Director may establish, alter,
consolidate, or discontinue such organizational units or
components within the Bureau as the Director considers
necessary or appropriate, except that this paragraph shall
not apply with respect to any unit or component provided for
by law.
``(6) Advisory committees.--
``(A) Advisory committees generally.--
``(i) Authority to establish.--The Director may establish
such advisory committees as the Director considers
appropriate to provide advice with respect to any function of
the Director.
``(ii) Compensation and expenses.--Members of any advisory
committee established under clause (i) shall serve without
compensation, but shall be entitled to transportation
expenses and per diem in lieu of subsistence in accordance
with section 5703 of title 5.
``(B) Technology advisory committee.--
``(i) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date
of the enactment of the Census Oversight Efficiency and
Management Reform Act of 2010, the Director shall establish a
technology advisory committee under subparagraph (A).
``(ii) Membership.--Members of the technology advisory
committee shall be selected from the public, private, and
academic sectors from among those who have experience in
technologies and services relevant to the planning and
execution of the census.
``(iii) Duties.--The technology advisory committee shall
make recommendations to the Director and publish reports on
the use of commercially available technologies and services
to improve efficiencies and manage costs in the
implementation of the census and census-related activities,
including pilot projects.
``(7) Regulations.--The Director may, in consultation with
the Secretary, prescribe such rules and regulations as the
Director considers necessary or appropriate to carry out the
functions of the Director.
``(8) Delegations, etc.--The Director may assign duties,
and delegate, or authorize successive redelegations of,
authority to act and to render decisions, to such officers
and employees of the Bureau as the Director may find
necessary. Within the limitations of such assignments,
delegations, or redelegations, all official acts and
decisions of such officers and employees shall have the same
force and effect as though performed or rendered by the
Director. An assignment, delegation, or redelegation under
this paragraph may not take effect before the date on which
notice of such assignment, delegation, or redelegation (as
the case may be) is published in the Federal Register.
``(9) Other authorities.--
``(A) Personnel.--Subject to sections 23 and 24, but
notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Director, in
carrying out the functions of the Director or the Bureau, may
use the services of officers and other personnel in other
Federal agencies, including personnel of the Armed Forces,
with the consent of the head of the agency concerned.
``(B) Voluntary services.--Notwithstanding section 1342 of
title 31, or any other provision of law, the Director may
accept
[[Page H8312]]
and use voluntary and uncompensated services.
``(c) Deputy Director.--
``(1) In general.--There shall be in the Bureau a Deputy
Director of the Census, who shall be appointed by and serve
at the pleasure of the Director. The position of Deputy
Director shall be a career reserved position within the
meaning of section 3132(a)(8) of title 5.
``(2) Functions.--The Deputy Director shall perform such
functions as the Director shall designate.
``(3) Temporary authority to perform functions of
director.--The provisions of sections 3345 through 3349d of
title 5 shall apply with respect to the office of Director.
The first assistant to the office of Director is the Deputy
Director for purposes of applying such provisions.''.
(b) Transition Rules.--
(1) Appointment of initial director.--The initial Director
of the Bureau of the Census shall be appointed in accordance
with the provisions of section 21(b) of title 13, United
States Code, as amended by subsection (a).
(2) Interim role of current director of the census after
date of enactment.--If, as of January 1, 2012, the initial
Director of the Bureau of the Census has not taken office,
the officer serving on December 31, 2011, as Director of the
Census (or Acting Director of the Census, if applicable) in
the Department of Commerce--
(A) shall serve as the Director of the Bureau of the
Census;
(B) shall assume the powers and duties of such Director,
until the initial Director has taken office; and
(C) shall report directly to the Secretary of Commerce.
(c) Clerical Amendment.--The item relating to section 21 in
the table of sections for chapter 1 of title 13, United
States Code, is amended to read as follows:
``21. Director of the Census; Deputy Director of the Census; authority
and duties.''.
(d) Technical and Conforming Amendments.--Not later than
January 1, 2011, the Secretary of Commerce, in consultation
with the Director of the Census, shall submit to each House
of the Congress draft legislation containing any technical
and conforming amendments to title 13, United States Code,
and any other provisions which may be necessary to carry out
the purposes of this Act.
SEC. 3. INTERNET RESPONSE OPTION.
Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of
this Act, the Director of the Census, shall provide a plan to
Congress on how the Bureau of the Census will test, develop,
and implement an Internet response option for the 2020 Census
and the American Community Survey. The plan shall include a
description of how and when feasibility will be tested, the
stakeholders to be consulted, when and what data will be
collected, and how data will be protected.
SEC. 4. ANNUAL REPORTS.
(a) In General.--Subchapter I of chapter 1 of title 13,
United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the
following new section:
``Sec. 17. Annual reports
``(a) Not later than the date of the submission of the
President's budget request for a fiscal year under section
1105 of title 31, the Director of the Census shall submit to
the appropriate congressional committees a comprehensive
status report on the next decennial census, beginning with
the 2020 decennial census. Each report shall include the
following information:
``(1) A description of the Bureau's performance goals for
each significant decennial operation, including the
performance measures for each operation.
``(2) An assessment of the risks associated with each
significant decennial operation, including the
interrelationships between the operations and a description
of relevant mitigation plans.
``(3) Detailed milestone estimates for each significant
decennial operation, including estimated testing dates, and
justification for any changes to milestone estimates.
``(4) Updated cost estimates for the life cycle of the
decennial census, including sensitivity analysis and an
explanation of significant changes in the assumptions on
which such cost estimates are based.
``(5) A detailed description of all contracts over
$50,000,000 entered into for each significant decennial
operation, including--
``(A) any changes made to the contracts from the previous
fiscal year;
``(B) justification for the changes; and
``(C) actions planned or taken to control growth in such
contract costs.
