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Workshop Using American FactFinder

Data Access Tool to the American Community Survey

Southeast Economic Development Summit

Juneau, AlaskaMay 13, 2011

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(Q) Where do I find American FactFinder (AFF)?(A) www.census.gov

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(Q) What is the AFF?(A) A tool that enables one to create a query

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(Q) What data are available through the AFF?(A) Demographic and economic data for various

years at various geographies

Data sets contain different years and

geographies

Descriptions for the material in

data sets

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(Q) How do I get easy access to the data?(A) Fact Sheets give fast answers to data

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(Q) How do I get information for race or ethnicity?(A) Fact Sheets: by race, ethnicity, ancestry group

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(Q) How do I find data on a specific subject?(A) “People”: Demographic / socioeconomic data

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(Q) What housing characteristics are available?(A) Physical and financial characteristics

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(Q) Which data set should I use?(A) Depends on the year and geography you need

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Summary File 1:- 100% data- 7 race categories- includes Summary File 2 - more than 60 detailed races)

Summary File 3:- sample data on many topics- includes Summary File 4- more detailed race andancestry categories

(Q) Which data set do I choose?(A) Depends on subject, plus year and geography

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(Q) What would my query look like?(A) Steps to selecting geography and subject:

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(Q) Can I map my data results?(A) Thematic maps show geographic patterns

Map topics referred to as“themes” - Geography can be revised

on the results page fromoriginal selection

- Change the look of the map using links for features and boundaries

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- Select the type of geography - Enter the location - Click “Go”

Results show thecensus tracts for the

Zip Code/ZCTA20746

(Q) What is a reference map?(A) One that shows selected boundaries

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(Q) When will American Community Survey (ACS) data be available for various sized populations in rural areas

(a) Five-year estimates (2005-2009) are available now

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(Q) What data are on the ACS Population Profiles?(A) Housing, economic, social, and demographic

characteristics

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(Q) Where are data on businesses and industries?(A) Economic Fact Sheets provide those data

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(Q) How much detail can I get about businesses?(A) Industry data by NAICS code for sales, establishments, and number of employees --

geographic detail varies by industry

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(Q) Can I get data on business owners?(A) Gender and race data for nation, states and

some counties

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(Q) How do I know where I am in the AFF?(A) “Breadcrumbs” show present location and path

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(Q) How do I clear a query?(A) “Clear all selections” on AFF Data Sets page

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(Q) Can I download my query?(A) In a choice of many formats

Basic Exercise #1 Using AFF• Down load a Data Profile from the American

Factfinder from Data Set-American Community Survey (ACS) 2005-2009 for Wrangell City and Borough

• Hint– Main– Data Set, Select 2005-2009 AC– Geography, Select “County” from the Drop down

box, Select Alaska in the State selection box; Select Wrangell City and Borough

– Then select “Show Results”

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Basic Exercise #2• Before starting another data selection, clear

your previous selections

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Basic Exercise #2• You want to do a Geographic Comparison of

the Percent of Children under 18 years below Poverty Level in the past 12 months.– First, select the Data Set – 2005-2009 ACS– Select Geographic Comparison– Select “State for Geographic Type, Select “Alaska” for

Geographic Area; Select “State—County” for the Table Format

– Select GCT 1704, Percent of Children under Poverty Rate; then select “Show Results”

– Then Download the table in an.cvs extension– Finally select the Thematic Maps for the Percent of children

under 18 yrs below Poverty for Alaska

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Margin of Error• Margin of error (MOE)

– A margin of error is the difference between an estimate and its upper or lower confidence bounds. Confidence bounds can be created by adding the margin of error to the estimate (for an upper bound) and subtracting the margin of error from the estimate (for a lower bound). All published margins of error for the American Community Survey are based on a 90 percent confidence level.

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GCT1704: Percent of Children Under 18 Years Below Poverty Level in the Past 12 Months (For Whom Poverty Status is Determined)

Universe: Children under 18 years for whom poverty status is determined

Data Set: 2005-2009 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates

Survey: American Community Survey

Geographic Area: Alaska -- County

NOTE. For information on confidentiality protection, sampling error, nonsampling error, and definitions, see Survey Methodology.

Geographic area Percent Margin of Error (+/-)

Alaska 13 0.8

BOROUGH OR CENSUS AREA

Aleutians East Borough 18.3 7.3

Aleutians West Census Area 3.9 3

Anchorage Municipality 11 1.4

Bethel Census Area 23.4 3.2

Bristol Bay Borough 8.4 7.5

Denali Borough 6.7 8.1

Dillingham Census Area 24.5 7.2

Fairbanks North Star Borough 10.4 2.1

Haines Borough 6.4 5.5

Hoonah-Angoon Census Area 16.8 8.4

Juneau City and Borough 9.1 3.1

Kenai Peninsula Borough 12.2 2.3

Ketchikan Gateway Borough 11.7 6.2

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AmericanCommunity

Survey(ACS)

* Fundamentals*

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What is the American Community Survey?

A large, continuous survey that:

– has an initial sample of about 3 million addresses per year

– produces characteristics of population and housing

– produces estimates for small areas and small population groups

• A Survey is not a Census!

