Constitutional purpose and other uses of U.S. Census Essay Example for Free

Constitutional purpose and other uses of U.S. Census Essay Political power and the respective share of every state of the federal money are simply the Constitutional purposes of Census in the United States (Cole, 2009). These are the underlying reasons why for every ten years, the government mails the citizens with Census forms to fill out with their personal information of circumstances. Under an original objective which is just to have a correct or exact count and record of the American population, the U. S. census now signifies its importance in determining the number of congressional districts. Beyond the Congressional purposes of the Census, it is its practical uses to people’s daily living that ultimately signify its value to the nation. In terms of re-appointment of the members of House of Representatives, Cole further explains that it is under the Constitution that census affects or determines the respective circumstances of each state. Census particularly manifests which states gain or lose Congressional seats. Simply put, Cole states that â€Å"the census determines how many House of Representative Members you will have representing your district in Washington D. C. † (Cole, 2009, p. 1). This is where Census’ Congressional purpose of political power is shown. This is because if the population of one state decreased based from the last census, one or more Representative member is removed from a specified state. On the same token that a particular state reflected relevant increase during the last census, then additional member represents the said state. Hence, the population of one state, as what the Census reflects, establishes if such area requires of being redrawn after showing an increase or loss in the area’s population (Cole, 2009). Aside from the said Congressional purposes of the U. S. Census, there are at least five practical ways to use such gathering of information. Of the five primary objectives of the census, its three most important uses include the following. First is to count the country’s population including the number of American households. The second important use of the census is it is a way to collect data and to create information in order for both the federal government and the states to come up with rational budget. Another use of the census is its power to create information which serves various social entities such as the branches of economy, education, research, business and other significant components of the nation (â€Å"Uses of Census Data,† n. d. ). While a bigger part of the information provided by the public to the census is eventually kept secret for the next 72 years, the valuable pieces of information are used. This condition holds true especially during instances in the daily lives of the people. For instance, census is very important to the general public in terms of using the collected data in a number of fields or disciplines that are significant to people. In fact, census is applied to personal experience of an individual. Just like in my case, census proved to be valuable in three aspects. One, I used the information given by the census when I decided that there is a need to change the place of my resident. Census also made me decide what field of learning to choose depending on the state of employment and the value of wage per occupation in a particular location. I likewise was able to make use of census when I looked for a place that became the best suitable area where I opened my business few years back. References Central Bureau of Statistics. (n. d. ). Uses of Census Data. Retrieved July 24, 2009, from http://www. cbs. gov. il/w/censusshtml/UN-SSI41795192. shtml Cole, L. (2009). Census Records and the Constitution. Retrieved July 24, 2009, from http://www. associatedcontent. com/article/1905082/census_records_and_the_constitution_pg2. html? cat=37