``(b) For purposes of this section, the term `significant
decennial operation' includes any program or information
technology related to--
``(1) the development of an accurate address list;
``(2) data collection, processing, and dissemination;
``(3) recruiting and hiring of temporary employees;
``(4) marketing, communications, and partnerships; and
``(5) coverage measurement.''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections for chapter
1 of title 13, United States Code, is amended by inserting
after the item relating to section 16 the following new item:
``17. Annual reports.''.
(c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section
shall apply to budget requests for fiscal years beginning
after September 30, 2010.
{time} 1530
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from
New York (Mrs. Maloney) and the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr.
McHenry) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from New York.
General Leave
Mrs. MALONEY. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members
may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their
remarks.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentlewoman from New York?
There was no objection.
Mrs. MALONEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of the Census Oversight
Efficiency and Management Reform Act, important bipartisan legislation
that I introduced with my colleague, Congressman Charles Dent. Senators
Carper and Coburn in a bipartisan way introduced the companion bill in
the Senate that recently passed the Senate unanimously, 100 votes in
favor, and is now before us today.
This is a strong bill with no cost to American taxpayers, and it will
help ensure a better census for 2020 and beyond. It is bipartisan, it
is good government, it is scientific independence, and it is good
management. This important reform ensures consistent, professional
management of this major scientific agency and minimizes political
interference of its vital constitutional mission.
I am grateful to Senators Carper and Coburn for their bipartisan
leadership on this issue in the Senate. Now we in the House must commit
to forward thinking to avoid problems in the run-up to the 2020 census.
Our country owes a great deal to James Madison and Thomas Jefferson
for handing down the innovation of a census whose goal is to ensure
fair political representation. If we want to attract future census
leaders in their mold, we must give the Census Bureau the professional
independence called for in this bill.
This bill is a way of saying to the American public that we honor the
intent of the Framers and we acknowledge the incredible participation
of the public earlier this year to make the 2010 census a success.
Madam Speaker, all seven former living census directors, who served
Republican and Democratic Presidents, support this bill: Vincent P.
Barabba, who worked for Presidents Nixon, Ford and Carter; John G.
Keane who worked for President Reagan; Barbara Everitt Bryant who
worked for the first President Bush; and Martha Farnsworth Riche and
Kenneth Prewitt who worked for President Clinton; and Charles Louis
Kincannon and Steven H. Murdock who worked for George W. Bush, the
former directors support an advocacy on behalf of this bill; and they
testified at congressional hearings, met with congressional leaders on
this bill, and their participation underscores the importance of the
reforms needed to ensure that the Census Bureau is able to best perform
its constitutional mandate of providing a fair and accurate census
count.
I worked with Senators Carper and Coburn and my colleague,
Congressman Dent, to develop this bill based on the experiences of the
seven former bipartisan census directors and what they thought we need
to overcome the challenges which plagued each of the last four censuses
in 1980, 1990, 2000, and in the planning for the 2010 census. This bill
enjoys bipartisan support across scientific, social, and political
groups. They support it in a bipartisan way, from the leadership
conference on civil rights representing over 200 civil rights
organizations to NATEO, the National Association of Latino Elected
Officials, to a host of scientific organizations, including the
American Statistical Association. With Senator Carper and Senator
Coburn's leadership in the Senate, it passed unanimously.
What this bill would do is give the director the independence to
report directly to the Secretary of Commerce. It would make the
director of the Census Bureau a Presidential term appointment of 5
years with the 10-year census cycle split into two 5-year phases,
planning and implementation.
[[Page H8313]]
Further, it strengthens overall transparency and oversight of census
management which is a very good thing. This legislation would allow the
Census director to report to Congress and the Commerce Secretary
directly on the needs at Census to help prevent challenges such as the
failure to develop handheld computer technology for the 2010 census,
and to have the power to say to Congress when he or she disagrees with
an administration position on the census.
After nearly 2 years of consideration and debate on the ideas in this
bill in both the House and the Senate, and now at the 11th hour and
59th minute, after the Senate approves it unanimously, the Commerce
Department last night sent over their concerns. The Secretary supports
the 5-year term for the Census director, but seeks some changes to the
bill's requirements that the Census director be required to respond
completely to Congress in testimony and to the requirement that the
highest levels of management at Commerce take responsibility for
oversight of Census management.
Of course, this is precisely what we in Congress seek to change.
These two provisions are about accountability and transparency. We in
Congress are insisting that we finally end the musical chairs of Census
management we witnessed over the past several decades and that when we
ask questions, we actually get the answers. We must allow the career
professionals at the Census to be able to tell us what is on their
mind.
This bill will remove barriers that prevented Congress from knowing
the full story and planning for 2010, which put the census at risk
before Congress acted to fully fund a new design. I am confident this
bill will ensure Congress will get the information we deserve, to get
us a fairly and fully funded census no matter who occupies the White
House in 2020.
There are some who may not like this bill or have additional ideas
for reform, but I deeply believe we can build on this legislation and
continue to work together in a bipartisan way to ensure a fair and
accurate full census count. There is no reason we cannot move forward
on this issue today and enact these commonsense reforms now.
The next census will occur during a Presidential election, which runs
the risk of disrupting the operation. We must act now to ensure we can
get a professional manager like Dr. Groves at Census long before 2020.
We need to bring focus, transparency, and accountability to the process
of planning and implementing the census. There is too much at stake for
our constitutional government, for the fair description of over $400
billion in Federal funds, and for the basic trust in our statistical
system to do anything less than enact this bill. With the Senate
action, now is the time to get this bill to the President. We can show
the American public Congress can work together in a bipartisan fashion
to reform government and get results.
Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
{time} 1540
Mr. McHENRY. Madam Speaker, today I rise in strong opposition to S.
3167. In the last 2 years, I have served as the ranking member of the
Census Subcommittee here in the House. We have had no legislative
hearing, no markup, no substantive discussions about the content of
this legislation. And here we are at the last hour of a lame duck
Congress and they are trying to pass a piece of legislation that hasn't
had an honest-to-goodness legislative hearing or a markup.
Well, I guess that is what we have seen over the last 24 months out
of this Congress, a disregard for the legislative process. I don't
think it is responsible for us to pass a major piece of legislation
like this, and it does have a major impact. I certainly appreciate my
colleague submitting ideas such as this to improve the census, but I
don't think this is the right approach.
To that end, I would like to submit for the Record a letter from the
Department of Commerce signed by Secretary Gary Locke dated December 13
stating his opposition to components of this legislation.
I think it is important that we should not reward the Census Bureau
for a repeated history of cost overruns and mishaps. These suggest that
the Bureau needs more, not less, oversight.
S. 3167 would grant greater autonomy to the Census Director. The bill
would have the director bypass the Commerce Under Secretary for
Economics and Statistics Administration, ESA, in favor of a direct
report to the Commerce Secretary. Each Commerce Secretary has opposed
this proposal. In fact, the current Commerce Secretary has 16 direct
reports, so this further puts in place a process that I don't think is
sustainable for this Commerce Secretary or future Commerce Secretaries.
Yesterday, the current Commerce Secretary, Gary Locke, wrote a letter
to the Congress stating, The department strongly opposes the provisions
of this bill enabling the Census Bureau Director to submit legislative
recommendations or testimony to Congress without supervisory review.
This letter also expresses concern about the provisions of the bill
that would require the Director of the Census Bureau to report directly
to the Secretary of Commerce.
With regard to these views, it is worth pointing out that it is the
Commerce Secretary himself who is granted the statutory authority to
carry out the decennial census. The Census Bureau will have less
oversight if it reports directly to the Secretary, as I stated before,
because the Secretary has 16 direct reports.
The Census Director currently reports to the Under Secretary for
Economic Affairs, who heads ESA. It is the role of ESA to coordinate
economic data, some of which is provided to the Census Bureau's
Economic Directorate. Granting the Census Bureau autonomy from ESA will
hinder the coordination of economic data, and certainly we are a world
leader in terms of our regard for economic data.
The Census Bureau wants to operate as independently as possible. That
certainly is understandable. But it is also important to recognize a
history of cost overruns the Bureau has had under Democrat and
Republican administrations, and the GAO has put the 2010 census on its
high risk list due to concerns of mismanagement within the Census
Bureau. Again, that was a bipartisan problem. Congress should not
reward fiscal irresponsibility by granting additional autonomy.
Madam Speaker, this bill does not establish accountability. It does
not require the Census Bureau to have an inspector general, which I
think would be proper. It does not establish fiscal constraints. It
does not even provide guidelines on the questions and surveys that it
can ask the American people. And it doesn't require the Bureau to
produce alternative methods of procuring statistical data, such as
partnerships with universities and the private sector, which I think is
necessary and proper in this time that we are in.
Madam Speaker, consideration of this bill is premature. The 2010
census results will be released one week from today. The Bureau just
announced that yesterday. But crucial information concerning the
statistical confidence level of the data will not be released until
early next year.
Again, this bill is premature. I certainly appreciate my colleague's
interest in this, but I think it is better handled in the next
Congress, where we can actually have an honest-to-goodness, I don't
know, legislative hearing perhaps, maybe even a markup of a bill, and
actually get some input from both sides. Just because the Senate passed
it doesn't mean the House should rubberstamp it, by any means. But I do
think we should have serious consideration of this bill and do it under
the light of day, not at the 11th hour of a dying Congress.
So, that is my view, and I think that is the view of many colleagues
on my side of the aisle as well.
U.S. Department of Commerce,
The Secretary of Commerce,
Washington, DC, December 13, 2010.
Hon. Edolphus Towns,
Chairman, Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, U.S.
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: This letter provides the views of the
Department of Commerce on the Senate-passed version of S.
3167, the ``Census Oversight Efficiency and Management Reform
Act of 2010.'' Your continued work on behalf of the Census
Bureau is appreciated, and we look forward to working with
you to make it an even better agency.
The Department of Commerce's goal is to ensure that the
Census Bureau functions as a transparent, cost-effective, and
competent
[[Page H8314]]
organization that is successful in planning and implementing
its programs, while maintaining its statistical integrity and
freedom from political interference. Therefore, we consider
it crucial that we convey the following assessment of several
provisions of the legislation as passed by the Senate.
The Department supports the provision of the bill that
would create a five-year fixed term for the Census Bureau
Director beginning on January 1, 2012. A five-year term
(limiting an individual to two full terms) for the Census
Bureau Director helps avoid political interference by giving
the Director more stability across election cycles. This
stability conforms to well-accepted principles and practices
of independence for federal statistical agencies and is the
current status of the appointment of the Commissioner of the
Bureau of Labor Statistics and of the National Center for
Education Studies. It may mitigate the risk of having long
periods after elections where there is no Senate-confirmed
Director, particularly in those years leading up to a
decennial census. At the close of the 2010 Census, five of
the last seven decennial censuses will have been led by a
Director appointed in the year ending in 9 or 0, leading to
management uncertainty at critical times during the decennial
census cycle.
However, the Department strongly opposes the provision of
the bill that could be construed to enable the Census Bureau
Director to submit legislative recommendations or testimony
or comments to Congress without supervisory review, and has
concerns about the provision of the bill that would require
the Director of the Census Bureau to report directly to the
Secretary of Commerce.
