2014 ACS Data Users Conference, May 2014

Nearly 300 ACS data users attended the inaugural ACS Data Users Conference, held May 29-30, 2014, at the Holiday Inn Capitol in Washington, D.C. The program included more than 40 contributed presentations by ACS data users, an invited plenary session by top Census Bureau staff, and keynote addresses by Dr. Mark Doms, Under Secretary for Economic Affairs at the U.S. Department of Commerce; and John H. Thompson, director of the U.S. Census Bureau. The purpose of the conference was to facilitate information sharing among data users about key ACS data issues and applications and to promote networking. The conference was organized by the Population Reference Bureau and Sabre Systems in partnership with staff from the U.S. Census Bureau.

Conference Sessions
  • Plenary session featuring presentations by top U.S. Census Bureau staff
  • Aggregating ACS Estimates and Calculating Margins of Error
  • Using ACS in GIS and Data Visualization Applications
  • Keynote addresses by Dr. Mark Doms, Under Secretary for Economic Affairs at the U.S. Department of Commerce; and John H. Thompson, director of the U.S. Census Bureau
  • Applications of ACS Data for Income and Poverty
  • Applications of ACS Data for Employment and Commuting
  • Applications of ACS Data for Health Insurance and Disability
  • Housing Applications Using ACS Data
  • Using ACS Data from NHGIS, Summary Files, IPUMS, PUMS, and Custom Tabulations
  • Using the ACS to Look at Small Population Groups and Trends Over Time
  • Issues and Limitations in Using Small-Area ACS Data
  • Applications of ACS Data for Migration Patterns and Trends

View/Download 2014 ACS Conference Presentations

Thursday, May 29, 2014
8:45 AM – 10:15 AM Plenary Session

Welcoming Remarks Dr. Nancy A. Potok, Deputy Director and Chief Operating Officer, U.S. Census Bureau 

VIDEO

Introduction to ACS and 2020 Census Programs | Frank A. Vitrano, Associate Director for Decennial Census Programs, U.S. Census Bureau

VIDEO

2020 Census UpdatesLisa M. Blumerman, Assistant Director for Decennial Census Programs, U.S. Census Bureau

VIDEO   0358.blumerman.pdf

2014 Internet Test Update and Content Review Update | James B. Treat, Chief, American Community Survey Office, U.S. Census Bureau

VIDEO   7318.treat.pdf


10:30 AM – 12:00 PM Breakout Session 1
Aggregating ACS Estimates and Calculating Margins of Error

Improving the Reliability of ACS Estimates for Non-Standard Geographies Used in Local Decision Making | Warren BrownJoe Francis, and Xiaoling Li, Cornell University ; and Jonnell Robinson, Syracuse University

VIDEO   Brown.pdf


Improving the Accuracy of Block Group Data from the American Community Survey | Ken Hodges, Nielsen

VIDEO   5314.hodges.pdf


Navigating Reliability of Small Area Data – Lessons from NYC | Joel A. Alvarez and Joseph J. Salvo, New York City Department of City Planning
VIDEO   Alvarez.pdf

Accounting for Group Classification Error in Variance Estimates Using the American Community Survey | Matthew W. Brault, U.S. Census Bureau
VIDEO   brault.pdf

10:30 AM – 12:00 PM Breakout Session 2 

Using ACS in GIS and Data Visualization Applications

Sources of ACS Data through Online GIS Tools | Elizabeth Nash, PolicyMap
VIDEO   nash.pdf


Using ACS Data within ArcGIS Online for Organizations | John Parker, Iowa Legislative Services Agency

VIDEO   Parker.pdf


Using PostGIS and QGIS for the Management and Geovisualization of ACS Data | Lee Hachadoorian, Dartmouth College

VIDEO   Hachadoorian.pdf


1:15 PM – 1:40 PM Keynote Addresses

Dr. Mark Doms, Under Secretary for Economic Affairs, U.S.
Department of Commerce


John H. Thompson, Director, U.S. Census Bureau

VIDEO

1:45 PM – 3:15 PM Breakout Session 3
Applications of ACS Data for Income and Poverty

Setting New Standards in the Use of Income and Poverty Estimates from the ACS | Katherine Nesse, Kansas State University and Mallory Rahe, Oregon State University

VIDEO   nesse.pdf    nesse_handout.pdf

The Virginia Poverty Measure: Using the ACS to Refine Our Measurement of Economic Security | Annie Rorem and Megan Juelfs-Swanson, Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service, University of Virginia

VIDEO   Rorem.pdf


Using the ACS and PRCS to Estimate State-Level WIC Eligibility | Paul Johnson and Erika Huber, The Urban Institute

VIDEO   huber.pdf


Improving Occupation Earnings Estimates Through Segregation of Education Levels | David Gibson, Vocational Economics, Inc.

VIDEO   Gibson.pdf   gibson_handout1.pdf    gibson_handout2.pdf

1:45 PM – 3:15 PM Breakout Session 4
Applications of ACS Data for Employment and Commuting


The EEO Tabulation: Measuring Diversity in the Workplace | Ana J. Montalvo, U.S. Census Bureau

VIDEO   montalvo.pdf

ACS Labor Participation as a Barometer for Retirement | Nicole Dunn, Thomas P. Miller and Associates

VIDEO   dunn.pdf


Workplace Geocoding Issues with ACS | Elaine Murakami and Ed Christopher, Federal Highway Administration; and Charles Baber, Baltimore Metropolitan Council

Murakami.pdf

Using ACS Data in Promoting and Advocating for Bicycling | Kenneth McLeod and Darren Flusche, The League of American Bicyclists

