[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 51 (Friday, March 15, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 11663-11670]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-6186]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Bureau of the Census

[Docket Number 010209034-2035-03]
RIN 0607-XX63


Urban Area Criteria for Census 2000

AGENCY: Bureau of the Census, Department of Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of final program criteria.

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SUMMARY: This Notice announces the Bureau of the Census' (Census 
Bureau's) criteria for defining urban and rural territory based on the 
results of Census 2000. These criteria replace and supersede the 1990 
census criteria for defining urban and rural territory. In establishing 
these criteria, the Census Bureau took into account the comments 
received regarding the information published in the Federal Register on 
March 28, 2001 (66 FR 17018) and July 27, 2001 (66 FR 39143), as well 
as research and investigation conducted by Census Bureau staff. The new 
criteria appear later in this Notice.

EFFECTIVE DATE: This Notice is effective immediately.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Robert Marx, Chief, Geography 
Division, U.S. Census Bureau, 4700 Silver Hill Road-Stop 7400; 
Washington, DC 20233-7400, telephone (301) 457-2131, or e-mail at: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Census Bureau identifies and tabulates 
data for the urban and rural populations and their associated areas 
solely for the presentation and comparison of census statistical data. 
It does not take into account or attempt to anticipate any 
nonstatistical uses that may be made of these areas or their associated 
data, nor does it attempt to meet the requirements of such 
nonstatistical program uses. Nonetheless, the Census Bureau recognizes 
that some Federal and state agencies are required by law to use Census 
Bureau-defined urban and rural classifications for allocating program 
funds, setting program standards, and implementing aspects of their 
programs. The agencies that make such nonstatistical uses of the areas 
and data should be aware that the changes to the urban and rural 
criteria for Census 2000 might affect the implementation of their 
programs.

[[Page 11664]]

    If a Federal, state, local, or tribal agency voluntarily uses these 
urban and rural criteria in a nonstatistical program, it is that 
agency's responsibility to ensure that the results are appropriate for 
such use. In considering the appropriateness of such nonstatistical 
program uses, the Census Bureau urges each agency to consider 
permitting appropriate modifications of the results of implementing the 
urban and rural criteria specifically for the purposes of its program. 
When a program permits such modifications, the Census Bureau urges each 
agency to use descriptive terminology that clearly identifies the 
different criteria being applied so as to avoid confusion with the 
Census Bureau's official urban and rural classifications.
    This section of the Notice, among other things, provides a brief 
synopsis of the public comments the Census Bureau received in response 
to the March 28, 2001 (66 FR 17018) and July 27, 2001 (66 FR 39143) 
Federal Register Notices, and the decisions the Census Bureau made in 
response to the public comments received.
    In addition, the Census Bureau plans to announce the determinations 
of Census 2000 urban and rural territory in the near future. Federal 
agencies should begin to use the new urban/rural definitions to 
tabulate and publish statistics when the determinations are announced.

Executive Order 12866

    This Notice has been determined to be not significant for purposes 
of Executive Order 12866.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

    Even though we gave the public prior notice and an opportunity for 
public comment, we were not required to do so by Title 5, United States 
Code (U.S.C.), Section 553, or any other law. Therefore, a Regulatory 
Flexibility Analysis is not required and has not been prepared (5 
U.S.C. 603[a]).

Paperwork Reduction Act

    This program Notice does not represent a collection of information 
subject to the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act, Title 44, 
U.S.C., Chapter 35.

Summary of Comments Received in Response to the March 28, 2001 (66 
FR 17018) and July 27, 2001 (66 FR 39143) Federal Register Notices

