Which statement about the 2020 U.S. Census is NOT true?

Which statement about the 2020 U.S. Census is NOT true?

• A. It is projected to cost more than $13 billion
• B. It employs hundreds of thousands of workers visiting American households
• C. It collects data on every extended family member and enumerates families based on how respondents define their family relationships
• D. It is completely run by private companies with no government involvement

Answer: (D)

The question tests who runs the decennial census and how it’s organized. The statement that the Census is completely run by private companies isn’t true. The U.S. Census Bureau, a government agency, leads and funds the census, with private firms handling specific tasks under government contracts. Private involvement exists, but final authority and oversight remain with the government. That explains why the other aspects described are accurate in broad terms: the project costs billions of dollars, and hundreds of thousands of temporary workers are recruited to visit households. The census collects information on people in a housing unit and uses a standardized relationship framework to classify who is part of the household; it does not enumerate every extended family member outside the household or rely on respondents’ own broad definitions of family for every individual.

The question tests who runs the decennial census and how it’s organized. The statement that the Census is completely run by private companies isn’t true. The U.S. Census Bureau, a government agency, leads and funds the census, with private firms handling specific tasks under government contracts. Private involvement exists, but final authority and oversight remain with the government.

That explains why the other aspects described are accurate in broad terms: the project costs billions of dollars, and hundreds of thousands of temporary workers are recruited to visit households. The census collects information on people in a housing unit and uses a standardized relationship framework to classify who is part of the household; it does not enumerate every extended family member outside the household or rely on respondents’ own broad definitions of family for every individual.