The General Accountability Office (GAO) released a report recently on the Census Bureau’s “large-scale effort to modernize essential IT data storage and processing systems.” GAO concluded that the Bureau “has begun implementing leading practices that can help with this effort—such as managing risks and estimating costs,” but “the Census Bureau’s schedule for this project is unreliable. Specifically, it is not comprehensive, well-constructed, credible, or updated regularly.”
The GAO ran this study because the Bureau’s “IT systems are essential to collecting and providing data about the nation’s people and economy. Prior to the 2020 Census, the Bureau, a component of the Department of Commerce, faced challenges in modernizing and consolidating its IT systems. For future surveys, including the 2030 Census, the Bureau has embarked on four modernization programs to collect, store, process, and disseminate data. GAO was asked to review the Bureau’s implementation of key modernization programs. This report (1) evaluates the extent to which the Bureau is implementing leading practices in managing risks, requirements, cost estimates, and schedule for a selected enterprise-wide IT program; and (2) determines the extent to which the Bureau is managing selected interdependencies among the enterprise-wide IT programs.”
GAO gave three recommendations to the Secretary of Commerce:
- “direct the Director of the Census Bureau to ensure that the requirements management plan for the EDL program is updated to ensure that it accurately reflects the process used to ensure that requirements are fully traceable to the developed solutions”;
- “direct the Director of the Census Bureau to ensure that the EDL program develops a reliable schedule using the best practices described in GAO’s Schedule Assessment Guide”; and
- “direct the Director of the Census Bureau to define and document a process to ensure that the modernization programs regularly communicate about changes to the survey onboarding schedule and update relevant schedules for those changes.”
According to the report, “Commerce concurred with the recommendations and stated it would prepare a formal action plan.”
- Information Technology: Census Bureau Needs to Better Manage Schedule for Modernization Program GAO-26-107629 Published: Jun 04, 2026. https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-26-107629