    The March 28, 2001 Federal Register document provided the proposed 
criteria and the July 27, 2001 Federal Register document provided 
further clarification. Both Notices requested comment on the Census 
Bureau's proposed Urban Area Criteria for Census 2000. In response to 
the two Notices, the Census Bureau received 142 comment letters. Of 
that number, 81 comments were received from regional planning and 
nongovernmental organizations, 24 from municipal and county officials, 
22 from Members of Congress, 8 from state government officials, 4 from 
officials of other federal agencies, and 3 from individuals. Many 
comment letters addressed more than one topic.
    Of the 142 letters, 67 offered comments to the proposed criteria 
for recognizing uninhabitable areas adjacent to bodies of water 
(floodplains, marshes, and other wetlands); 37 of these dealt 
specifically with areas not accommodated in the criteria that 
respondents believed to be uninhabitable. Of these 37 letters, 22 
expressed concern about the area that separates Brunswick City and St. 
Simons Island, Georgia, and 15 dealt with the area in the vicinity of 
the St. Francis Levee between West Memphis, Arkansas, and Memphis, 
Tennessee. The majority of the comments concerned the inability of the 
proposed criteria to define additional types of areas as 
``uninhabitable'' territory. In particular, respondents commented on 
the inadequacy of the criteria to define intermittently flooded, 
uninhabited land adjacent to water bodies as uninhabitable, and thus 
exempted from the distance measurement when attempting to connect 
qualifying territory. It was recommended that if these additional types 
of uninhabitable land areas were included in the criteria, important 
outlying urban territory would qualify for inclusion in urban areas. 
Not having this territory included in the urban areas would result in a 
loss of valuable funding. The remaining comments addressed the criteria 
that allow a 5 mile jump over uninhabitable area, stating that they 
would benefit large states and urban areas, but not small states and 
urban areas.
    Ten comments expressed concern that there were no provisions in the 
criteria to include nonresidential urban land uses, such as airports, 
industrial parks, and large commercial areas, within urban areas. 
Comments were received from the Lewiston, Idaho-Clarkston, Washington, 
area (3); the Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas, area (2); the Reno-Sparks, 
Nevada, area (2); and one comment each was received from the 
Indianapolis, Indiana; Paducah, Kentucky-Metropolis, Illinois; and 
Grand Forks, North Dakota-East Grand Forks, Minnesota, areas. The 
commentors believed the population density criterion of 500 people per 
square mile (ppsm) was too high and, therefore, would unfairly exclude 
the surrounding adjacent nonresidential urban land use areas and what 
they considered the complete extent of their urbanized area. All 
comments expressed concern about a possible loss of funding or an 
inability to expend the funding where the community believed it was 
needed if there were no way to identify and include nonresidential land 
use as part of the Urban Area Criteria for Census 2000.
    Twenty-seven of the comments questioned elimination of the 
grandfathering criteria; that is, not automatically retaining in the 
Census 2000 urban definition territory that had been classified as 
urban based on the 1990 census. Of those commenting, 16 of the 27 
comments were concerned with the Bristol, Tennessee-Bristol, Virginia, 
area and 5 were concerned with the Ventura County and Orange County 
areas in California. The remaining 6 letters did not cite a specific 
area; however, all were similar in that they asserted grandfathering 
should be retained as part of the Urban Area Criteria for Census 2000. 
It was believed the elimination of this criterion would cause not only 
a loss in funding, but, more importantly, a loss of urbanized area 
status.
    There were 26 comments expressing concern about eliminating the 
provision for including whole functioning governments, particularly 
incorporated cities, towns, villages, and boroughs. Ten of those 
commenting were especially concerned about the Bristol, Tennessee-
Bristol, Virginia, area and one comment was received regarding the 
Lewiston, Idaho-Clarkston, Washington, area. Although 15 of the 26 
responses did not refer to a specific area, all letters dealing with 
the elimination of the whole-functioning government criterion were in 
favor of retaining it as part of the Urban Area Criteria for Census 
2000. It was believed that by using corporate limits to include whole 
governmental units in urban definitions, additional nonresidential 
urban land use would be included in the urban area definitions, thereby 
alleviating concerns of loss of funding and loss of urbanized area 
status.
    Coupled with elimination of the grandfathering and the whole-
functioning government criteria, 18 additional comments specifically 
expressed concern regarding the loss of urbanized area status; 11 of 
these additional comments addressed the governments in the Bristol, 
Tennessee-Bristol, Virginia area. All 18 favored retention of the 
grandfathering and the whole-functioning government criteria,

[[Page 11665]]

as all believed their elimination would result in a loss of urbanized 
area status.
    The Census Bureau received 31 comments regarding the splitting and 
merging of urban areas; 23 of these expressed concern about splitting 
urban areas in the vicinity of Los Angeles, California, in particular 
in Ventura County (the Oxnard-Ventura, Simi Valley, and Thousand Oaks 
areas) and in Orange County. The comments questioned whether smaller 
urban areas would retain their individual status or be included in the 
larger Los Angeles urbanized area. The majority of these comments dealt 
equally with the loss of funding, loss of data, and loss of urbanized 
area status. There were no comments in favor of merging existing 
urbanized areas. It was widely held that the splitting of urbanized 
areas should occur at metropolitan area boundaries.
    Twenty-four comments addressed the overall population density 
criterion, with the majority agreeing that the population density 
requirement of 500 ppsm was too high and did not allow for the 
inclusion of nonresidential urban land use areas adjacent to the 
urbanized area core. Five comments remarked on the density requirements 
for military installations; all concerned Vandenberg Air Force Base 
near Lompoc, California, and stated the population density requirement 
of 500 ppsm was too high and, therefore, would exclude some blocks that 
are part of the military installation.
    There were 11 commenters who remarked about the 2 square mile size 
limit criterion for census block groups with qualifying density. The 
majority of commenters believed that the area size limitation should be 
larger than 2 square miles or that an area threshold should not be used 
to determine urban area qualification. The consensus among the 
commenters was that this criterion was arbitrary and, thus, should be 
removed.
    The enclave and indentation criteria generated 11 comments. Those 
commenters who wanted the criteria to include nonresidential urban land 
uses in urban areas believed that the 5 square mile size limit for 
adding enclaves to urban areas was too small. Other commenters remarked 
that the 3:1 ratio criterion for including indentations favors large 
urban areas over small urban areas.
    There were 19 comments received regarding the jump and hop 
criteria. The jump and hop criteria are used to include noncontiguous 
but qualifying territory within an urban area. The criteria are based 
on the distance of the connection and overall density or population in 
the qualifying territory. All 19 agreed that the distance for hops and 
jumps should be increased to better include nonresidential urban land 
uses in urban areas.
    The Census Bureau received one comment requesting the recognition 
of ferries and other nonroad transport networks as links to 
discontiguous qualifying areas. It favored the use of ferries and other 
nonroad connections for hops and jumps, especially in the West, as some 
transit systems have ferry service across water bodies or lines 
tunneling through mountains where the alternate road connections may 
not meet the hop or jump distance criteria.