With respect to the proposal concerning the submission of
the Census Bureau Director's views directly to Congress where
the views include a statement indicating that they do not
represent the views of the President, the Department of
Justice advises us that in order to avoid infringing on the
powers reserved to the President under the Recommendations
Clause of the Constitution, the Executive Branch would
construe the word ``officer,'' in that provision, not to
include the President, thereby allowing him to direct the
review of the Director's legislative recommendations,
testimony and comments prior to their submission to Congress.
Even as so construed, however, the proposal would overreach
into Executive Branch prerogatives by bypassing normal
communication and decision-making channels within the
Executive Branch, and therefore we oppose it. There are
always a variety of data policy issues under discussion that
are often the subject of testimony or that emerge as
legislative recommendations out of a broader Executive Branch
decision-making process. It is a prerogative of the Executive
Branch to speak with one voice on such issues. The ability to
speak with one voice on policy matters does not interfere
with statistical agencies' ability to provide unfiltered
statistical data. A key principle of government statistical
agencies worldwide is that the credibility of the information
they provide depends on the public perceiving these data as
independent of political intervention.
In addition to this provision, we have concerns about the
provision in the bill that would require the Director of the
Census Bureau to report directly to the Secretary of
Commerce. This provision unnecessarily limits the Secretary's
discretion to establish an organizational structure that best
suits the needs of the Department.
The Director of the Census Bureau has full access and
accountability to the Secretary of Commerce. However, there
are sound reasons for maintaining the current reporting
relationship of the Census Bureau to the Economics and
Statistics Administration (ESA). The Under Secretary for
Economic Affairs, who heads ESA, serves as the principal
adviser to the Secretary on economic issues and also oversees
the activities of the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA). The
Under Secretary is responsible for the analysis and
development of policies on economic and statistical issues.
One of ESA's primary roles is to interpret the mission of
statistical agencies to senior officials within the
Department, ensuring that the Office of Management and Budget
directives of independence and freedom from political
influences are maintained.
Like you, I believe that independence from partisan
political interference and effective management oversight and
accountability of the Census Bureau is a top priority. I
encourage you to take into consideration our concerns and
accept our recommendations on this important issue. We are
always looking for ways to improve the Census Bureau and look
forward to continuing to work with you on this and other
important matters.
The Department appreciates the opportunity to present these
views on the Senate-passed version of S. 3167. The Office of
Management and Budget has advised that there is no objection
to the transmittal of these views from the standpoint of the
Administration's program.
If you have any questions, please contact me or April Boyd,
Assistant Secretary for Legislative and Intergovernmental
Affairs, at (202) 482-3663.
Sincerely,
Gary Locke.
Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mrs. MALONEY. Madam Speaker, I appreciate the gentleman's statement.
As he knows, this is an issue that many of us in a bipartisan way have
worked on for many years.
As you know, my original bill did create an independent Office of the
Census, which by definition would have had an IG. But at the protest of
some of my colleagues and some in the Commerce Department, we kept it
in the Commerce Department, but with independence, so that the Census
Director could speak honesty and truth. I don't think any of us want to
keep someone from testifying in an honest and truthful way and having
their words possibly changed by someone else.
I would like to place in the Record a series of editorials in support
of this bill, from USA Today and many others. There have been hearings
on it, including one in the Joint Economic Committee, where seven
former Census Directors in a bipartisan way testified in support of
this bill.
I would also like to place in the Record the testimony of Dr. Bryant,
a Republican Census Director, and other Republican Census Directors,
along with Dr. Pruitt and others, their testimony on how we can get a
more reliable, transparent, usable census for accuracy for the American
people.
I would now like to yield such time as she may consume to a very
outstanding member of the committee, the gentlewoman from the District
of Columbia (Ms. Norton).
Ms. NORTON. Madam Speaker, I want to thank the gentlewoman from New
York (Mrs. Maloney) for her initiative in seeing a problem and seeing
to it that we deal with this problem while we have got a hand on it.
Actually, her bill is very timely. The census is about to come out
for the past 10 years, on December 30, and I can tell you, Madam
Speaker, as a member of the subcommittee with jurisdiction over the
census that the census has been controversial throughout my service in
the Congress. Time and again we have seen these controversies before
this committee. But the census should never be controversial. Neither
should a bill that fixes much of what is wrong with the census in a
systemic way, and handily passed the other body, which doesn't pass
much these days.
When it comes to the constitutionally required census, there really
is only one way to act, and that is preventatively. I just want to say
to the House that the handwriting is on the proverbial congressional
wall. We were shocked that only a couple of years ago there was a
serious and very expensive design change in the upcoming census so
close to when the new census was coming into operation.
Now, somebody should have seen this coming, certainly before our
committee found it out and was left with no choice. Remember, this is
the constitutionally required census. Thus, there was no choice but to
accept the added cost. If my friends on the other side are interested
in reducing costs, the way to begin is with this bill, which, it seems
to me, ought to be a consensus bill right now.
Crisis has been a part of every census in modern times, yet most of
what Congress does, if you think about it, is not required; our
appropriations bills, the defense bills, but the census is
constitutionally required. It should not be buried. The census and
those who are responsible for the census should not be buried in an
agency bureaucracy. Direct reporting to the Secretary, not taking the
Census Bureau from the jurisdiction of the Secretary, but direct
reporting to the Secretary of Commerce and complete independence with a
5-year term, is what this bill is after.
