Census Wants to Keep Asking Businesses About the Future
Published Date: 3/31/2025
Notice
Summary
The Census Bureau is updating its Business Trends and Outlook Survey, which asks nearly 800,000 businesses every two weeks about how they're doing. This helps keep a close eye on the economy with fresh, detailed info—especially during tough times like emergencies. The update asks for public feedback and aims to keep the survey quick and easy, taking just 10 minutes per response.
Analyzed Economic Effects
4 provisions identified: 1 benefits, 2 costs, 1 mixed.
Multi‑Unit Businesses Added Incrementally
The Census proposes an incremental expansion of BTOS scope to add multi‑unit businesses (those with more than one location), noting multi‑unit firms account for most employment, payroll, and revenue; the expansion will be staged to allow learning and adjustments.
Biweekly Business Survey Continues
The Census Bureau will continue the Business Trends and Outlook Survey (BTOS), a bi-weekly collection that targets all nonfarm employer businesses with receipts of $1,000 or more in the United States, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. The notice lists 795,000 respondents, an average response time of 10 minutes, total burden hours of 132,500, a current sample of about 1.2 million businesses split into six panels, and that businesses in each panel are asked to report once every 12 weeks for one year.
Survey Shortened to 16 Core Questions
The Census shortened BTOS core content from 26 questions to 16 core questions and states the core questions impose no more than 10 minutes of burden per response. The change is intended to keep the survey concise and adaptable.
AI Supplement May Add Extra Time
The Census requests approval to repeat an artificial intelligence (AI) supplemental module for BTOS; the prior year’s AI supplement added an additional 10 minutes of burden, and the new AI supplement’s final burden will be set after cognitive testing is completed.
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Key Dates
Department and Agencies
Related Federal Register Documents
2026-20249, Notice of Data Sharing Activity
Starting October 2, 2026, the Census Bureau will share some business survey data with the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) to help make U.S. economic stats more accurate and efficient. This affects businesses that voluntarily provide info in Census surveys, with no legal pressure to share. Only trusted BEA staff sworn to keep data secret will see the info, and there’s no cost impact for businesses.
2026-20155, Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment Request; Longitudinal Employer-Household Dynamics (LEHD)
The Census Bureau wants to keep collecting data for the Longitudinal Employer-Household Dynamics (LEHD) program, which helps track jobs and workers over time. They’re asking the public to comment by November 30, 2026, before they get final approval from the Office of Management and Budget. This keeps the data flowing without adding extra hassle or cost to businesses and workers.
2026-20153, Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment Request; Quarterly Services Survey (QSS)
The U.S. Census Bureau wants to keep running the Quarterly Services Survey for three more years without changes. This survey asks certain U.S. service businesses for info to help track the economy. If you’re involved, you can comment by November 30, 2026, but there’s no new cost or extra paperwork planned.
2026-20167, Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment Request; DOC-Census Workforce Development Collection
The Census Bureau is asking for approval to collect info from 230 workforce training groups linked to Manufacturing USA and two grant programs. This new data will help track how well these training programs work by connecting participant info with Census data. The goal? To make smarter decisions about future workforce investments without adding too much extra work—each group spends just 1-2 hours a year on this.
2026-19301, Proposed Data Sharing Activity
The Census Bureau wants to share some business data with the Bureau of Economic Analysis to help improve economic reports. This change affects businesses whose data is collected and aims to make government info more useful without extra costs. People have until November 23, 2026, to share their thoughts on this plan.
2026-18481, Decennial Census of the Population of Americans; Proposed Residence Criteria and Proposed Regulations for Demographic Questions
The Census Bureau is proposing to add two new parts to the Code of Federal Regulations governing the decennial census of population and housing. First, the Census Bureau is proposing to add a part outlining the residence criteria used for identifying each person's "usual residence," as needed to determine whether and where to count them in the census of the population throughout the United States. Second, the Census Bureau is proposing to add a part establishing standards and restrictions for the inclusion of certain demographic questions on the decennial census short-form questionnaire and any other questionnaire used for the enumeration of the population. The Census Bureau is considering these two additions to better prioritize and fulfill its Constitutional mandate to count for apportionment the "whole number of persons in each State" based on the concept of "usual residence"--a process that factors in an element of allegiance but otherwise should be colorblind and should not be distorted in any way by questions about immaterial personal characteristics, such as race. Although these two parts are somewhat related and complementary, each is being proposed independently based on its own merits. These proposals are intended to ensure fidelity to the Constitution, improve and protect the core decennial census data, and promote efficiency.
Previous / Next Documents
Previous: 2025-05460, Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment Request; National Survey of Children's Health
The U.S. Census Bureau is updating its National Survey of Children's Health, asking about 127,000 families to share info on kids’ health and well-being. This helps health agencies track how children are doing across the country. The survey takes about 40 minutes per family, and the public has 30 more days to comment before final approval.
Next: 2025-05462, Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment Request; Foreign-Trade Zones Applications
The Department of Commerce is asking for public feedback on the forms companies use to apply for Foreign-Trade Zones, special areas that help businesses save money on taxes and customs. This review helps make sure the paperwork isn’t too tricky or time-consuming. If you’re involved in these zones or just curious, you have until May 30, 2025, to share your thoughts—no cost changes, just smoother processes!