The Census Bureau's Decisions Regarding Recommendations Received 
From Comments Concerning Changes to the Urban Area Criteria for 
Census 2000

    This section of the Notice provides information about the Census 
Bureau's decisions related to the recommendations and comments 
received. These decisions benefited greatly from the public 
participation, which served as a reminder that, although identified for 
purposes of collecting, tabulating, and publishing federal statistics, 
the urban areas defined through these standards represent areas in 
which people reside, work, and spend their lives and to which they 
attach a considerable amount of pride. In arriving at its decisions, 
the Census Bureau took into account the comments received regarding the 
information published in the Federal Register on March 28, 2001 (66 FR 
17018) and July 27, 2001 (66 FR 39143), as well as research and 
investigation conducted by Census Bureau staff.
    I. The Census Bureau presents below its decisions on changes that 
were incorporated into the Urban Area Criteria for Census 2000 in 
response to the many comments received.
    A. The Census Bureau accepted the recommendations to include 
criteria that define ``uninhabitable'' territory along major bodies of 
water. The Census Bureau is changing the proposed criteria to include 
selected unpopulated blocks adjacent to a road connection where that 
road connection crosses a substantial water area. In addition, the 
Census Bureau is replacing the term uninhabitable with the term 
``exempted'' to more clearly define the territories that are in this 
category: water bodies, uninhabited census blocks adjacent to bridged 
water bodies, military installations, national parks, and national 
monuments.
    The original uninhabitable criteria, which were more restrictive 
than in the past, were limited to bodies of water, military 
installations, national parks, and national monuments. The intent was 
to make the delineation process as objective and uniform as possible, 
and because only these four categories of topography and land use were 
uniform and complete for the Nation in the Census Bureau's TIGER 
database, they were the only items that the Census Bureau believed it 
could use as a basis for evaluation.
    The Census Bureau decided to rename ``uninhabitable'' as 
``exempted,'' and to include as exempted those land portions of a hop 
or jump (defined in Sections II.B. and II.C. of the Urban Area Criteria 
for Census 2000) where the tabulation blocks on both sides of the road 
connection have zero population and the road connection crosses at 
least 1,000 feet of water.
    Incorporating this new criterion, which is meant to provide a 
measurable and objective surrogate to define floodplains and 
marshlands, will allow the Census Bureau to achieve its goal of being 
able to apply the criteria uniformly throughout the Nation.
    B. The Census Bureau accepted the recommendations to include major 
airports adjoining or surrounded by qualifying urbanized areas or urban 
clusters, but the Census Bureau decided not to include commercial or 
industrial areas.
    The Census Bureau decided to include major airports adjoining 
qualifying urbanized areas (UAs) or urban clusters (UCs) when it was 
able to obtain a comprehensive database of major airports. The decision 
was made to include only those airports that, according to 2000 Federal 
Aviation Administration statistics, had an annual enplanement of at 
least 10,000 people and, thus, qualified as a primary airport. The 
research conducted regarding the methodology for determining what 
boundaries to use for the airports determined that airport inclusion 
should be by whole census block where at least half the land area of 
the census block was within the airport.
    The Census Bureau believes it is advantageous to include major 
airports within urban areas because doing so will give a better overall 
picture of an ``urbanized area.'' Heavily used airports are considered 
part of the urban fabric of an area and, most importantly, the Census 
Bureau was able to obtain a single, reliable database source that its 
staff could use to apply the criteria objectively.
    The Census Bureau determined that it could not include industrial 
or commercial areas on the fringes of UAs or UCs because it could not 
find a consistent national database that

[[Page 11666]]

