Field 2 (ENTITY NAME):
Identifies the name and description of the entity of change. If the entity is not a county or equivalent area, the county name and code is listed in the parenthesis.

Field 3 (ENTITY CODES):
Identifies the individual FIPS entity codes for the affected entity. For American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian areas, the census code is used.

Field 4 (TYPE OF CHANGE):
Summarizes the type of change affecting the entity.

Field 5 (EFFECTIVE DATE):
Identifies the legal or functional effective date of change for the entity. If the change is a correction, no effective date may be entered; the effective date can be assumed to be as of January 1 of the year of the submission date.

Field 6 (EFFECTIVE YEAR):
The effective date year parsed from the effective date field.

Field 7 (EFFECTIVE MONTH):
The effective date month parsed from the effective date field.

Field 8 (EFFECTIVE DAY):
The effective date day parsed from the effective date field.

Field 9 (DESCRIPTION OF CHANGE):
Provides a more detailed description of the type of change involved and the entities affected (when applicable).

Field 10 (SOURCE):
Identifies the source of the change. Geographic changes are obtained through various Census Bureau programs, such as the annual Boundary and Annexation Survey (BAS), the Geographically Updated Population Certification Program (GUPCP), and the Participant Statistical Areas Program (PSAP). Changes also are made based on information provided directly to, or obtained by, staff in the Geographic Standards and Criteria Branch (GSCB) of the Geography Division.

Field 11 (DATE SUBMITTED):
Identifies the date the change was added to the Geographic Change Note file. This date always lags behind the date the change was actually applied to the Census Bureau’s geographic database.