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The Federal-State Cooperative for Population Projections (FSCPP)

Overview

The History of the FSCPP

The Cooperation between the Federal Government and the States on the Projections Task Force of the Federal-State Cooperative Program for local population estimates existed in the late 1970s. The Projections Task Force met in August of 1979, resulting in an agreement by the Census Bureau, the Bureau of Economic Analysis, and the State agencies to 1) establish close working relationships in the preparation of State population projections; 2) facilitate the flow of technical information on population projections between States; and 3) establish formal communications for the development of population projections for use in federal programs. A month later, the Census Bureau wrote to each State (including the District of Columbia and U.S. territories) inviting the Governor to designate an agency to represent the State in the cooperative program. By 1981, the FSCPP members identified several objectives that later become the FSCPP by-laws:

  • To promote the improvement and advancement in the techniques, methodologies, and testing of population projections and to exchange such information among the federal and state governments;
  • To encourage and promote the collection of reliable and valid statistical series from which population projections can be developed; and
  • To provide a forum for interaction between federal and state governments with regard to policies on the development and uses of population projections.

What FSCPP Agencies Do

State FSCPP agencies, designated by their respective governors, work in cooperation with the Population Projections Branch to exchange technical information on the production of Census Bureau and state agencies' subnational population projections. This exchange is facilitated by an annual meeting of the FSCPP, which focuses on the sharing of ideas and new developments in the field of population projections. The State agencies then produce independent State and local area projections using methodology and techniques that meet their specific needs.

How Projections are Used

Population projections are used to plan for the future needs of the public and private sector at the state and county level. For example, the Census Bureau's national population projections are used by federal agencies as controls to produce other projections, such as school enrollment by the National Center for Education Statistics, and to project the voting age population. Businesses use the projections to predict market shares and to plan for demographic changes in the population. The population projections produced by state agencies are used similarly in planning for State and local governments and businesses.

Page Last Revised - October 8, 2021
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