identifies such areas, as it found for major airports. Thus, the Census 
Bureau does not have the capability to specifically identify commercial 
and industrial areas on a uniform and comprehensive basis. The Census 
Bureau is continuing research to determine some objective and 
consistent way to address issues involving nonresidential urban land 
uses for urban area determinations in future censuses.
    C. The Census Bureau adopted criteria that would permit the 
splitting of a UA within the same metropolitan statistical area (MSA) 
and primary metropolitan statistical area (PMSA), and in counties that 
are not within an MSA or PMSA, when two areas that each would qualify 
as a UA have only a point connection or are connected by a hop or a 
jump.
    The Census Bureau determined that it is just as important to 
recognize the autonomy of areas within a metropolitan area (MA) as it 
is between two or more MAs. The Census Bureau also determined it would 
not be realistic to apply the same distance criterion of 3 miles used 
to split a UA that has qualifying territory in separate MAs as the 
basis for splitting a UA that is within the same MA or outside any MA. 
The Census Bureau believes the criteria for splitting a UA within the 
same MA or outside any MA should be more restrictive to ensure that the 
splitting is limited to areas that are more likely to be independent 
and to avoid the splitting of a single large UA into many smaller UAs 
that are not autonomous.
    D. The Census Bureau reevaluated the block population density 
criterion within a military installation. The Census Bureau revised the 
final Urban Area Criteria for Census 2000 to treat blocks on a military 
installation that have a population of 1,000-2,499 the same as blocks 
that have a population density of 500-999 ppsm. The Census Bureau also 
decided to treat blocks that have a population of 2,500 or more the 
same as blocks that have a population density of 1,000 ppsm or greater.
    The change in the block density criterion for census blocks within 
a military installation formally recognizes the special situation that 
was created in agreement with the Department of Defense regarding the 
collection and presentation of data about military installations. The 
block numbering algorithm used by the Census Bureau specified that 
military installations be identified by using as few block numbers as 
possible. Blocks that have a large area and significant population were 
created, but seldom did they meet the minimum criteria for 
qualification as urban based on population density. Even though the 
density requirement is consistent, the delineation of military blocks 
is inconsistent; therefore, the 500 ppsm requirement is being waived 
for blocks on military installations. To apply these new criteria to 
other blocks would not be appropriate because the Census Bureau used 
consistent criteria to define the blocks in areas where external 
agreements for processing were not a factor.
    E. The Census Bureau modified the methodology for the indentation 
criteria from the 3:1 linear ratio measurement to a 4:1 area ratio 
measurement; it also clarified the criteria.
    The decision to change from the linear ratio of measurement to an 
area ratio, or ``circle method,'' of measurement was based on the 
results of research by Census Bureau staff. The results of the research 
showed that the ``circle method'' gives a constant comparative ratio, 
whereas the linear measurement method does not. It also is more 
difficult to use the length-to-area measurement in a computer 
environment, where one must first determine the values of an 
indentation and then calculate the ratio. The inability to ensure 
consistent automated results made the proposed indentation criteria 
less objective.
    II. Recommendations and comments were received from the public 
regarding other issues, and subsequent research by Census Bureau staff 
determined that changes to the current criteria for some issues would 
be detrimental to the goals of the program. The Census Bureau has 
decided that no changes will be made to accommodate the following 
issues in the Urban Area Criteria for Census 2000.

A. Grandfathering

    The goal for Census 2000 is to bring the urban area criteria back 
to a single set of rules that allow for application of automated 
processes that yield consistent results rather than to have the areas 
defined through a process of accretion over time. The Census Bureau is 
striving to eliminate any subjectivity in these delineations. This can 
be done only by reexamining areas that qualified as UAs in earlier 
censuses due to the implementation of different criteria following each 
of those censuses, the possibility of misinterpretations of the 
criteria, and the inevitable mistakes made during clerical delineations 
of the past. The areas that no longer qualify as UAs likely will 
qualify as UCs for Census 2000.

B. Developing a Set of Criteria To Include Whole Functioning 
Governments in Urban Area Definitions

    The Census Bureau wants to define a continuum of urban territory 
created objectively and equitably for the entire Nation. To apply these 
criteria consistently, the use of governmental unit boundaries and 
criteria designed to include whole functioning governments must be 
eliminated. The Census Bureau evaluated the geographic characteristics 
of municipal corporations and found widespread variation as a result of 
each state's unique set of annexation and incorporation laws. The 
Census Bureau believes the lack of consistency among state laws for 
establishing governmental unit boundaries would result in inconsistency 
in urban area definitions.

C. Recognition of Ferries and Other Transportation Modes To Link 
Discontiguous Qualifying Areas

    There is no consistent database of ferry connections and other 
transportation networks; therefore, the Census Bureau cannot apply the 
limited data available consistently.

D. Size Criteria for Block Groups

    The Census Bureau included a maximum block group size criterion to 
avoid adding large sparsely settled territories to urban areas. Census 
Bureau staff found a significant reduction in the percentage of 
individual blocks that have a population density greater than 500 ppsm, 
and a significant increase in the land area of blocks that have a 
population density less than 500 ppsm, when the size of a block group 
exceeded two square miles. Based on this research, and with the 
allowance in the criteria for inclusion of individual blocks that have 
qualifying density, the Census Bureau determined that it was not 
necessary to change the block group size criterion.

E. Changing the Distance Allowable for a Hop

    The Census Bureau determined, after further research, to retain the 
proposed length for a hop at a distance of less than or equal to 0.5 
mile. Based on empirical review, allowing a longer distance for a hop 
resulted in a significant number of areas linking to other urban areas 
that were not perceived as actually being connected.

F. Changing the Distance Allowable for a Jump

    The Census Bureau determined, after further research, to retain the 
proposed increase in length for a jump at greater than 0.5 mile but no 
more than 2.5 miles (it was 1.5 miles in 1990). Based on

[[Page 11667]]

empirical review, allowing a longer distance for a jump resulted in a 
significant number of areas linking to other urban areas that were not 
perceived as actually being connected. In the case of longer jumps, 
many of the connections would be eliminated subsequently because a UA 
would be split to avoid joining autonomous qualifying UAs.

