Census 2010 prep behind schedule

According to an AP report in today's Clarion Ledger, the Census Bureau is behind schedule in preparing for the upcoming 2010 count.

From the story...

With the 2010 census fast approaching, computer glitches, operational missteps and ballooning costs could overwhelm the government’s ability to conduct the once-a-decade count of the nation’s population, congressional investigators said Thursday.

Reports released by the Government Accountability Office show critical preparations for the 2010 census are behind schedule and the Census Bureau has no clear strategy for improving the count of hard-to-reach minorities.

The reports are the latest to highlight difficulties for the census, which now costs $14 billion and has been beset by partisan bickering. Disagreements over the handling of the census were part of the reason that President Barack Obama’s pick as commerce secretary, Sen. Judd Gregg, withdrew his name last month.

The GAO found that the bureau had failed to complete checks on several of its systems that are used to compile address lists that will be critical to mailing out census forms, canvassing homes and following up with people who don’t submit responses.