VIDEO   McLeod.pdf

Factors Associated with the Bicycle Commute Use of Newcomers: An Analysis of the 70 Largest U.S. Cities | Ryan J. Dann, Portland State University

VIDEO   Dann.pdf

3:30 PM –5:00 PM Breakout Session 5
Applications of ACS Data for Health Insurance and Disability


Using ACS Data to Prepare for Affordable Care Act Implementation | Ricardo Gutierrez, County of San Diego

VIDEO   Gutierrez.pdf

Medicaid Undercount in the American Community Survey | Joanna Turner, University of Minnesota - SHADAC

VIDEO   turner.pdf

Methods for Calculating the Number of Full-time Equivalent Employees by Industry Using ACS and Other Data Sources | Martha Jones, Vanderbilt University

VIDEO   jones.pdf

Using the ACS to Calculate National and State-Level Federal Program Participation Ratios for Working-Age People with Disabilities | Yonatan Ben-Shalom and David Stapleton, Mathematica Policy Research

VIDEO   ben_shalom.pdf

3:30 PM – 5:00 PM Breakout Session 6
Housing Applications Using ACS Data


Estimating Superstorm Sandy’s Impact on Renters | Max Weselcouch, NYU Furman Center

VIDEO   weselcouch.pdf


Data Driven Housing Investment Using the ACS | Jessica Deegan, Minnesota Housing Finance Agency

VIDEO   Deegan.pdf


Developing a Measure of “Substandard Housing” Using the ACS | Lance George, Housing Assistance Council

VIDEO   George.pdf


Housing Landscape: An Examination of Severe Housing Cost Burden Among Working Households | Janet Viveiros, Center for Housing Policy

VIDEO   viveiros.pdf


Friday, May 30, 2014
8:30 AM – 10:00 AM Breakout Session 7

Using ACS Data From NHGIS, Summary Files, IPUMS, PUMS, and Custom
Tabulations


NHGIS: An Integrated Data Portal for ACS Summary Files and a Whole Lot More | Jonathan Schroeder, Minnesota Population Center, University of Minnesota

VIDEO   Schroeder.pdf


The Advantages of Accessing American Community Survey Summary Data via FTP and Methods for Connecting Across Time | John DeWitt, Population Studies Center, University of Michigan

VIDEO   dewitt.pdf


Obtaining ACS Microdata from IPUMS | Katie Genadek, Minnesota Population Center, University of Minnesota

VIDEO   genadek.pdf

PUMS: The Weighting is the Hardest Part | Gregg Bell, Alabama State Data Center

VIDEO  Bell.pdf

Because I’m Special: A Custom Tabulation for Transportation | Penelope Weinberger, AASHTO and Jim Hubbell, Mid-America Regional Council

hubble.pdf


8:30 AM –10:00 AM Breakout Session 8
Using the ACS to Look at Small Population Groups and Trends Over Time


Tracking and Analyzing Regional Equity: The ACS and Ambiguities of Time and Space | Meg Merrick, Portland State University

VIDEO   Merrick.pdf

Uses of ACS in the BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics Program | Sean Wilson, Bureau of Labor Statistics

wilson.pdf


Evaluating American Community Survey (ACS) Data on School-Age Children Who Speak English with Difficulty | Angelina KewalRamani and Amber Noel, American Institutes for Research

kewalramani.pdf

The Underrepresentation of Young Children in the American Community Survey | William O’Hare, The Annie E. Casey Foundation and Eric Jensen, U.S. Census Bureau

VIDEO   ohare.pdf


Small Populations and the ACS: Sampling Variability and Reliability | Sela Panapasa, University of Michigan; Hassan Jaber, Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services; and Don Loudner, American Indian Veterans, Inc.

VIDEO   panapasa.pdf


10:15 AM – 11:45 AM Breakout Session 9
Issues and Limitations in Using Small-Area ACS Data


Rural Reliability: Determining the Reliability of ACS Estimates for Rural Communities | Keith Wiley and Lance George, Housing Assistance Council

VIDEO   Wiley.pdf


Geographies of Poverty: Improving the Reliability and Usability of Spatial Displays of Small Area ACS Data for Post-Katrina New Orleans | Benjamin Horwitz, Greater New Orleans Community Data Center

VIDEO   Horwitz.pdf


Variations in Private School Enrollment Rates | Jeanne Gobalet and Shelley Lapkoff, Lapkoff & Gobalet Demographic Research, Inc.; and Magali Barbieri, University of California, Berkeley

VIDEO   Gobalet.pdf


Using the ACS to Help a Mayor Understand His City | Patricia C. Becker, APB Associates and Southeast Michigan Census Council

VIDEO   becker.pdf

Visualizing Transit Need | Holly Chase and Jason Quan, KFH Group, Inc.

VIDEO   Chase.pdf


10:15 AM – 11:45 AM Breakout Session 10
Applications of ACS Data for Migration Patterns and Trends


Mapping Subcomponents of Net International Migration (NIM): An Overview of the Geographic Distribution of Foreign-Born Migration Using ACS Data | Anthony Knapp, U.S. Census Bureau

VIDEO  Knapp.pdf

Education, Migration, and Earnings of Puerto Ricans on the Island and U.S. Mainland: A Synthetic Cohort Analysis, 2006-2011 | Marie T. Mora, Alberto Dávila, and Havidán Rodríguez, University of Texas- Pan American

VIDEO   mora.pdf

Lifetime Migration Trends of Adults in the United States | Lisa Neidert and Albert Hermalin, University of Michigan

VIDEO   Neidert.pdf

Mapping Poverty and Mobility Patterns in Baltimore City | Nichole Stewart, University of Maryland Baltimore County

VIDEO   Stewart.pdf