G. Changing the Population Density Criteria for Block Groups and Blocks

    The proposed population density requirement of 500 ppsm will remain 
unchanged. This change in the population density requirement will allow 
the Census Bureau to take into account government policies requiring 
green space between developments, lessen the effect of large census 
block groups and blocks that contain both a developed and undeveloped 
portion, and because consistent nonresidential land use information is 
not available, will help to qualify areas that have mixed land use 
within the same block group or block.

Urban Area Criteria for Census 2000

    The following criteria apply to the 50 states, the District of 
Columbia, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana 
Islands, and the Virgin Islands of the United States.

I. Census 2000 Urbanized Area (UA) and Urban Cluster (UC) Definitions

    For Census 2000, a UA consists of contiguous,\1\ densely settled 
census block groups (BGs) \2\ and census blocks \3\ that meet minimum 
population density requirements, along with adjacent densely settled 
census blocks that together encompass a population of at least 50,000 
people.
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    \1\ Contiguity requires at least one point of intersection.
    \2\ A census block group is a group of census blocks within a 
census tract whose numbers begin with the same digit; for example, 
BG 3 within a census tract includes all census blocks numbered from 
3000 to 3999.
    \3\ A census block is an area normally bounded by visible 
features, such as streets, streams, and railroads, and by nonvisible 
features, such as the boundary of an incorporated place, minor civil 
division (MCD), county, or other Census 2000 tabulation entity.
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    For Census 2000, a UC consists of contiguous, densely settled 
census BGs and census blocks that meet minimum population density 
requirements, along with adjacent densely settled census blocks that 
together encompass a population of at least 2,500 people, but fewer 
than 50,000 people.
    All criteria based on land area, population, and population density 
reflect the information contained in the Census Bureau's Topologically 
Integrated Geographic Encoding and Referencing (TIGER) database (the 
Census 2000 TIGER/Line file at the time of initial delineation) and the 
official Census 2000 redistricting data file (the Public Law 94-171 
file at the time of initial delineation).

II. UA and UC Delineation Process Criteria

    The following criteria are provided in the sequence in which they 
are used by the Census Bureau in an automated software program, with 
limited interactive modifications, to delineate the UAs and UCs. The 
purpose of providing the criteria in sequence and in technical terms is 
to ensure that others can develop similar software to replicate the 
Census Bureau's urban area delineations.
    A.The Census Bureau initiates its delineation of a potential urban 
area by delineating a densely settled ``Initial Core.'' The Initial 
Core is defined by sequentially including the following qualifying 
territory:
    1. One or more contiguous census BGs that have a total land area 
less than 2 square miles and a population density of at least 1,000 
people per square mile (ppsm) \4\. NOTE: All calculations of population 
density include only land; the areas of water contained within census 
BGs and census blocks are not used to calculate population density.
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    \4\ The Census Bureau, in agreement with the Department of 
Defense, imposed restrictions on the selection of features that 
could be used as block boundaries within military reservations. This 
resulted in census blocks within military reservations that contain 
populations of 1,000 or greater, but with unusually low population 
densities caused by these restrictions. In recognition of this 
situation, for purposes of urban area delineation, the Census Bureau 
treats blocks on military reservations that have a population of 
2,500 or more as having a population density of 1,000 ppsm, even if 
the actual density is less than 1,000 ppsm, and those that have a 
population of 1,000 to 2,499 as having a population density of 500 
ppsm.
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    2. If no qualifying census BG exists, one or more contiguous census 
blocks that have a population density of at least 1,000 ppsm.
    3. One or more census BGs that have a land area less than 2 square 
miles, a population density of at least 500 ppsm, and are contiguous 
with the BGs identified by criterion II.A.1.
    4. One or more contiguous census blocks, each of which has a 
population density of at least 500 ppsm, and at least one of which is 
contiguous with the qualifying census BGs or census blocks identified 
by criterion II.A.1., II.A.2., or II.A.3.
    5. Any enclave of contiguous territory that does not meet the 
criteria above but that is surrounded by census BGs and census blocks 
that qualify for inclusion in the initial core by criteria II.A.1. 
through II.A.4., provided the area of the enclave is not greater than 5 
square miles.
    B. The Census Bureau continues its delineation of a potential urban 
area by adding, to all initial cores that have a population of 1,000 or 
more \5\, other territory with qualifying density that can be reached 
using a ``hop'' connection. That is, from the edge of the initial core, 
the Census Bureau will define a road connection of no greater than 0.5 
mile across land that is not classified as ``exempted'' territory \6\ 
and that consists of one or more nonqualifying census blocks that 
connect the initial core to a contiguous area of census BG(s) and/or 
census blocks(s) that otherwise qualify based on population density and 
land area.
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    \5\ All cores of less than 1,000 population are not selected as 
the starting point for the delineation of a separate urban area; 
however, these core areas still are eligible for inclusion in a UA 
or UC, using subsequent criteria and procedures.
    \6\ The Census Bureau defines ``exempted'' territory as areas in 
which normal residential development is significantly constrained or 
not possible due to either topographic or land use reasons. Exempted 
territory is limited to bodies of water, national parks and 
monuments, military installations, and those segments of a road 
connection where the populations of the census blocks on both sides 
of the road are zero and, additionally, the road connection crosses 
at least 1,000 feet of water. Because the Census Bureau does not 
have access to or maintain a comprehensive land use database for the 
entire United States, Puerto Rico, and the Island Areas, only the 
aforementioned land use types, which are included in or can be 
derived from the Census Bureau's TIGER database, will be used when 
identifying exempted territory.
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    1. The territory being added to the initial core using a hop 
connection, which includes the connecting census block(s), census 
BG(s), and census block(s) that have a population density of at least 
500 ppsm, and any enclave blocks within the connecting block(s) or area 
with qualifying density, must:
    a. Have a combined overall population density of at least 500 ppsm, 
or
    b. Have 1,000 or more total population in the qualifying area being 
added.
    2. When adding qualifying territory to the initial core using a hop 
connection, the Census Bureau tests the five shortest road connections 
and:
    a. Selects the shortest qualifying road connection that does not 
exceed 0.5 mile across land that is not classified as ``exempted'' 
territory, and
    b. Selects the connecting block(s) along that road connection that 
forms the highest overall population density for the entire area (hop 
blocks plus