{time} 1550
The bill also contains urgently needed management reforms. It should
be a top priority of this Congress, as it faces a new census, to go
home and be able to tell people, We have acted this time ahead of the
next census to make that census less controversial than censuses since
the past decennial census has been in the lifetime of all of us. The
care that has gone into this bill before our subcommittee and committee
should be enough to say to the Congress this afternoon, The time has
come to fix the decennial census once and for all.
Mr. McHENRY. I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, again, I rise in opposition to this legislation. I
certainly appreciate the sponsor's thoughtfulness in creating it, but I
think there
[[Page H8315]]
are a number of provisions that do cause problems. And I agree with the
Democrat Secretary of Commerce, the current Secretary of Commerce, with
his opposition to large provisions within it.
In order to thoughtfully legislate on the decennial census, I think
we need to have a hearing and I think we need to have a markup, and I
think we can hash this out. And I am willing to work with my colleague
from New York to make that happen in the next Congress, because I do
think she comes from a sincere place with this legislation.
Unfortunately, it is a piece of flawed legislation. I'll give you one
example.
The Census Director will report directly to the Secretary of
Commerce. Again, that Census Director will be one of 17 individuals
with a direct report to the Secretary of Commerce. However, the
Secretary of Commerce is not able to fire the Census Director. So, if
he or she is a direct report to the Commerce Secretary, shouldn't the
Commerce Secretary have the ability to fire that person if they're
incompetent or inept rather than just letting them serve a 5-year term?
That's one provision within the legislation that I think is
troublesome.
Additionally, as the sponsor mentioned, there is no inspector
general. And, with a multibillion-dollar census, I think it is
important that we have IGs that actually have the power to oversee a
program, and a program that's so large and so expensive.
This census has a $3 billion cost overrun over its life cycle. Now,
the individuals responsible for that weren't held accountable. But that
$3 billion, rather than rewarding the Bureau for having a cost overrun
of that size by giving them independence and autonomy right now, I
think we need to have some thoughtful consideration of how to ensure
that we don't have future cost overruns like that.
With that, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mrs. MALONEY. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
I thank the gentleman for his concern and his thoughtful statements.
If the gentleman is so determined for a markup, there's one bill that
the Republican leadership has told us they must have, and that's the
tax bill. Yet there's been no markup on that tax bill or a hearing on
that tax bill. And there have been hearings and discussions on this. I
have testimony from numerous Republican Census Directors supporting it.
Now, as the gentleman knows--and we changed the bill in response to
the gentleman's concerns and others. We did have it as an independent
agency with an independent IG. We folded it back into Commerce, at your
suggestion and others. And, as you know, the Commerce Department has an
IG. They have their own IG. And if the gentleman in the next Congress
would like to sponsor an amendment to add another IG at Commerce that
looks totally at the Census Bureau, then I would certainly support the
gentleman.
Now, the gentleman has written an op-ed which I found very
interesting, and I appreciate your op-ed that appeared in Politico. You
called for many things in this bill: transparency, independent voice,
accountability. I repeat, because I know cost is an important factor
now, this will cost no additional money to the taxpayer, not one
additional cent. And I would like to join my good friend and colleague
in the spirit of bipartisanship and the dedication of getting an
accurate census for the American people that we pass this bill, and
what the gentleman would like to add to it in the next Congress--and
the gentleman's party is in charge and you will have the votes to add
whatever you would like next year. And I certainly would like to work
with you in a bipartisan way to add the gentleman's concerns, but
there's absolutely no reason not to act on this when seven former
Census Directors have come out strongly for it, including every
Republican Census Director under former President Nixon, under former
President Ford, under former President Reagan, and George Bush 41 and
43, G.W. and his father. So all of their Census Directors have come out
in support of it.
I would also like to place into the Record the National Leadership
Conference on Civil Rights, and they represent 200 different civil
rights organizations, all in support of this bill; the National
Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials, their letter in
support of the bill; the Population Association of America and the
Association of Population Centers, their letter of support for the
bill; the American Association for Public Opinion Research, their
statement in support of the bill; the American Planning Association,
their statement in support of the bill; the American Statistical
Association, who are dedicated to accurate numbers, their strong,
strong support of accuracy in this bill; the Consortium of Social
Science Associations, their support; the Latino Census Network, their
strong support; the Mid-Region Council of Governments, their strong
letter of support; and the National Institute for Latino Policy, their
letter of support; the Southeast Michigan Census Council, their support
of the bill; and the Southern Demographic Association, their support of
the bill.
So, as my good friend and colleague knows, there is strong support
for this bill. Many allege that the Commerce opposition is just a turf
battle. Well, the census is too important for a turf battle. I would
support the gentleman's amendment to have an independent extra IG. If
he wants two IGs on the Bureau, I would support it, or three or four or
five. I would support the gentleman's extra oversight of what the
Census Bureau is doing. But, mainly, we want them to be given the tools
to get the job done. That is what this bill does.
The Leadership Conference,
December 13, 2010.
Hon. Nancy Pelosi,
Speaker, House of Representatives,
Washington, DC.
Hon. John Boehner,
Minority Leader, House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Speaker Pelosi and Leader Boehner: On behalf of The
Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, a coalition
charged by its diverse membership of more than 200 national
organizations to promote and protect the rights of all
persons in the United States, we are writing to express our
strong support for the Census Oversight Efficiency and
Management Reform Act (S. 3167/H.R. 4945). The bill includes
needed reforms that will improve the operations of the
decennial Census and other Census activities, and ensure a
count that does not disproportionally miss any segment of the
population. With Senate passage of the bill by unanimous
consent on December 8, we urge the House to swiftly pass the
Senate-approved bill so that it can reach the President's
desk by the end of the year.
