The Census Bureau was able to remedy some
of the security deficiencies after they were
pointed out by the Office of Inspector General,
and others were corrected right before most
U.S. residents began answering the 2020 census
questionnaire in March, the report said.
“The integrity of census data is crucial,” the
report said. “If population numbers were
manipulated, representation in the House of
Representatives and federal money distribution
could be disproportionately distributed.”
In a response, the Census Bureau took issue with
that statement, saying there had been no loss or
compromise of data and that the gaps identified
by the Office of Inspector General were fixed
before most households began responding
in March.
The 2020 census was the first once-a-decade
count in which respondents were encouraged
to answer the questionnaire online, though they
could also respond by mail or telephone. About
two-thirds of households self-responded, while
the remainder required visits for interviews from
census takers.