[[Page 11668]]

qualifying blocks) being added to the initial core.
    3. Territory that is added to the initial core by means of a hop 
connection becomes part of the adjusted initial core. The Census Bureau 
then determines if there is additional qualifying territory that can be 
added to the adjusted initial core. All measurements of distance and 
contiguity to the core are made from the adjusted initial core, not 
from the original initial core. The Census Bureau continues to add 
qualifying territory by means of a hop connection, modifies the 
adjusted initial core to include the added territory, and continues to 
add more qualifying territory via a hop connection, until no additional 
territory qualifies to be added via a hop connection.
    C. After completing the process that adds all territory to an 
initial core that can be added via hop connections, those cores that 
have a population of 1,500 or more, now termed ``interim cores,'' 
continue the delineation process by adding qualifying territory via a 
``jump'' connection \7\.
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    \7\ All adjusted initial cores of less than 1,500 population are 
not selected to continue the delineation of a separate urban area; 
however, these core areas still are eligible for inclusion in an 
urban area using subsequent criteria and procedures.
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    The determination of jumps starts with the interim core that has 
the greatest population and continues in descending order of population 
size of each interim core. Starting from the edge of the interim core, 
the Census Bureau identifies a road connection of greater than 0.5 mile 
and no more than 2.5 miles across land that is not classified as 
``exempted'' territory, and that consists of one or more nonqualifying 
census blocks that connect the interim core to contiguous qualifying 
territory based on population density, land area, and connections made 
using the hop criteria.
    1. The territory being added to the interim core using a jump 
connection, including the connecting census block(s), qualifying census 
BG(s), and census block(s) that have a population density of at least 
500 ppsm, and any enclave blocks within the connecting block(s) or 
territory with qualifying density, must:
    a. Have a combined overall population density of at least 500 ppsm, 
or
    b. Have a population of 1,000 or more in the qualifying territory 
being added.
    2. When adding qualifying territory to the interim core using a 
jump connection, the Census Bureau tests the five shortest road 
connections and:
    a. Selects the shortest qualifying road connection that does not 
exceed 2.5 miles across land that is not classified as ``exempted,'' 
and
    b. Selects the connecting block(s) along that road connection that 
forms the highest overall population density for the entire territory 
(jump blocks plus qualifying blocks) being added to the interim core.
    3. No additional jumps may originate from a qualifying area after 
the first jump in that direction unless the territory being included as 
a result of the jump was an interim core with a population of 50,000 or 
more.
    D. After territory has been added to the interim core via jump 
connections, the Census Bureau again includes additional noncontiguous 
territory to the adjusted interim core using a hop connection, provided 
the territory qualifies as defined in the criteria associated with 
II.B.
    E. During all phases in which qualifying territory that is 
discontiguous to the initial or interim cores is being added to the 
cores, the Census Bureau adds to the cores any qualifying territory 
where the hop or jump road connections pass through ``exempted'' 
territory.
    1. Discontiguous territory is added to the cores using hop or jump 
connections that cross ``exempted'' territory, provided that:
    a. The road connection is no greater than 5 miles between the core 
and the qualifying area, and
    b. The road connection does not cross more than a total of 2.5 
miles of territory not classified as ``exempted'' (those segments of 
the road connection where ``exempted'' territory is not on both sides 
of the road), and
    c. The territory being added meets either the population density 
criteria or total population criteria specified in Sections II.B.1 and 
II.C.1.
    2. The Census Bureau selects the road connection using the criteria 
specified in Sections II.B.2 and II.C.2.
    3. The Census Bureau considers linkages over exempted territory as 
a hop connection when the total distance of the road segments, 
excluding the distance across ``exempted'' territory, does not exceed 
0.5 mile, and as a jump connection when the total distance of the road 
segments is from 0.5 to 2.5 miles, excluding the distance across 
``exempted'' territory.
    F. After all territory has been added to the interim core via jump 
and hop connections, the Census Bureau adds whole tabulation blocks 
that approximate the territory of major airports, provided at least one 
of the blocks that represent the airport is included within or 
contiguous with the interim core.
    G. The Census Bureau then adds to the interim cores territory that 
constitutes enclaves, provided that:
    1. The territory is contiguous, surrounded only by land, and 
consists of census BGs and census blocks that qualify for inclusion in 
the interim core, and
    a. The area of the enclave is not greater than 5 square miles, or
    b. All area of the enclave is more than a straight-line distance of 
2.5 miles from a land block that is not part of the interim core, or
    2. The territory is contiguous, surrounded by both land consisting 
of census BGs and census blocks that qualify for inclusion in the 
interim core, and water, and the linear contiguity of the enclave to 
the land that is within the interim core is greater than the linear 
contiguity of the enclave to the water.
    H. The Census Bureau then inspects the interim cores and, where 
necessary, splits the interim cores into separate interim cores for 
purposes of identifying individual urban areas, following the criteria 
specified in Section III.
    I. Upon completing the separation of interim cores, the Census 
Bureau completes the delineation of urban areas by identifying and 
adding territory that qualifies as ``indentations.''
    1. The Census Bureau examines and qualifies only those potential 
indentation areas that are within the same interim core, not between 
separate interim cores.
    2. Starting from the outermost part of the potential indentation, 
the Census Bureau will define a ``closure qualification line,'' defined 
as a straight line no more than 1 mile in length, that extends from one 
point along the edge of the interim core across area that is not within 
the interim core to another point along the edge of the interim core, 
with both points on land.
    3. The Census Bureau then determines if there are any tabulation 
blocks that have at least 75 percent of their area within the territory 
formed between the closure qualification line and the interim core.
    4. If there are no blocks that have 75 percent or more of their 
area within that territory, the potential indentation does not qualify 
to be added to the interim core.
    5. If there are any blocks that have 75 percent or more of their 
area within the territory formed between the closure qualification line 
and the interim core, the total area of those blocks that meet or 
exceed the 75-percent criterion is compared to the area of a circle, 
the diameter of which is the length of the closure qualification line.