The Census occurs on a constitutionally mandated ten-year
cycle, but Presidential administrations run in four-year
cycles that do not fit well with the complex planning and
preparation timetable for the decennial count. This causes
inevitable development and implementation difficulties due to
a lack of consistency and, often, leadership vacuums. The
bill's proposal to create a five-year term appointment for
the Census Bureau Director is an important change that will
allow the Census Bureau to avoid disruptions caused by
changes in administrations, especially around the period of
the decennial census.
As organizations that work to ensure that hard-to-count
communities are fully included in the Census, we welcome the
greater stability for the leadership of the Census Bureau
that this legislation seeks to provide, which will in turn
minimize disruptions in the Census and allow the Census
Bureau to benefit from improved continuity in its overall
operations. We also believe that the new line of authority
from the Census Director to the Secretary of Commerce will
help allow the Census Bureau to more nimbly address problems
and issues that inevitably arise during the decennial census
and other surveys.
It is critical that the bill be enacted promptly, since
planning for the 2020 decennial census is already underway.
We urge swift passage of the bill.
Sincerely,
Wade Henderson,
President & CEO.
Nancy Zirkin,
Executive Vice President.
____
Partnership Council Members,
December 13, 2010.
Hon. William Lacy Clay,
Chairman, Subcommittee on Information Policy, Census, and
National Archives, House of Representatives, Washington,
DC.
Dear Chairman Clay: On behalf of the National Association
of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO) Educational
Fund, I am writing to express our support for the Census
Oversight Efficiency and Management Reform Act (H.R. 4945).
The NALEO Educational Fund is one of the nation's leading
organizations in the area of Census policy development and
public education, and we are deeply committed to ensuring
that the Census Bureau provides our nation with the most
accurate count possible of its population.
[[Page H8316]]
We believe that H.R. 4945 would provide greater stability
for the leadership of the Census Bureau and its operations by
enhancing the continuity of the Bureau's overall operations.
For example, the bill would establish a fixed five-year term
of office for the Director of the Census Bureau, instead of
the current practice, where the Director is generally
appointed at the beginning of new Presidential
Administrations.
The fixed five-year term established in H.R. 4945 is more
consistent with the constitutionally mandated ten-year cycle
of the Census enumeration, and would enable the Director to
manage operations in a manner that would minimize the
disruptions caused by leadership changes. From our
experiences working with the Census Bureau on its efforts to
reach and enumerate Latinos and other ``hard to count''
communities, we have learned that minor changes in the
operations of the decennial Census can significantly impair
the ability of the Bureau to effectively carry out its
enumeration tasks. Seven former Census Directors, appointed
by Presidents from both political parties, support H.R. 4945
because they believe it would enhance the ability of the
agency to focus on its mission to conduct the Census in a
timely and accurate manner.
We believe that H.R. 4945 takes positive steps toward
providing greater stability for the decennial census and
diminishing operational problems for Census 2020 and the
decennial enumerations that will follow. We look forward to
working on implementation of the legislation so that we
achieve a solution that enables the Census Bureau to perform
its essential function more effectively.
Sincerely,
Arturo Vargas,
Executive Director.
____
December 13, 2010.
Hon. Nancy Pelosi,
Speaker, House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Hon. Edolphus Towns,
Chairman, Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, House
of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Hon. Lacy Clay,
Chairman, Subcommittee on Information Policy, Census and
National Archives, Committee on Oversight and Government
Reform, House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Hon. John Boehner,
Minority Leader, House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Hon. Darrell Issa,
Ranking Member, Committee on Oversight and Government Reform,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Hon. Patrick McHenry,
Ranking Member, Subcommittee on Information Policy, Census
and National Archives, Committee on Oversight and
Government Reform, House of Representatives, Washington,
DC.
Dear Speaker Pelosi, Leader Boehner, Chairman Towns,
Ranking Member Issa, Chairman Clay, and Ranking Member
McHenry: With Senate passage of the ``Census Oversight
Efficiency and Management Reform Act of 2010'' (S. 3167/H.R.
4945) by unanimous consent on December 8, we write to urge
swift bipartisan passage of the Senate-approved bill in order
for it to reach the President's desk by year's end. The bill
represents an unprecedented opportunity to enact reasonable
administrative reforms and grant the Census Bureau Director
new authorities to run the agency more efficiently, openly,
and authoritatively, all at no additional cost to the
taxpayer.
In particular, we support the bill's proposal to create a
five-year Presidential appointment for the Census Director.
This important change would allow the Census Bureau to avoid
disruptions caused by changes in administration, especially
around the period of the decennial census. Enactment of the
legislation in 2012 would mean that, under normal
circumstances, a change in Directors would occur on a
predictable schedule in years two and seven of each decade.
We anticipate that the fixed term will translate to a higher
level of continuity and professional independence in the
Bureau's operations. For example, a fixed term would help
avoid the circumstances in both 1999 and 2009, when the
Census Bureau operated without a Senate-confirmed leader
during final preparations for the decennial census.
We also support the bill's components to strengthen the
director's position by establishing a direct line of
reporting to the Secretary of Commerce, more latitude in
communication with Congress, and generally more authority
over the Census Bureau, including its personnel and
operations. We believe these components will improve the
Census Bureau's ability to respond to requests from Congress
and the wide range of important data users in the public,
private, and nonprofit sectors.
Finally, let us emphasize the importance of enacting this
bill promptly, since planning for the 2020 decennial census
is already underway.
We thank you for your leadership on issues important to
preserving and enhancing the mission of the U.S. Census
Bureau.
