# Review of Content Standard

# Codes for the Identification of the States, the District of Columbia and the Outlying Areas of the United States, and Associated Areas

**(FIPS PUB 5-2)**

# July, 2005

1.  This review is intended to assess the potential utility of content
    standards for use and potentially for inclusion in an ISO
    11179-based metadata registry. The review is directed primarily
    toward the utility of the standard itself, rather than to matching
    the standard with specific agency programs. The review covers issues
    such as the subject area, currency, quality, authority, and
    acceptance of the standards. These are factors that need to be taken
    into account no matter what the programmatic application of the
    standard may be.

## 1. Summary

## Provides a set of two-digit numeric codes and a set of two-letter alphabetic codes for representing the 50 states, the District of Columbia and the outlying areas of the U.S., and associated areas such as the Federated States of Micronesia and Marshall Islands, and the trust territory of Palau. Last updated in 1987, but still current. Is accurate and authoritative. {#provides-a-set-of-two-digit-numeric-codes-and-a-set-of-two-letter-alphabetic-codes-for-representing-the-50-states-the-district-of-columbia-and-the-outlying-areas-of-the-u.s.-and-associated-areas-such-as-the-federated-states-of-micronesia-and-marshall-islands-and-the-trust-territory-of-palau.-last-updated-in-1987-but-still-current.-is-accurate-and-authoritative. .unnumbered}

## 2. Identification of Standard {#identification-of-standard .unnumbered}

### 2.1. Title

Federal Information Processing Standard 5-2 (FIPS PUB 5-2), Codes for
the Identification of the States, the District of Columbia and the
Outlying Areas of the United States, and Associated Areas

### 2.2. Acronym

FIPS PUB 5-2

### 2.3. Web page(s), Identifier, or Contact Information:

### 2.3.1 Web page(s)

http://www.itl.nist.gov/fipspubs/by-num.htm

### 2.3.2 Identifier

FIPS 5-2

### 2.3.3 Contact Information

Office of the Chief

Geography Division

Bureau of the Census

Washington, DC 20233

### 2.4 Authority

**2.4.1 Creator**

National Institute of Standards and Technology

**2.4.2. Acceptance as authoritative**

This was the authoritative source for this standard when it was created.

### 2.5 Publisher

Formerly, copies of this publication were available for sale by the
National Technical Information Service (NTIS), U.S. Department of
Commerce, Springfield, VA 22161.

### 2.6 Language(s)

English

###  3. Content description

### 3.1 Subject area of content and area of application

The Federal Information Processing Standards Publication Series of the
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is the official
publication relating to standards and guidelines adopted and promulgated
under the provisions of Section 111(d) of the Federal Property and
Administrative Services Act of 1949 as amended by the Computer Security
Act of 1987, Public Law 100-235. These mandates have given the Secretary
of Commerce and NIST important responsibilities for improving the
utilization and management of computers and related telecommunications
systems in the Federal Government. The NIST, through its Computer
Systems Laboratory, provides leadership, technical guidance, and
coordination of Government efforts in the development of standards and
guidelines in these areas.

This standard provides a set of two-digit numeric codes and a set of
two-letter alphabetic codes for representing the 50 states, the District
of Columbia and the outlying areas of the United States, and associated
areas. The standard covers all land areas under the sovereignty of the
United States, the freely associated states of Federated States of
Micronesia and Marshall Islands, and the trust territory of Palau. This
revision supersedes FIPS PUB 5-1 in its entirety.

### 3.2 Kind of content

**Table 1: FIPS State Codes for the States and the District of
Columbia** This table provides the two-digit FIPS State Numeric Code and
the two- letter FIPS State Alpha Code for each State and the District of
Columbia. Both code sets are unchanged from the representations of Table
1 of FIPS PUB 5-1. The FIPS State Alpha Code is identical to the
two-letter U.S. Postal Service (USPS) abbreviation for each entity
listed in this table.

