WASHINGTON — With the 2010 census approaching, computer glitches, operational missteps and ballooning costs could overwhelm the government’s ability to conduct the once-a-decade count of the nation’s population, congressional investigators said Thur
WASHINGTON — With the 2010 census approaching, computer glitches, operational missteps and ballooning costs could overwhelm the government’s ability to conduct the once-a-decade count of the nation’s population, congressional investigators said Thursday. Reports released by the Government Accountability Office show critical preparations for the 2010 census are behind schedule, and the Census Bureau has no clear strategy to improve its count of hard-to-reach minorities. The GAO is Congress’ investigation agency. Testifying before a House of Representatives panel, GAO officials also said the agency was suffering because it lacked a permanent director and said it needed to do a better job of hiring trained staff who could manage a budget and handle information technology systems. "They are under the gun," said Robert Goldenkoff, GAO’s director of strategic issues. The GAO’s comments are the latest to highlight difficulties for the census, which now costs $14 billion and has been beset by partisan bickering. Disagreements over the handling of the census were part of the reason President Barack Obama’s pick as commerce secretary, Republican Sen. Judd Gregg, withdrew his name last month. The Census Bureau is part of the Commerce Department. Thomas Mesenbourg, the Census Bureau’s acting director, told Congress the agency was acting to fix some of the mistakes and remained confident that preparations were on track. He noted the bureau was now training 140,000 employees for address canvassing, the first major operation in the 2010 census, which begins this month. Mesenbourg acknowledged the bureau was facing special challenges in counting minorities as well as a record number of people displaced from their homes due to the mortgage foreclosure crisis. He said the bureau would be spending part of the $1 billion it received in the economic stimulus package for expanded advertising and partnership programs with community leaders that are specifically aimed at improving outreach on the local level. "We are well on our way to a successful enumeration," Mesenbourg said. In their reports, the GAO said the bureau had failed to complete checks on several of its systems that are used to compile address lists that will be critical to mailing out census forms, canvassing homes and following up with people who do not submit responses. Investigators cited the difficulties in reaching out to Latinos and people of Middle Eastern descent, who could be particularly skittish due to immigration raids and other stepped-up law enforcement since the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks against the United States. The GAO also faulted budget planning for the census, saying the bureau lacked procedures to ensure it provided Congress "reliable cost estimates accompanied by sound justification." In its 2010 budget request, the Obama administration increased its request for Commerce Department funding by $4.5 billion to ensure it has "the resources it needs to complete the 2010 Decennial Census effectively, efficiently and on time." That money is in addition to the $1 billion the department received in the stimulus package for the census. Obama has yet to name a new Census Bureau director to lead the high-stakes count, which will be used to redraw congressional districts and distribute federal money. Last week, Obama introduced former Washington Gov. Gary Locke as his nominee for commerce secretary after Gregg withdrew. Early attention to head the Census Bureau focused on Kenneth Prewitt, a former director who led the 2000 census, but Prewitt withdrew his name from consideration last month. After Gregg was nominated in February, Black and Latino groups questioned his commitment to the Census Bureau given the senator’s past record in seeking to limit the agency’s budget. That prompted the White House to indicate it might take greater control over the bureau. Amid Republican criticism, and after the nomination of Locke, an Asian-American, the White House clarified that it will "work closely with the census director" and said the Census Bureau would not be removed from the Commerce Department.
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