Use of the American Community Survey Data by State Child Advocacy Organizations

The U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (ACS) has become a critical element in the U.S. statistical infrastructure. One important use of ACS data is research and advocacy using child wellbeing indicators derived from ACS.  Gutierrez (2022) provides a description of how many national organizations use the ACS for research and advocacy on children.  But less is known about how state child advocacy organizations use the ACS.  This paper provides the results of a survey of state child advocacy organizations on how they use data from the ACS. In the fall of 2021, the Partnership for America’s Children (PAC) conducted a survey of state child advocacy organizations regarding their use of data from the American Community Survey and the results are outlined in this report.