[[Page 11669]]

    6. Those territories under review that have at least four times the 
area of the circle qualify as an indentation, and the Census Bureau 
will add the entire area of all those blocks to the interim core.
    7. If the collective area of the indentation blocks is less than 
four times the area of the circle, the Census Bureau defines a 
different closure qualification line, if possible, and continues the 
testing and qualification of the potential indentation until it 
determines if the potential indentation qualifies or fails.
    J. As a result of the urban area delineation process, an 
incorporated place \8\ or census designated place (CDP) \9\ may be 
partially within and partially outside an urban area. Any place that is 
split by an urban area boundary is referred to as an extended place.
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    \8\ An incorporated place is a governmental unit designated as a 
city, town (except in New England and Wisconsin), village, city and 
borough, municipality, or borough (except in New York and Alaska); 
the term also includes all consolidated cities.
    \9\ A CDP is a statistical equivalent of an incorporated place 
and represents a locally defined named area. CDPs are called 
communidades and zonas urbanas in Puerto Rico.
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III. Splitting UAs

    The Census Bureau uses the definition of metropolitan areas (MAs), 
which include metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs), consolidated 
metropolitan statistical areas (CMSAs), and primary metropolitan 
statistical areas (PMSAs), in effect for Census 2000 (those MAs 
established by the Office of Management and Budget on June 30, 1999) to 
determine when to define separate contiguous UAs. (Note: UCs are never 
split to recognize MA boundaries.) After delineating the boundary of 
each UA, the Census Bureau will examine the relationship between that 
UA and any MSA, CMSA, or PMSA, using the following criteria to 
determine if the UA should be split and, if so, where the boundary 
should be located between the resulting separate UAs.
A. UA Split Criteria When There Are Separate MAs
    The Census Bureau splits an initial UA that contains at least 
50,000 people in two or more separate MAs when the following conditions 
exist:
    1. The UA has at least 50,000 people in each of at least two 
different MSAs or PMSAs, and the distance along which their areas are 
contiguous is less than 3 miles. The split will occur at a location 
near the MSA or PMSA boundary along which their area of contiguity is 
less than 3 miles.
    2. The UA has at least 50,000 people in each of at least two 
different CMSAs, and the distance along which their areas are 
contiguous is less than 3 miles. The split will occur at the CMSA 
boundary.
B. UA Split Criteria Within the Same MA or County
    The Census Bureau splits an initial UA within the same MA, or 
within a county that is not in an MA, when the following conditions 
exist:
    1. The only connection linking or causing contiguity between areas, 
each of which has an initial core population of at least 50,000, 
includes either a hop or jump connection, or
    2. The connection between areas, each of which has an initial core 
population of at least 50,000, is not greater than a point-to-point 
connection.
    In both cases, the split will occur at the point-to-point 
connection, or at both ends of the hop or jump connection that 
initially linked the areas into a single UA.

