This memorandum documents the 2020 Census Program decision to use a Commercial Off-the-Shelf (COTS) platform as part of Census Enterprise Data Collection and Processing Program (CEDCaP) for the data collection component of the Business Solution Architecture. The 2020 Census Business Solution Architecture will consist of a combination of CEDCaP and non-CEDCaP systems, to support the overall 2020 Census program.

In 2012, the Census Bureau embarked on an initiative to create an enterprise-wide approach to data collection and processing. In the past, survey and census programs created their own collection and processing systems. The Census Bureau would build, buy or lease the technology needed to complete a successful census. This led to duplication by having custom systems all performing similar functions. Creating an enterprise-wide approach to data collection and processing that is adaptable based on each customer's needs will lead to a more streamlined workflow for Census Bureau programs focused on the 2020 Census. In planning for the 2020 Census, as an organization we examined how we could leverage the developed tools and methodologies planned for the 2020 Census across all programs at the Census Bureau.

The 2020 Census Operational Plan laid out a series of tests and decision points that the Census Bureau will make in the years leading up to the 2020 Census to develop innovative and efficient methods to increase the response rates, decrease the number of door-to-door interviews, raise workforce productivity, and streamline operations without sacrificing the accuracy of the census. These changes have the potential to save taxpayer money (compared to the cost of repeating 2010 methods in 2020), maintain accuracy and reduce the burden on respondents. To achieve this, the 2020 Census Program will rely on many of the systems covered by the CEDCaP approach as one part of the overall Business Solution Architecture.