Survey Methodology & Sample Design

• Mathematical Statistics– Descriptive--Mean, Median, Standard Deviation,

Standard Errors, Confidence Levels– Inferential-Chi-square, ANOVA– Parametric versus Non-Parametric

• All statistics is chicken soup– Who knows how to make Chicken Soup?

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Developing the ACSThe ACS was developed to:

1. Focus the decennial census on improving the population count

2. Provide characteristic data more than once every 10 years

3. Allow use of more current data to measure change and detect trends

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Decennial Census• Census 2000 used 2 forms:

1.“short” form – basic demographic and housing

2.“long” form – collected more in-depth information

• Only a sample of the population received the long form

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Census 2000 and ACSSimilarities

• Most questions are the same

• Many of the same basic statistics are released

• 5-year estimates will be produced for same broad set of geographic areas– including census tracts and block groups

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Census 2000 and ACSKey Differences

• ACS data now available for larger and mid-sized areas

• ACS data for small geographic areas and population groups will be produced every year starting in 2010

• ACS data describe a period of time and published data are based on 12 months, 36 months, or 60 months

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Census 2000 and ACSData Quality

• Goal of the ACS: Produce data of comparable quality to Census 2000 long form

• ACS 5-year data– Sampling error is larger in ACS due to smaller

sample size– Non-sampling error is smaller due to:

• Lower rate of nonresponse• Higher item response rates• Permanent interviewing staff using automated data

collection

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2010 Census and the ACS

2010 Census . ACS .

• U.S. population count • U.S. population characteristics

• Short form only • Includes same short form questions as well as detailed characteristic questions

• Only long form is for U.S. territories, except Puerto Rico

• Conducted in Puerto Rico

• “Usual residence” rule • “Current residence” rule

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ACS Content• 4 types of characteristics:

– Social– Economic– Housing– Demographic

• Characteristics, not population counts

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ACS Sample Design• Sample cases selected from an updated

Master Address File (MAF)

• Sample is accumulated over TIME to produce estimates at lowest levels of geographic detail

• 5 years of data are combined to publish estimates for areas and population groups with less than 20,000 population

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Operations

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Mail Telephone Personal Visit

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Target Population• Resident population of the United States and

Puerto Rico

• Living in housing units and group quarters

• Current residents at the selected address

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Population Controls• Controls for estimates of housing units and population are

derived from estimates produced by the Population Estimates Program

• Time series of population estimates are revised annually but previously released ACS estimates are not updated

• Multiyear estimates are controlled to the average of the individual year’s estimates for the period– ACS estimates are unlikely to match any individual year’s

population estimate within the time period

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Types of ACS Estimates

Publication thresholds 1-year estimates; 3-year estimates; __5-year estimates

65,000+ people X X X

20,000+ people X X

Less than 20,000 people X

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Geographic Boundaries • Multiyear estimates are based on geographic

boundaries as of January 1 of the last year in the multiyear period

Example:2005-2007 ACS estimates use boundaries as of Jan 1, 2007

• Boundaries of other statistical areas will be updated every decade in conjunction with the decennial census

• 2010 Census boundaries for legal entities will be used for data released in 2011

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Period Estimates

• Describe the average characteristics over a specific period of time

• Contrast with point-in-time estimates – Do not describe the characteristics on a specific

date

• Period is 1 year, 3 years, or 5 years for ACS

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Data Product Population Size Data released in: of Area 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

1-Year Estimates 65,000+ 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011for Data Collected in:

3-Year Estimates 20,000+ 2005-2007 2006-2008 2007-2009 2008-2010 2009-2011for Data Collected in:

5-Year Estimates All Areas* 2005-2009 2006-2010 2007-2011for Data Collected in:

Data Product Population Size Data released in: of Area 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

1-Year Estimates 65,000+ 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011for Data Collected in:

3-Year Estimates 20,000+ 2005-2007 2006-2008 2007-2009 2008-2010 2009-2011for Data Collected in:

5-Year Estimates All Areas* 2005-2009 2006-2010 2007-2011for Data Collected in:

* Five-year estimates will be available for areas as small as census tracts and block groups.Source: US Census Bureau* Five-year estimates will be available for areas as small as census tracts and block groups.Source: US Census Bureau

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ACS Data Release Schedule

Hypothetical situation: If Census 2010 contained a long form, detailed characteristic data

would not be available until 2012

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Data Products• Profiles

– Data Profiles– Narrative Profiles– Comparison Profiles– Selected Population Profiles

• Tables– Detailed Tables– Subject Tables– Ranking Tables (states)– Geographic Comparison Tables

• Thematic Maps

• Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS) Files– 1-year and 3-year files

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Accessing ACS data American FactFinder – http://factfinder.census.gov

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The ACS Compass ProductsA Compass for Understanding and Using American Community Survey Data

Released• Businesses• Congress• Federal Agencies• General Data Users• High School Teachers• Media• Puerto Rico Community Survey

(PRCS) – in English • Public Use Microdata Sample

(PUMS)• Researchers• State and Local Governments

Released• American Indian and Alaska

Native Populations• Rural Areas• Puerto Rico Community Survey

(PRCS) – in Spanish

http://www.census.gov/acs/www/UseData/Compass/compass_series.html

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Thank you!

Seattle Regional Census CenterPartnership & Data Services19820 North Creek Parkway

Bothell, WA 98011Michael BurnsDeputy Regional DirectorMichael.p.burns@census.gov425 908-3000