Census Bureau valiantly conducted 2020 census, but privacy method degraded quality, report says

By MIKE SCHNEIDER
Associated Press

A new report says the U.S. Census Bureau’s career staffers valiantly conducted the 2020 census under unprecedented challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic. But new privacy protocols meant to protect the confidentiality of participants degraded the resulting data. A report by a panel of experts from the National Academies released Tuesday says key innovations allowed the statistical agency to conduct the census “amidst an unceasing array of challenges.” The once-a-decade head count determines how many congressional seats and Electoral College votes each state gets and aids in the distribution of $2.8 trillion in annual spending by the federal government.