Census Handhelds 'So 2010'

With its 2010 decennial count well underway, the Census Bureau already is looking forward to the next challenge: planning for 2020. According to the bureau's head, the next count will incorporate more technology than what currently is being used.

In a press conference this week, Census Bureau Director Robert Groves said that an Internet response option, along with portable technologies to ease door-to-door counts, are a must for the 2020 decennial census. The bureau originally planned to give employees handheld computers but scrapped the idea in part due to cost concerns.

"We have no idea what it's going to look like," Groves said. "So, a handheld is going to be so 2010 by the time we talk about the 2020 census. We'll have a different word for it, but it'll be there."

Groves also said that people will have the opportunity to complete questionnaires via the Internet, but he doesn't believe that many will forgo the paper option, nor that responses will increase drastically with an online component.

The Census Bureau has been plagued by technology problems. In addition to concerns about handheld devices, its software systems earlier this spring experienced technical bugs that threatened to slow progress. But Groves reported that the bureau has processed 47,000,000 forms as planned.

"It worked," he said. "It wasn't pretty, but it worked, and we have successfully completed that phase."