**Table2: FIPS State Codes for the Outlying Areas of the United States,
the Freely Associated States, and Trust Territory** This table provides
the two- digit FIPS State Numeric Code and the two-letter FIPS State
Alpha Code for each outlying area, for the freely associated states of
Federated States of Micronesia and Marshall Islands, and for the trust
territory of Palau. The latter three entities replace the Trust
Territory of the Pacific Islands. Northern Mariana Islands is now under
U.S. sovereignty. FIPS State Numeric Codes for American Samoa, Guam,
Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and Virgin Islands of the United
States are identical to those shown in FIPS PUB 5-1 for those areas. New
FIPS State Numeric Codes have been assigned to Federated States of
Micronesia, Marshall Islands, Palau, and U.S. Minor Outlying Islands.

The areas listed in Table 2 and their assigned FIPS State Alpha Codes
are identical to the U.S. outlying and associated areas and
corresponding two-letter codes specified in ISO 3166, as updated. This
international standard has been adopted as a national voluntary standard
in the United States under ANSI Z39.27-1984.

FIPS State Alpha Codes for the outlying and associated areas are not
identical in every case to the two-letter USPS abbreviations for the
same entities. USPS abbreviations are recommended for use only in
connection with addresses for mail to be delivered by the USPS, and may
be found in the most recent edition of USPS Publication 65, National
Five-Digit ZIP Code and Post Office Directory.

**Table 3: FIPS State Numeric Codes for the Individual Minor Outlying
Island Territories** This table provides the two-digit FIPS State
Numeric Codes of FIPS PUB 5-1 for the individual island territories
which form the aggregate entity U.S. Minor Outlying Islands. A FIPS
State Numeric Code in this table should be used only when an individual
territory must be uniquely identified, and a field for the FIPS County
Code is not available to be used in combination with the FIPS State Code
for U.S. Minor Outlying Islands (74 or UM). A FIPS County Code for each
territory is specified in FIPS PUB 6-4.

### 3.3 Audience(s)

Anyone who has to record information concerning addresses, locations,
etc., in the US and its territories. The objectives of this standard are
to improve the utilization of data resources of the Federal Government
and avoid unnecessary duplications and incompatibilities in the
collection, processing, and dissemination of data.

### 3.4 Related Standards

Federal Information Processing Standard 6-4 (FIPS 6-4), Counties and
Equivalent Entities of the United States, Its Possessions, and
Associated Areas, 1990.

Federal Information Processing Standard 10-4 (FIPS PUB 10-4), Countries,
Dependencies, Areas of Special Sovereignty, and Their Principal
Administrative Divisions 1995.

### 3.5 Standards Dependencies

This standard contains codes that also appear in ISO 3166-2. See the
Cmap "Geographic Standards."

**3.6 Content Quality**

The content is accurate.

### 4. Currency of Content

### 4.1 Date

1987 May 28

### 4.2 Versions, Updates

### This is Version 2, supersedes FIPS PUB 5-1, issued 1970 June 15

### 4.3 Currency

The standard is current. Presumably the maintenance authority (USGS)
will keep it current.

**5. Acceptance**

### This Federal general data element and representation standard is made available for data interchange among departments and independent agencies, and for Federal data interchange with the non- Federal sector, including industry, State, local and other governments, and the public at large.

### 6. Content details

### 6.1 Size statistics (estimated)

The standard consists of three tables with entries totaling 70 rows.

### 6.2 Format / Schemas(s)

The text file is available in html format.

### 6.3 Media / Download

Download text from:

http://www.itl.nist.gov/fipspubs/by-num.htm

### 6.4 Licensing Issues

There are no licensing issues.

### 6.5 Documentation

Although the NIST site claims that: "Copies of this publication are
available for sale by the National Technical Information Service (NTIS),
U.S. Department of Commerce, Springfield, VA 22161. When ordering,
please refer to Federal Information Processing Standards Publication
5-2(FIPSPUB5-2) and title," no listing on the NTIS site was found.