Within the test site in Providence County, Rhode Island, the Bureau set  up an area census office to administer field operations. The Bureau Experienced Operational Planning, Workforce Management, and Other Issues during Its 2018 Test of Peak Operations

		The Bureau Did Not Determine Procedures for Late-NRFU Data Collection until after It Started the Work

The Bureau began the last phase of NRFU data collection in the 2018  test without having yet determined the procedures it would use for that  critical phase. The Bureau Did Not Fully Ready Its Field Workforce for Enumeration Challenges

Census field supervisors were not integrated into casework  management. Among field supervisors’ key  responsibilities, according to the Bureau’s plan for NRFU, were providing  guidance to help enumerators understand procedural matters and to offer  coaching and problem-solving support to enumerators who may need it. Instead, enumerators and census field  managers reported having direct contact with each other over procedural  questions. Additionally, census field supervisors lacked access to certain data  streams from the test that could have helped them answer or troubleshoot  enumerator questions. Yet, the role the Bureau envisioned census field  supervisors having was not aligned with the authority supervisors were  given, the skills for which the Bureau hired them, or the access to  information that they had for the 2018 test. Enumerators did not receive training to address mid-operation  issues. Having more enumerators work weekends. The Bureau Has Made Progress but Continues to Face Challenges Addressing Implementation Issues Identified in Prior Tests

		The Bureau Has Improved Its Collection of Case Notes, but Enumerators Remain Unclear on How to Report Fieldwork Issues

We reported to the Bureau during the 2015 Census Test that information  enumerators were typing into their case notes did not appear to be  systematically used by their managers. One census field manager  described discovering several dozen cases that had been inactive where  enumerators had written case notes describing language barriers  encountered but had not specifically marked the flag within the device for  “language barrier.” Because these cases thus were not triggered for  supervisory review, they were eligible to be reassigned by the Bureau’s  standard automated system. A draft of the Bureau’s revised contact  strategy for NRFU, provided in November 2018, indicates that as part of  enumerator training in 2020 the Bureau will need to incorporate  messaging that emphasizes the importance of obtaining sufficient data  from interview attempts. We previously observed in the 2016 Census  Test that enumerators did not seem to understand the procedures for  conducting these interviews and, as a result, underutilized the  interviewing method. However, in implementing proxy interview procedures for the 2018  Census Test, the Bureau experienced a technical glitch resulting in some  confusion among some enumerators and their supervisors about related  procedures. As a result, we  recommended in January 2017 that the Bureau revise and test procedural  and training modifications as needed to aid enumerators and their  supervisors in these cases. (Recommendation 1)
The Secretary of Commerce should ensure that the Director of the  Census Bureau identifies and implements changes to align census field  supervisor screening, authorities, and information flows to allow greater  use of the census field supervisor position to provide supervisory support  to enumerators. (Recommendation 2)
The Secretary of Commerce should ensure that the Director of the  Census Bureau enables area census offices to prepare targeted, mid- operation training or guidance as needed to address procedural changes  or implementation issues encountered locally during Non-Response  Follow-Up. The Census Bureau also  provided technical comments and an update on their evaluation of the  test, which we incorporated as appropriate. Appendix I: Objectives Scope & Methodology

This report examines (1) how peak field operations were implemented  during the 2018 Census Test; and (2) the extent to which implementation  issues raised in prior 2020 Census tests have been addressed, and what  actions the Census Bureau (Bureau) is taking to address them. To address these objectives, we reviewed 2018 Census Test and 2020  Census operational planning and training documentation. To review the Bureau’s test implementation and mitigation strategies for  previously-identified implementation issues for peak operations, we  visited Providence, Rhode Island, multiple times between May and  August 2018 to observe enumerators, census field supervisors, and  management operations. To gain insight into how implementation was proceeding when we were  not directly observing test implementation, we received daily  management progress reports from the Bureau throughout the NRFU  operation testing that included information on the total number of NRFU  cases, the final outcomes of each case, and the number of cases that the  Bureau reported as completed for each day of the NRFU operation. We also  received and analyzed Bureau payroll data on enumerator hours worked  during NRFU operations.
Why GAO Did This Study

The cost of the decennial census has steadily increased over the past several decades, with self-response rates declining over the same period. The largest and costliest operation that the Bureau undertakes, NRFU is the Bureau's attempt to enumerate households not initially self-responding to the census.
GAO was asked to review NRFU implementation during the 2018 Census Test as well as the Bureau's overall readiness for peak field operations, which cover the actual enumeration of residents. This report examines (1) how peak field operations, including NRFU, were implemented during the test; and (2) the extent to which prior test implementation issues have been addressed. GAO reviewed test planning and training documentation, as well as production and payroll data. At the test site, GAO observed and interviewed enumerators, field supervisors, and managers conducting peak operations.

What GAO Found

In preparation for the 2020 census, the Census Bureau (Bureau) set out to enumerate over 140,000 housing units during the 2018 Census Test at a site in Providence County, Rhode Island. The 2018 Census Test marked the Bureau's last chance to test enumeration procedures for peak field operations under census-like conditions before 2020. Implementation of this test identified the following concerns:
The Bureau experienced operational issues during implementation of the Non-Response Follow-Up (NRFU) as part of the 2018 Census Test. For example, the Bureau had not finalized procedures for data collection during late phases of NRFU (e.g., after multiple attempts to interview had been made) until after the work had already started. As a result, enumerators and their supervisors did not have standardized procedures during the test, which made it difficult to evaluate the effectiveness of the test procedures. GAO also observed a range of other NRFU implementation issues during the test, such as the Bureau's use of progress reporting that overstates the number of NRFU cases not needing any additional fieldwork and the Bureau having fewer of its enumerators work Saturdays, which can be among the most productive interview days. The Bureau is taking steps to assess and mitigate these and other issues that GAO identified.
The Bureau's field workforce was not fully prepared to face all of the enumeration challenges that arose during the test. For instance, the Bureau expects census field supervisors to provide front-line coaching to enumerators but did not screen these employees to ensure they had the needed skills. Moreover, it did not provide them with the authorities and information that would have helped them serve that role. As a result, we believe that supervisors did not have the casework expertise, information, or authority to help enumerators with procedural questions, and higher-level census field managers ended up providing direct support to enumerators.
While the Bureau provided extensive online and in-person training to enumerators prior to NRFU fieldwork for the 2018 Census Test, the Bureau lacked any standardized form of mid-operation training or guidance as new procedures were implemented. GAO observed that during the test some enumerators continued to have questions and were uncertain about procedures. Developing targeted, location-specific training could help ensure that, in 2020, enumerators receive the guidance they need to collect census data consistently and in accordance with NRFU procedures.
The Bureau has made progress addressing prior test implementation issues but still faces challenges. For example, the Bureau improved its collection of enumerator case notes, which reflect real-time knowledge gained during enumeration. However, enumerators did not always report cases using flags built in to their interviewing device that would benefit from supervisory review, such as for language barriers. Moreover, supervisors were not systematically analyzing case notes to identify cases not flagged properly. As a result, critical data on fieldwork challenges were not being communicated effectively to those who could analyze and use them.

What GAO Recommends

GAO recommends that the Bureau (1) determine procedures for late-NRFU data collection; (2) align census field supervisor screening, authorities, and information flows; (3) prepare for targeted mid-operation training or guidance as needed; and (4) improve training on reporting cases that need supervisory attention and alternative ways to communicate these cases.
The Department of Commerce agreed with GAO's findings and recommendations, and the Bureau provided technical comments that were incorporated as appropriate.