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Census.govNewsroomReleases2010 Census

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**CB06-CT.03**
**Contact:**  Public Information Office(301) 763-3030 (phone)(301) 763-3762 (fax)(301) 457-1037 (TDD)PIO@census.gov

## FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:  THURSDAY, JANUARY 19, 2006

## Census Bureau Selects Sites for Census Dress Rehearsal

### *Local Communities to Gain Temporary Jobs*

San Joaquin County, Calif., and the city of Fayetteville, N.C., and surrounding area -                     a nine-county region in North Carolina - have been selected                     by the U.S. Census Bureau to serve in 2008 as the dress rehearsal                     sites for the 2010 Census.

The dress rehearsal also will                     bring more than 4,000 temporary jobs and provide residents                     of the test areas an opportunity to participate in an event                     that will help the Census Bureau produce more accurate counts                     of the people and housing units in their community and across                     the nation in 2010.

"Our goal for the 2010                     Census is to provide up-to-date information," said Census                     Bureau Director Louis Kincannon. "This information helps                     communities to get money for needed roads, schools, hospitals                     and more; upgrade services in child care, health, education                     and recreation; plan effectively for the future and enhance                     overall quality of life."

The dress rehearsal in 2008 will                     help the Census Bureau ensure a more accurate and cost-effective                     2010 Census by demonstrating the methods to be used in the                     nation’s decennial headcount.

The main goal of the dress rehearsal                     is to fine-tune the various operations planned for the decennial                     census in 2010 under as close to census-like conditions as                     possible. Many aspects of the 2010 Census design, including                     the use of hand-held computers, have been tested nationally                     or in selected local areas over the past four years.

San Joaquin County, just south                     of Sacramento, was selected because it presented an urban                     location with a multilingual population and an assortment                     of group quarters housing such as hospitals, college residence                     halls, nursing homes, prisons and facilities for the homeless.

The Fayetteville area site was                     selected for the dress rehearsal because it is a mix of both                     urban, suburban and rural areas and has two military bases                     (Fort Bragg and Pope Air Force Base). The following nine counties                     in North Carolina are part of the selected site: Chatham,                     Cumberland, Harnett, Hoke, Lee, Montgomery, Moore, Richmond                     and Scotland.

Sites in the dress rehearsal                     provide a comprehensive environment for demonstrating and                     refining planned 2010 Census operations and activities such                     as the use of GPS-equipped hand-held computers and mailing                     replacement questionnaires.

"This is an opportunity                     for the Census Bureau to conduct an operational test of the                     overall design of the 2010 Census. While we have tested certain                     parts of the plan, the dress rehearsal is our first opportunity                     to see how well all of the pieces fit together," said                     Kincannon. 

He added that all housing units                     would receive a census short form that takes about 10 minutes                     to complete.

The 2010 Census will be a short-form-only                     census. The nationwide implementation of the American Community                     Survey in 2005 replaced the need for a long-form questionnaire                     in 2010.

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