IIB 
117TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 8326 
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 
SEPTEMBER 19, 2022 
Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and 
Governmental Affairs 
AN ACT 
To amend title 13, United States Code, to improve the 
operations of the Bureau of the Census, and for other 
purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Ensuring a Fair and 
Accurate Census Act’’. 
SEC. 2. MODIFICATION OF CERTAIN BUREAU OF THE CEN-
SUS AUTHORITIES. 
(a) BUDGET REQUESTS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter I of chapter 1 of 
title 13, United States Code, is amended by insert-
ing after section 13 the following: 
‘‘§ 14. Budget requests 
‘‘(a) With respect to the budget request of the Bu-
reau for fiscal year 2027 and each fiscal year thereafter 
submitted to the President for inclusion in the annual 
budget submission under section 1105(a) of title 31, the 
Director shall include in such request to the Secretary the 
estimated costs of carrying out the duties of the Bureau 
during the five-year period beginning on the fiscal year 
covered by such request. 
‘‘(b) On the date that the estimate of costs is sub-
mitted to the Secretary under subsection (a), the Director 
shall submit such estimate to the Committee on Oversight 
and Reform of the House of Representatives, the Com-
mittee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs 
of the Senate, the Committees on the Budget of the House 
of Representatives and the Senate, and the Committees 
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on Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the 
Senate.’’. 
(2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec-
tions for such subchapter is amended by inserting 
after the item relating to section 13 the following 
new item: 
‘‘14. Budget requests.’’. 
(b) DUTIES.—Section 21(c) of title 13, United States 
Code, is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(c) DUTIES.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Director shall perform 
such duties as may be imposed upon the Director by 
law, regulations, or orders of the Secretary. The Di-
rector shall report directly to the Deputy Secretary 
of Commerce. 
‘‘(2) DECENNIAL
CENSUS.—Any operational, 
statistical, or technical decision for any decennial 
census of population may be made only by the Direc-
tor.’’. 
(c) ADVISORY COMMITTEES; DEPUTY DIRECTOR.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Section 21 of title 13, 
United States Code, as amended by subsection (b), 
is further amended— 
(A) in the section heading, by striking 
‘‘duties’’ and inserting ‘‘Deputy Director; 
advisory committees’’; and 
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(B) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(d) DEPUTY DIRECTOR.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There shall be in the Bu-
reau a single Deputy Director of the Bureau, to be 
appointed by the Director. The position of Deputy 
Director shall be a career reserved position (as that 
term is defined in section 3132(a)(8) of title 5). The 
Deputy Director shall be selected from among any 
career appointee (as that term is defined in section 
3132(a)(4) of such title) at any agency. The indi-
vidual appointed to the position of Deputy Director 
shall be made from individuals who have a dem-
onstrated ability in managing large organizations 
and experience in the collection, analysis, and use of 
statistical data. 
‘‘(2) FUNCTIONS.—The Deputy Director shall 
perform such functions as the Director shall des-
ignate. During any absence or disability of the Di-
rector, the Deputy Director shall act as Director. 
‘‘(3) VACANCY.—In the event of a vacancy in 
the office of Director, or when the Director is absent 
or unable to serve, the Deputy Director shall act as 
Director until a Director is appointed. If no indi-
vidual is serving as Deputy Director, the highest 
level career employee of the Bureau shall act as Di-
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rector until a Deputy Director or Director is ap-
pointed. This paragraph shall serve as the exclusive 
means of designating an acting Director. 
‘‘(4) CENSUS EQUITY OFFICIAL.—The Deputy 
Director shall appoint an employee within the Bu-
reau, who shall report directly to the Deputy Direc-
tor, and who shall be responsible for optimizing ra-
cial and ethnic equity in the decennial census of pop-
ulation, including by— 
‘‘(A) enhancing outreach to, and collabo-
rating with, organizations and stakeholders that 
have demonstrated their influence with racial 
and ethnic communities that historically have 
had census participation rates that are lower 
than those of the overall population; 
‘‘(B) maximizing participation among ra-
cial and ethnic demographic cohorts that have 
historically had census participation rates that 
are lower than those of the overall population; 
‘‘(C) rectifying the undercount of cohorts 
of the population that have been undercounted 
in recent decennial census counts; and 
‘‘(D) any other strategies, initiatives, ac-
tivities, or operations that would optimize such 
equity. 
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‘‘(e) ADVISORY COMMITTEES.— 
‘‘(1) GENERAL
AUTHORITY.—In accordance 
with the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. 
App.), and subject to paragraph (2), the Director 
may establish advisory committees to provide advice 
with respect to the mission of the Bureau. Members 
of any such committee, including a committee estab-
lished under paragraph (2), shall serve without com-
pensation, but shall be entitled to transportation ex-
penses and per diem in lieu of subsistence in accord-
ance with section 5703 of title 5. 
‘‘(2) SPECIFIC ADVISORY COMMITTEES.— 
‘‘(A) BUREAU OF THE CENSUS ADVISORY 
COMMITTEE ON STATISTICAL QUALITY STAND-
ARDS.—The Director shall appoint a committee, 
to be known as the ‘Advisory Committee on 
Statistical Quality Standards’, composed of five 
members to review and provide recommenda-
tions on the statistical quality standards of the 
Bureau that guide the production and release of 
all Bureau decennial census products. 
