Census Bureau Refreshes Business Money Quiz for 2026 Efficiency
Published Date: 1/20/2026
Notice
Summary
The Census Bureau is updating its Annual Integrated Economic Survey, which asks over 300,000 businesses about their money matters each year. Starting in 2026, they’ll use new industry codes, pick a fresh group of businesses to survey, and tweak questions to make it easier and faster to answer. These changes help keep the data accurate and reduce the time businesses spend filling out the survey.
Analyzed Economic Effects
4 provisions identified: 2 benefits, 2 costs, 0 mixed.
Mandatory annual survey for businesses
The Annual Integrated Economic Survey (AIES) is mandatory and will ask 305,340 businesses to respond. The average time to complete the survey is 2 hours and 15 minutes, for a total reported burden of 687,015 hours, and it is conducted annually under Title 13 U.S.C. Sections 131 and 182.
Modular survey design to cut burden
Starting with the upcoming AIES revisions, the Census Bureau will implement a modular and subsampled content strategy to reduce respondent burden while still meeting data users' needs. These changes are part of the revisions being implemented beginning with the survey year 2025 (collected in calendar year 2026).
New product and capital expenditure details for some industries
The AIES will begin collecting North American Product Classification System (NAPCS)-based product data from retail, wholesale, and services businesses and will collect capital expenditures by type (structures and equipment) and select capital expenditure details such as finance leases and software. These new collections are part of the survey revisions.
Removal of selected reporting questions
The AIES revisions remove certain questions, including depreciable asset questions and select company-level questions (leased employees and research and development spending) and select revenue details. These removals apply as part of the revisions described for the survey.
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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.
2026-20167, 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.
2026-20153, 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.
2026-19301, 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.
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