GALLUP NEWS SERVICE
PRINCETON, NJ -- The majority of Americans are skeptical that the information they provide in the forthcoming U.S. Census will be kept confidential, but almost all Americans nevertheless say they plan to participate and fill out their Census forms, and the vast majority think the Census is a useful process.
The official head-count date for the constitutionally mandated decennial U.S. Census is April 1. The process has already started, however, and as forms are being mailed out on Monday, March 13, census takers will begin the process of counting Americans in hard-to-reach areas such as Indian reservations and rural locations.
The Census Bureau has been promoting participation in the Census through ads in newspapers and on television. A little more than a third of Americans reported having seen such ads on television as of a CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll conducted February 25-27, but 74% of those polled at that time said they were aware of the fact that they would be receiving the government questionnaire to fill out for the year 2000 Census. And, in what must be encouraging news for those running the Census, 96% of Americans interviewed in the survey said they plan on filling out the questionnaire and sending it back. In short, there are apparently very few Americans who have philosophical or practical objections to the Census process.
A somewhat smaller, but still substantial, percentage of Americans -- 83% -- agree that the Census is useful, and about the same number say that it really matters that they fill out the Census questionnaire. (Those who are least convinced about the usefulness of the Census include Americans 65 years of age and older, those with lower levels of education and those with lower incomes.)
Privacy Is Legally Mandated, but Americans Are
Skeptical
The Census Bureau is very careful to point out in its promotional
materials that "By law, the Census Bureau cannot share your answers
with the IRS, FBI, Welfare, Immigration -- or any other government
agency." The Bureau goes on to point out that no court of law, nor
even the president himself, can have access to Census
information.
A significant number of Americans don't buy into this privacy pledge, however. In fact, only 43% of Americans say they believe the Census Bureau's claims about confidentiality. Exactly half say that despite the law, the Census Bureau will end up sharing the information with other government agencies like the Internal Revenue Service.
The interesting -- if not paradoxical -- finding, of course, is that almost all Americans, despite these skepticisms, say they will be filling out the forms anyway. Ninety-five percent of those who doubt that their data will be kept private still say that they will mail their forms back in, little different from those who believe the government claims of privacy. Americans either simply don't care if their information is shared, or perhaps they assume that other government agencies have so much personal information already that additional data from the Census may not matter.
Recent publicity about major computer hackings and invasions of Internet sites has apparently done nothing to encourage Americans to feel that their data will be safe from hackers attempting to get into Census Bureau computers. Only 32% of Americans say that the Census Bureau will be able to protect Census information from hackers; 60% say that hackers will be able to get the information.
Survey Methods
The results below are based on telephone interviews with a randomly
selected national sample of 1,004 adults, 18 years and older,
conducted February 25-27, 2000. For results based on this sample,
one can say with 95 percent confidence that the maximum error
attributable to sampling and other random effects is plus or minus
3 percentage points. In addition to sampling error, question
wording and practical difficulties in conducting surveys can
introduce error or bias into the findings of public opinion
polls.
Were you aware that your household will be receiving in the mail sometime soon a government questionnaire to fill out for the year 2000 Census?
| Yes, aware | No, not aware | No opinion | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 Feb 25-27 | 74% | 26 | * |
Do you plan to fill out the Census questionnaire and send it back?
| Yes, plan to fill out | No, do not | No opinion | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 Feb 25-27 | 96% | 2 | 2 |
Do you believe the Census Bureau when it says the information you give about yourself will be kept confidential, or do you think the Census Bureau will share the information with other government agencies like the Internal Revenue Service?
| Yes, believe the Census | No, do not believe theCensus | No opinion | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 Feb 25-27 | 43% | 50 | 7 |
Do you think the Census Bureau will be able to protect the information you gave about yourself, or do you think computer hackers will be able to get that information?
| Yes, will protect | No, will not | No opinion | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 Feb 25-27 | 32% | 60 | 8 |
Do you think it really matters whether you fill out the questionnaire or not?
| Yes, it matters | No, it does not | No opinion | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 Feb 25-27 | 82% | 16 | 2 |
Do you think the Census is useful, or do you think it's a waste of money?
| Useful | Waste of money | No opinion | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 Feb 25-27 | 83% | 14 | 3 |
Have you happened to see any television ads in recent weeks by the Census, encouraging citizens to return their Census forms, or have you not seen these ads?
| Yes, have seen | No, have not seen | No opinion | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 Feb 25-27 | 37% | 62 | 1 |
* Less than 0.5%