‘‘(B) NATIONAL
ADVISORY
COMMITTEE 
AND SCIENTIFIC ADVISORY COMMITTEE.—There 
are hereby established the Bureau of the Cen-
sus Scientific Advisory Committee and the Cen-
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sus Bureau National Advisory Committee on 
Racial, Ethnic, and Other Populations, as de-
scribed in the charters for each such committee 
published on March 15, 2022, and March 23, 
2022, respectively, or any subsequent charters. 
Such advisory committees shall operate under 
the terms and conditions set forth in the appli-
cable charter. 
‘‘(C) 
2030 
CENSUS
ADVISORY
COM-
MITTEE.—The Director shall appoint an advi-
sory committee, substantially similar to the 
2010 Census Advisory Committee, consisting of 
up to 20 member organizations to address pol-
icy, research, and technical issues related to the 
design and implementation of the 2030 decen-
nial census and the American Community Sur-
vey.’’. 
(2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec-
tions for subchapter II of chapter 1 of such title is 
amended by striking the item relating to section 21 
and inserting the following: 
‘‘21. Director of the Census; Deputy Director; advisory committees.’’. 
(d) POSITION REQUIREMENTS.—Section 22 of title 
13, United States Code, is amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘All permanent’’ and inserting 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—All permanent’’; and 
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(2) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(b) POSITIONS.—Each position within the Bureau 
shall be a career position within the civil service, except 
for the position of the Director and not more than three 
other positions.’’. 
SEC. 3. LIMITATIONS AND REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DE-
CENNIAL CENSUS. 
Section 141 of title 13, United States Code, is 
amended— 
(1) by redesignating subsection (g) as sub-
section (i); and 
(2) by inserting after subsection (f) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(g) LIMITATIONS AND REQUIREMENTS.— 
‘‘(1) NOTICE
TO
CONGRESS
OF
SUBJECTS, 
TYPES OF INFORMATION, AND QUESTIONS.—In the 
2030 decennial census of population and each decen-
nial census thereafter, the Secretary may not include 
any subject, type of information, or question that 
was not submitted to Congress in accordance with 
subsection (f). 
‘‘(2) BIANNUAL REPORTS.— 
‘‘(A) SUBMISSION
TO
CONGRESS.—Not 
later than April 1 of the calendar year begin-
ning after the date of enactment of the Ensur-
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ing a Fair and Accurate Census Act and bian-
nually thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to 
Congress a report that— 
‘‘(i) describes each component of the 
operational plan for the subsequent decen-
nial census of population; and 
‘‘(ii) includes a detailed statement on 
the status of all research, testing, and op-
erations that are part of the Bureau’s com-
prehensive plan for the decennial census, 
and including a detailed statement on the 
status of any initiatives, developments, and 
operations within the purview of the offi-
cial appointed by the Deputy Director 
under section 21(d)(4). 
‘‘(B) INTERNET
PUBLICATION.—On the 
date on which the Secretary submits a report 
under subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall 
publish the report on the public internet website 
of the Bureau. 
‘‘(3) SECRETARY CERTIFICATION.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, upon 
the date of submission of the report required by 
subsection (f)(2), shall submit, to the commit-
tees of Congress having legislative jurisdiction 
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over the census, a certification stating that any 
question that has not appeared on the previous 
two decennial censuses has been researched, 
studied, and tested according to established sta-
tistical policies and procedures. 
‘‘(B) GAO REVIEW.—Not later than 6 
months after the Secretary submits a certifi-
cation under paragraph (2), the Comptroller 
General of the United States shall review such 
certification and submit a report to Congress on 
whether the questions to be included in the cen-
sus have been researched, studied, and tested 
according to established statistical policies and 
procedures.’’; and 
(3) in subsection (i), as so redesignated, by in-
serting ‘‘DEFINITION.—’’ before ‘‘As used in’’. 
SEC. 4. DECENNIAL CENSUS LIFECYCLE COST ESTIMATES. 
Section 141 of title 13, United States Code, as 
amended by section 3, is further amended by inserting 
after subsection (g) the following: 
‘‘(h) LIFECYCLE COSTS.— 
‘‘(1) ESTIMATE.—Not later than January 1, 
2026, and every ten years thereafter, the Director 
shall transmit to the chairs of the committees de-
scribed in paragraph (3) a lifecycle cost estimate for 
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the decennial census of population first occurring 
after the date of such transmittal. Such estimate 
shall include the following with respect to such 
lifecycle: 
‘‘(A) An estimate of costs by each fiscal 
year. 
‘‘(B) Estimates of capital versus operating 
expenses. 
‘‘(C) Staffing projections for each year. 
‘‘(D) Assumptions about response rates, 
wages, and other economic variables. 
‘‘(2) UPDATE.—On the date the President sub-
mits the annual budget under section 1105(a) of 
title 31 during any calendar year a decennial of cen-
sus of population is taken under this section, and on 
the date such annual budget is submitted during the 
immediately preceding four calendar years, the Di-
rector shall transmit a report describing any changes 
to the applicable lifecycle estimate transmitted under 
paragraph (1). Such report shall include the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(A) The basis for any such changes. 
‘‘(B) Projected impacts on response rates, 
staffing requirements, or costs throughout the 
lifecycle. 
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