[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 12 (Thursday, January 21, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6296-6297]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-01240]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Bureau of the Census
2020 Census Tribal Consultation; Virtual Public Meeting
AGENCY: Bureau of the Census, Department of Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of virtual public meeting and request for comments.
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SUMMARY: The Bureau of the Census (Census Bureau) will conduct its
first calendar year 2021 tribal consultation meeting on February 18 via
national webinar. The tribal consultation meeting reflects the Census
Bureau's commitment to strengthen government-to-government
relationships with federally recognized tribes. The Census Bureau will
provide updates and seek input on the 2020 Census Disclosure Avoidance
System (DAS). In preparation for the webinar, the Census Bureau request
comments on various questions related to tribes' use of decennial
census data.
DATES: The Census Bureau will conduct the tribal consultation webinar
on Thursday, February 18, 2021, from 3:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. EST. Any
questions or topics to be considered in the tribal consultation
meetings must be received in writing via email or fax by Thursday,
February 18.
ADDRESSES: The Census Bureau tribal consultation webinar meeting will
be held via the WebEx platform at the following presentation link:
https://uscensus.webex.com/uscensus/onstage/g.php?MTID=e83f743e02f061c59b12ef423aee8a8b6.
If the webinar requires a password, type Census#1. For audio,
please call the following number: 1-877-717-2157. When prompted, please
use the following Participant Code: 5229469.
Please direct all written comments via email or fax to Dee
Alexander, Tribal Affairs Coordinator, Office of Congressional and
Intergovernmental Affairs, Intergovernmental Affairs Office, U.S.
Census Bureau Washington, DC 20233; fax (301) 763-3780; or by email at
[email protected] or [email protected].
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dee Alexander, Tribal Affairs
Coordinator, Office of Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs,
Intergovernmental Affairs Office, U.S. Census Bureau, Washington, DC
20233; telephone (301) 763-9335; fax (301) 763-3780; or by email at
[email protected] or [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The Census Bureau's procedures for outreach, notice, and
consultation ensure involvement of tribes, to the extent practicable
and permitted by law, before making decisions or implementing policies,
rules, or programs that affect federally recognized tribal governments.
These meetings are open to citizens of federally recognized tribes by
invitation.
The Census Bureau's Decennial Directorate and the Intergovernmental
Affairs Office have been responsible for the development and
implementation of outreach and promotion activities to assist in
obtaining a complete and accurate census count in 2020 among all
residents, including the American Indian and Alaska Native populations.
This program is one part of the overall outreach and promotion efforts
directed at building awareness about the importance of the Census
Bureau's commitment to produce quality 2020 Census American Indian and
Alaska Native data for all tribal communities and organizations.
In accordance with Executive Order 13175, Consultation and
Coordination with Indian Tribal Governments, issued November 6, 2000,
the Census Bureau has adhered to its tribal consultation policy by
seeking the input of tribal governments in the planning and
implementation of the 2020 Census with the goal of ensuring the most
accurate counts and data for the American Indian and Alaska Native
population. The Census Bureau conducted one national tribal
consultation webinar in September 2019 and two formal tribal
consultation meetings in October 2019 and February 2020 specific to the
2020 Census Disclosure Avoidance System. The February 18 national
webinar will provide a forum for tribes to receive an update and to
provide input on the 2020 Census Disclosure Avoidance System regarding
work done specifically for the American Indian and Alaska Native tribal
areas.
For more information, please see the following URL link: https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/2020-census/planning-management/2020-census-data-products/2020-das-updates.html.
In preparation for the February 18 webinar, we are seeking comments
in response to the specific questions on the 2020 Census Disclosure
Avoidance System and the American Indian and Alaska Native Geography
Hierarchy.
Request for Comments
Question 1
How does your tribe use data from the redistricting (Pub. L. 94-
171) data product? Please be specific as to the use, variable(s), and
level(s) of geography.
Example: Our tribal government uses total population counts at the
Census tract level, as a percentage of the total state population, to
apply for state administered social assistance grants.
[[Page 6297]]
Question 2
How does your tribe use data from the Demographic Profiles and
Demographic and Housing Characteristics data products? Please be
specific as to the use, variable(s), and level(s) of geography.
Example: Our native village uses average household size and race/
ethnicity composition at the block group level to apply for state
administered housing grants, which accounted for 27% of our annual
housing assistance budget in 2019.
Question 3
With the understanding that protecting the privacy of Census
respondents requires that some uncertainty/noise be added to the data
(as it has been in prior Censuses), which of the use cases that you
identified in question #1 are most important to your tribe?
Question 4
With the understanding that protecting the privacy of Census
respondents requires that some uncertainty/noise be added to the data
(as it has been in prior Censuses), at what level of statistical
uncertainty would the tabulations included in the redistricting (Pub.
L. 94-171), Demographic Profiles, or Demographic and Housing
Characteristics files no longer be usable for the use cases that you
identified in question #1.
Example: If total population at the Census tract level differed
from the enumerated count by more than 3%, our tribe would
be obligated to rely on other data sources as evidence to support our
grant applications.'' Or ``If the AIAN Alone or in Combination
population of our county differed from the enumerated count by more
than 10 persons, we would be unable to rely upon the data for our
tribe's demographic projections because they would be less accurate
than the data we collect ourselves.
Steven D. Dillingham, Director, Bureau of the Census, approved the
publication of this Notice in the Federal Register.
Dated: January 14, 2021.
Sheleen Dumas,
Department PRA Clearance Officer, Office of the Chief Information
Officer, Commerce Department.
[FR Doc. 2021-01240 Filed 1-19-21; 8:45 am]
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