IV. Urban Area Title Criteria

    A. For those urban areas that contain an incorporated place that 
has at least 2,500 people in the urban area:
    1. The urban area title includes the name of the incorporated place 
with the most population within the urban area.
    2. As many as two additional incorporated place names may be part 
of the urban area title, provided that:
    a. The incorporated place's urban area population exceeds 250,000 
people, or
    b. The incorporated place has both an urban area population of at 
least 2,500, and its urban area population includes at least 2/3 of the 
population in the most populous incorporated place in the urban area.
    B. If the urban area does not contain an incorporated place that 
has at least 2,500 people in the urban area, the urban area title 
includes the single entity name \10\ that occurs first from the 
following list:
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    \10\ If two or three of the entities being considered for an 
urban area title have exactly the same population in the urban area, 
the title will include both (or all three) entity names in the 
title. If four or more entities being considered for an urban area 
title have exactly the same population, the total population of each 
entity (as oppose to its urban population) will determine the three 
names to be included in the title.
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    1. The nonmilitary CDP having the largest population in the urban 
area, provided its population in the urban area is at least 2,500.
    2. The incorporated place having the largest population in the 
urban area.
    3. The nonmilitary CDP having the largest population in the urban 
area.
    4. The military CDP having the largest population in the urban 
area.
    5. The governmental MCD \11\ having the largest population in the 
urban area.
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    \11\ An MCD is a legal subdivision of a county or statistically 
equivalent entity. Governmental MCDs exist in Connecticut, Illinois, 
Indiana, Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, 
Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North 
Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont, and 
Wisconsin.
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    6. A local name recognized for the area by the United States 
Geological Survey's Geographic Names Information System, with 
preference given to post office names recognized by the United States 
Postal Service (USPS).
    C. The criterion for the sequence of place names in the urban area 
title consists of the qualifying names in descending order of their 
official population in the urban area. (If two or more entities that 
qualify to have their names included in the urban area title have 
exactly the same population, the total population of each is used to 
determine the sequence of names; or, if no population data are 
available, as in Section IV.B.6., the entity names will be listed 
alphabetically.)
    D. The urban area title will include the USPS abbreviation of the 
name of each state or statistically equivalent entity into which the 
urban area extends.
    1. The order of the state names is the same as the order of the 
related place names in the urban area title.
    2. For urban areas that extend into a state(s) in which no 
incorporated place, CDP, or MCD name is part of the urban area title, 
the name(s) of this state(s) is included in the urban area title after 
the name of the state(s) that includes a place or MCD having its name 
in the urban area title, in descending order of the state's Census 2000 
population within the urban area.
    E. If a single place or MCD qualifies as the title of more than one 
urban area, the largest urban area will use the name of the place or 
MCD. The smaller urban area will have a title consisting of the place 
or MCD name and a compass directional (North, South, East, or West) as 
the smaller urban area relates in direction to the larger urban area. 
For example, if Allenville is used to title the largest urban area, a 
smaller urban area also using Allenville in the title that lies south 
of the larger urban area is titled Allenville South.
    F. If any title of an urban area duplicates the title of another 
urban area within the same state, or uses the name of an incorporated 
place, CDP, or MCD that is duplicated within a state, the name of the 
county that has most of the population of the largest place or MCD is 
appended, in parentheses, after the

[[Page 11670]]

duplicate place or MCD name for each urban area. If there is no 
incorporated place, CDP, or MCD name in the urban area title, the name 
of the county having the greatest population residing in the urban area 
will be appended to the title. For example, Springfield (Ames County), 
OH, and Springfield (Jefferson County), OH.

V. Urban Area Code Criteria

    The Census Bureau assigns a 5-digit numeric code to each urban 
area. The code is based on a national alphabetic sequence of all urban 
area names, and is sequenced by state code or state and county code 
when urban area names are duplicated.

VI. Urban Area Central Place Criteria

    The Census Bureau identifies one or more central places for each 
urban area (if an incorporated place or CDP exists within the urban 
area) using the following criteria:
    A. Any incorporated place or CDP that has its name in the title of 
the urban area, and
    B. Any other incorporated place or CDP that has a population of 
50,000 or more within the urban area.

VII. Urban and Rural Classification

    The Census Bureau classifies as urban all population and territory 
within the boundaries of urban areas.\12\ Conversely, the Census Bureau 
classifies as rural all population and territory that are not within 
any urban area.
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    \12\ The Census Bureau's TIGER database is a centerline file; 
that is, the line representing each feature (such as a road or a 
stream that has a very small area) follows the center line of the 
feature. This criterion is not intended to preclude other 
application from including the entire area of a feature that the 
Census Bureau has used as the boundary between urban and rural 
territory as being either entirely urban or entirely rural.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The Census Bureau does not attempt to classify all bodies of water 
as being either urban or rural. Those bodies of water that appear in 
the Census Bureau's TIGER database as area features are included in 
urban areas only if the water body is included in a land BG or census 
block classified as urban, or if the water body serves as a connection 
when performing a hop or a jump. The urban and rural classification is 
not definitive for other bodies of water because the Census Bureau's 
definition is not intended to limit other classifications of urban and 
rural when applied to water area.

    Dated: February 27, 2002.
William G. Barron, Jr.,
Acting Director, Bureau of the Census.
[FR Doc. 02-6186 Filed 3-14-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-07-P