American Association for Public Opinion Research; American
Planning Association; American Sociological Association;
American Statistical Association; Arab American Institute
Foundation; Asian American Justice Center; Association of
Academic Survey Research Organizations; Association of
Population Centers; Consortium of Social Science
Associations; Council of Professional Associations on Federal
Statistics; Demos; Japanese American Citizens League; Latino
Census Network; Marketing Research Association; Mid-Region
Council of Governments; Moving Forward Gulf Coast, Inc.;
National Association of Home Builders; National Association
of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO) Educational
Fund; National Education Association; National Institute for
Latino Policy; Nonprofit Voter Engagement Network; OCA;
Population Association of America (PAA); Population Reference
Bureau; Population Resource Center; Prison Policy Initiative;
Project Vote; South Asian Americans Leading Together (SAALT);
Southeast Michigan Census Council; Southern Demographic
Association; and The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human
Rights.
Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. McHENRY. I again yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, just to address my colleague's comments about the
opinion she imputed to me about this legislation and the way she
changed the legislation to more meet with my opinion, those, Madam
Speaker, were not my opinions. We have actually not had discussions
about this legislation, my colleague and I from New York have not. So,
just to be very clear, those opinions were someone else's; not mine.
Additionally, it is kind of interesting to throw in the tax debate
regarding a piece of legislation about the census. I'm not going to
take the bait. It's fine. We'll have a vote on that or we won't have a
vote on that this Congress, depending on what the Speaker thinks. I
certainly understand the concern about not having hearings and not
having markups.
But I would say to my colleague from New York that it is her party
that is in both the House and Senate and had every opportunity to
schedule a hearing on this piece of legislation. They had every
opportunity to schedule a markup on this piece of legislation, and they
didn't. So, clearly, it is a problem not with my party, but it is a
problem with my colleague from New York's party about getting that
scheduled.
{time} 1600
Madam Speaker, I do have serious concerns and, I think, legitimate
concerns. I also understand how many folks operate in Congress: we take
a pledge that we will fix it later, and that ``later'' never happens.
So what I would say to my colleague from New York is that, in the
next Congress, I will be very happy to work with her to pass a
reasonable piece of legislation which, I think, structurally will look
different than this but which will take on some of the concerns that
she has about the Census Bureau.
I am truly concerned about making sure that our statistical agencies
are independent, independent from political influence like this
President tried to have at the beginning of his term in office by
having the Census Director report directly to then-Chief of Staff Rahm
Emanuel. We came out opposed to that. It was my colleagues on the other
side of the aisle who wanted that. We came out opposed to the
statistical manipulation of the outcome of the census, which some in
the other party were very much in favor of. It is true that there are
political disagreements between Republicans and Democrats, but I think
we all want to have a fair and accurate census.
I also want to have a census that is cheaper in the future than it
has been in the past. We have had a cost overrun of $3 billion. As I
would mention to my colleague from New York, the entire budget of the
Department of Commerce is just shy of $9 billion annually. They had a
$3 billion cost overrun within just the Census. That is an enormous
sum, and I think it is worthy of having an Inspector General to make
sure that this doesn't happen again. So that is my concern.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Mrs. MALONEY. I appreciate the gentleman's concerns. We should pass
this bill. Then, in the new Congress, you can add your amendments or
your ideas to the underlying bill. This is a strong bill with no cost
to the American taxpayers, no increased cost; and it will help ensure a
better census for 2010.
As I said, it has very strong bipartisan support, particularly from
the seven living former Census Directors, who served Republican and
Democratic Presidents. They support this bill. They testified before
Congress that
[[Page H8317]]
this bill would make a stronger, more accountable, transparent census.
The former Directors' support and advocacy on behalf of this bill, I
believe, underscores the importance of the reforms needed to ensure
that the Census Bureau is able to best perform its constitutional
mandate of providing a fair and accurate census count.
Again, I want to underscore: How many times have we seen a bill come
over with 100 Senators who are in support of it--totally unanimous?
totally bipartisan?
I am confident that this bill will ensure that Congress will get the
information we need and deserve in order to get us a fair and fully
funded Census which is independent and will respond, no matter who
occupies the White House. In other words, this is a very important
bill, so I urge a strong bipartisan vote in support of it.
S. 3167 Endorsed by seven former Census Directors: Vincent
P. Barabba (1973-1976; 1979-1981), John G. Keane (1984-1989),
Barbara Everitt Bryant (1989-1993), Martha Farnsworth Riche
(1994-1998), Kenneth Prewitt (1998-2001), Charles Louis
Kincannon (2002-2008), and Steven H. Murdock (2008-2009).
S. 3167 Endorsed by: National Leadership Conference on
Civil Rights (LCCR); National Association of Latino Elected
and Appointed Officials (NALEO) Educational Fund; Population
Association of America (PAA) and the Association of
Population Centers (APC); American Association for Public
Opinion Research (AAPOR); American Planning Association;
American Statistical Association (ASA); Arab American
Institute Foundation; Consortium of Social Science
Associations (COSSA); Latino Census Network; Mid-Region
Council of Governments; National Institute for Latino Policy
(NILP); Population Resource Center; Prison Policy Initiative;
Southeast Michigan Census Council (SEMCC) and Southern
Demographic Association (SDA).
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Ms. Chu). The time of the gentlewoman has
expired.
Mr. McHENRY. Madam Speaker, I am sorry my colleague used up her time.
I am going to close by saying that anyone who wants an accountable
Census Bureau will oppose this bill. Instead of saying we want an
independent bureau that is not accountable, I think we are saying we
want an independent bureau that is accountable. That is why I am going
to oppose this bill.
I ask my colleagues--those who want fiscal sanity, those who want
proper oversight of the Census, those who want reasonable legislating,
which actually means we would have a hearing and a markup--to vote
``no'' on this bill.
