Privacy fears stymie government surveyors as responses dive
Response rates to federal surveys have been dropping in recent years due to growing public concern about privacy and online scams
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Erik Paul didn't mind answering government questions about where his software development business was located or how many employees it had. But when queries from the U.S. Census Bureau broached the company's finances, the chief operating officer hesitated.
"When you start asking financial questions, I get a little squirrelly," said Paul, of Orlando, Florida, who recently responded online to the 2022 Economic Census.
It's a problem the Census Bureau and other federal agencies are facing as privacy concerns rise and online scams proliferate, lowering survey response rates in the past decade. The pandemic exacerbated the problem by disrupting in-person follow-up visits.
Low response rates introduce bias because wealthier and more educated households are more likely to answer surveys, which impacts the accuracy of data that demographers, planners, businesses and government leaders rely on to allocate resources.
