As we come to the end of fiscal year 2018, we have started strategic planning for the 2020 Integrated Partnership and Communications Program (IPC). We are now poised to award key activities on the Team Y&R contract in important areas including: Statistics in Schools (SIS), Creative, Media, Recruitment, Campaign Optimization, 2020 Website, Social Media, PR/Crisis Communication, and Partnership Support. These will be in place by the end of October and we are now well positioned to kick the communications program into high gear. In addition, there was a joint Creative Strategy Workshop held at the end of September, with Census and Team Y&R, to develop the creative brief for the multicultural sub contractors creative development teams to direct the development of the campaign platform. The Creative Testing Study Plan for the platform is currently being reviewed by the Office of Management and Budget. This work was advanced from 2019 into 2018 due to the ability to buy down risk afforded by the 2018 Omnibus.

An important component of the IPC will be the National Partnership Program which is starting to ramp up. We have identified 432 organizations as potential keystone partners—the initial group of national organizations being approached to support the 2020 Census. As of the end of September, 78 of these organizations have agreed to support the 2020 Census. Some of the high‐profile organizations include Facebook and Google and an additional 96 organizations have expressed an interest in learning more about the National Partnership Program. We have a vision of hundreds of corporations, national organizations, nonprofit organizations, and advocacy groups helping us get the census done at the national level and across the country.

Also of note, the Field Recruitment Webpage went live on September 4, allowing the public to review and apply for positions in the six Regional Census Centers and the 40 early opening Area Census Offices. This will also get applicants into the hiring pool for the Address Canvassing listing positions.

Our work around cybersecurity and systems readiness is moving in a positive direction as well. We have continued assessments of Active Cyberdefense tools in support of Authorization to Operate (ATO). The Technical Staff Operational Delivery Kickoff for the 2020 Census was held on September 18.

Finally, we are proceeding with our 2018 End‐to‐End Test post‐enumeration work to tabulate and process data in order to develop the pilot data product, which we will produce next spring. Details of the program follow.