The goal of Group Quarters Enumeration is to count people in the 2018 Census Test who live in group quarters. Group quarters are places where people live or stay, in a group living arrangement, owned or managed by an entity or organization providing housing and/or services for the residents. These services may include custodial or medical care as well as other types of assistance, and residency is commonly restricted to those receiving these services. This is not a typical household-type living arrangement. People living in group quarters are usually not related to each other.

The Group Quarters Enumeration will be conducted from July 30, 2018, through August 15, 2018. Census Bureau staff will visit group quarters during that time to count the population who were living or staying at the facility on April 1, 2018.

The Group Quarters Enumeration for the 2018 Census Test will be conducted in Providence County, Rhode Island.

The Group Quarters Enumeration interview with each person for the 2018 Census Test will take approximately 10 minutes.

This census test is designed to gain insight into streamlining data collection processes to count the GQ population for the 2020 Census. The Census Bureau will study various enumeration options, including eResponse that offers GQ staff the capability to electronically transmit requested data directly to the U.S. Census Bureau through a secure system. In addition to eResponse, the Census Bureau will study procedures for processing data collected on paper listings of requested data, implementing new field procedures, and making work assignments using an operational control system.

The type of data collected for the Group Quarters Enumeration for the 2018 Census Test are name, sex, date of birth, age on Census Day, Hispanic origin, race, and an alternate address where they live or stay when not at a facility.

Yes, a respondent is required to participate in the 2018 Census Test by completing the census questionnaire or eResponse template. The Census Bureau will collect respondent data using the enumeration methods identified in question 8 below for each individual living or staying at a group quarters.

The types of enumeration options available during the Group Quarters Enumeration for the 2018 Census Test are:

Electronic Response Data Transfer (eResponse): The Group Quarters (GQ) contact person will be provided with a unique User ID to submit census response data to a secure portal for each person who was living or staying at the facility on Census Day.

In-person Interview: A Census Bureau worker will conduct a face-to-face interview with each person who was served or was staying at the facility on Census Day. This option is available to both SBE-GQ’s and non-SBE GQ’s.

Drop Off/Pick Up of Questionnaire: A Census Bureau worker will leave census questionnaires with the GQ contact person for them to distribute to each person who was served or staying at the facility on Census Day. Then, a Census Bureau worker will pick up the completed questionnaires from the contact person on another agreed upon time.

Facility Self-Enumeration: A Census Bureau worker will swear in and train the GQ contact person, and leave a census questionnaire package to conduct the enumeration for each person who was living or staying at the facility on Census Day. A Census Bureau worker will return to pick up the questionnaires at an agreed upon time. Only correctional and health care facilities can select this option.

Paper Response Data Collection: A Census Bureau worker will meet with the GQ contact person of the facility to obtain a paper listing of census response data for each person who was served or staying at the facility on Census Day. Shelters and non-service-based GQs will be allowed to select this method.

The Census Bureau is required by law to protect your information (Title 13, U.S. Code, Section 9). The Census Bureau is not permitted to publicly release your responses in a way that could identify you or your facility. We are conducting the census under the authority of Title 13, U.S. Code, Sections 141, 193, 221, and 223. Federal law protects your privacy and keeps your answers confidential (Title 13, U.S. Code, Section 9). Per the Federal Cybersecurity Enhancement Act of 2015, your data are protected from cybersecurity risks through screening of the systems that transmit your data. All web data submissions are encrypted in order to protect your privacy.

For more information about how we protect your information, please visit our website at census.gov and click on "Data Protection and Privacy Policy" at the bottom of the home page. This page also includes information about the collection, storage, and use of these records; click on "System of Records Notices (SORN)" and look for Privacy Act System of Records Notice COMMERCE/CENSUS-5, Decennial Census Program.

Yes, your participation is mandatory. The U.S. Constitution directs the Census Bureau to conduct a complete count of all people living in the United States every 10 years. Census information helps in determining how federal, state, local, and tribal governments make decisions affecting the people of this country and how over $675 billion of taxpayers’ money are allocated by the government. Participating in the census is in everyone’s best interest. People who answer the census help their communities obtain state and federal funding for neighborhood improvements, such as deciding where to build schools, hospitals, and roads, or about services for the elderly, job training, and more. The best way to make sure that everyone in your facility is counted in the census is to encourage individuals living or staying in your facility to participate with Census Bureau workers in filling out the form or for you to provide a paper listing or upload a completed eResponse template with requested data for all individuals living or staying in your facility.