Bureau of the Census' Planning, Budgeting, and Accounting for the 1980 Census

The estimates for the Bureau of the Census' 1980 census are discussed with emphasis on the Bureau's planned procedures to reduce the population undercount. Bureau records indicate a planned expenditure of about $920 million for the 1980 census. When anticipated inflation is considered, it is likely that the 1980 census will cost about $1 billion. The increase of $331 million above the 1970 census expenditures is attributed to inflation and a larger workload due to increased population. A coverage improvement program of some sort is probably necessary to prevent backsliding in the population count; however, there will always be a margin of indeterminancy in counting the population that cannot be resolved. Attempting to eliminate the undercount is a classic example of increasing investment with diminishing returns. The question is whether the incremental benefits justify the incremental costs of the Bureau's planned improvements, estimated at $367 million, for the 1980 census. The most recent review shows that the information available provided little assurance of appreciable improvements in the 1980 population count.