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Simple fix could make US census more accurate but just as private

The US Census Bureau processes data before publishing it in order to keep personal information private – but a new approach could maintain the same privacy while improving accuracy

By Jeremy Hsu

30 October 2024

The US government uses census data to distribute resources fairly

Valentyn Semenov/Alamy

A change to the US government’s system for processing the census could improve the accuracy of publicly disclosed data – without compromising the privacy of individual citizens and residents.

The government relies on national census data – gathered every 10 years by the US Census Bureau – to distribute hundreds of billions of dollars in federal funding to states and local communities. Such data also plays a key political role by helping states draw Congressional district boundaries and determining how many seats in the House of Representatives go…

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