I would also mention to my colleague from New York that her
legislation we are discussing here today got just about as many votes
as that tax deal that she opposes. So you can take this for all you
want as to what the Senate does, but the census affects every Member of
the House, all of our constituents, our statistical reporting agencies,
and our economic bureaus as well. We want to make sure we get this
legislation right, but it is highly flawed as it is currently
constructed; and it would mean further cost overruns going forward.
With that, I urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' on this legislation.
Mr. DENT. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of S. 3167, the
Census Oversight Efficiency and Management Reform Act.
S. 3167 will provide needed independence and autonomy to the U.S.
Census Bureau.
This bill will ensure a census count that is fair, accurate, and free
from political bias.
I am proud to have consponsored the House version of this bill, H.R.
4945 with Carolyn Maloney of New York.
This bipartisan, good government reform measure passed the Senate by
unanimous consent last week.
Senator Coburn was the lead Senate Republican cosponsor and supported
passage of the bill.
S. 3167 is endorsed by seven former census directors, appointed by
and who served in Republican and Democrat administrations.
S. 3167 will allow the Director of the Census Bureau to give candid
opinions and testimony to Congress and the Commerce Secretary on the
needs of the Bureau.
The Census is a scientific agency, similar to the National Science
Foundation or NASA. Its statistical mission should be unencumbered by
increased political bias and bureaucracy.
These reforms will ensure that Congress receives the most accurate
information on issues facing the census directly from the Bureau and
without interference from political appointees.
S. 3167 is supported by the American Statistical Association, the
American Planning Association, the Council of Professional Associations
on Federal Statistics, the Association of Academic Survey Research
Organizations, and other members of the scientific community.
Accurate census data is needed to properly account for congressional
apportionment and a wide range of government services, including:
Medicare, Social Security, veterans' health services, assistance to
farmers, TANF, community development grants, federal housing
assistance, and road and highway construction.
Making the Census Director a 5-year Presidential term appointment
will prevent Presidential politics from interfering in selection.
The American people expect Congress to improve the efficiency and
accountability of government through common sense bipartisan reforms.
We can do this today through this bill with no cost to the taxpayers.
The Senate passed this legislation unanimously, and I hope the House
will send this bill to the President for signature into law.
Mr. BACA. Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of S. 3167, the
Census Oversight Efficiency and Management Reform Act.
The 2010 Census is complete and results will be made public soon.
However, we must think ahead now for the 2020 Census.
The bill's proposal to create a five-year term appointment for the
Census Bureau Director is an important change that will allow the
Census Bureau to avoid disruptions caused by changes in
administrations, especially around the period of the decennial census.
The accuracy of the Census is tied to advance planning and careful
design, and must be ensured to the best extent possible.
An accurate count means that proportionate amounts of federal dollars
go back home to our Districts, to our schools, to our courthouses. We
must remember that the Census count is not just a number; it affects
the livelihood of all our communities.
Gaps in management and leadership hurt all of us, not just those at
the Census Bureau.
This bill will provide greater stability for the leadership of the
Census Bureau and its operations by enhancing the continuity of the
Bureau's overall operations.
In fact, seven former Census Directors, appointed by Presidents from
both political parties, support this bill because they believe it would
enhance the ability of the agency to focus on its mission to conduct
the Census in a timely and accurate manner.
I urge my colleagues to support S. 3167, because it takes positive
steps toward providing greater stability for the decennial census and
diminishing operational problems.
Mr. TOWNS. Madam Speaker, S. 3167 is an important, bipartisan measure
that will help ensure stable, effective management at the Census Bureau
for years to come. With preparations for the 2020 Census already
underway, this body has the opportunity to make sure it is the most
accurate and complete census in history.
The measure would protect the independence of the Census Bureau from
political interference by giving its Director the independence to
report directly to the Secretary of Commerce. The Department of
Commerce oversees many agencies, and so giving the Census Bureau
greater independence from Commerce will help keep it a priority
throughout the 10-year cycle of the census. It will also help keep
Congress informed on the status of the census throughout the decade,
helping us to foresee and prevent problems.
The bill will also extend the term of the director of the Bureau to
five years, with a limit of two terms. This will align the term of the
Director more closely with the decennial census's planning and
implementation phases. In addition, it will help free the director from
the whims of presidential politics, keeping a new president from
changing directors in the middle of a census. I think this is so
important, especially since the 2020 Census will occur during a
presidential election year. A fixed term sends a message that we
consider the Census Bureau to be an agency with a scientific mission,
like the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the National Center for
Education Statistics. We must make sure that the professionals at these
agencies, including the Census Bureau, are given the ability to do what
they do best, insulated from politics.
We know the significance of the decennial census: an undertaking so
important that the founding fathers enshrined it in the Constitution.
However, GAO has deemed the last three decennial censuses ``at risk,''
which is something we in Congress cannot accept. S. 3167 will implement
some of GAO's recommendations on the Census, and also has the support
of leading statistical organizations and the seven living former
directors of the Bureau, directors who served under Democratic and
Republican presidents alike. The bill comes at no cost to taxpayers,
and is the result of careful, bipartisan negotiations. I'd like to
thank the gentlewoman from New York, Representative Maloney, as well as
the gentleman from Pennsylvania, Representative
[[Page H8318]]
Dent, for their leadership on the bill, the gentleman from Missouri,
Representative Clay, for his leadership on the Census with the
Information Policy Subcommittee, and I'd also like to thank Senators
Carper and Coburn for the hard work they put into passing the
legislation unanimously in the Senate.
I encourage all my colleagues on both sides to join me in voting in
favor of S. 3167.
Mr. McHENRY. I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Maloney) that the House suspend the
rules and pass the bill, S. 3167.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
Mr. McHENRY. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be
postponed.
____________________