Billions of government and business dollars are divided among states, communities, and population groups based on their demographic, social, economic, and housing profiles. The federal government uses such information to manage programs. Communities use it for economic development, decisions about their future such as locating schools and expanding roads, and to see how they are doing compared with others. When the American Community Survey is in full operation, the information will be comparable across the nation s communities, and this provides a basis for distribution of public funds.
Timely information helps put resources where they are needed.
Accurate, timely, and comparable information can help policy makers measure the results of their efforts and better determine future strategies for community development.