article: SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Census Address List Improvement Act of 1994''. SEC. 2. ADDRESS INFORMATION REVIEWED BY LOCAL GOVERNMENTS. (a) In General.--Chapter 1 of title 13, United States Code, is amended by adding after section 15 the following new section: ``Sec. 16. Address information reviewed by States and local governments ``(a) The Secretary, to assist efforts to ensure the accuracy of censuses and surveys under this title, shall-- ``(1) publish standards defining the content and structure of address information which States and local units of general purpose government may submit to the Secretary to be used in developing a national address list; ``(2)(A) develop and publish a timetable for the Bureau to receive, review, and respond to submissions of information under paragraph (1) before the decennial census date; and ``(B) provide for a response by the Bureau with respect to such submissions in which the Bureau specifies its determinations regarding such information and the reasons for such determinations; and ``(3) be subject to the review process developed under section 3 of the Census Address List Improvement Act of 1994 relating to responses pursuant to paragraph (2). ``(b)(1) The Secretary-- ``(A) shall provide officials who are designated as census liaisons by a local unit of general purpose government with access to census address information for the purpose of verifying the accuracy of the address information of the Bureau for census and survey purposes; and ``(B) together with such access, should provide an explanation of duties and obligations under this title. ``(2) Access under paragraph (1) shall be limited to address information concerning addresses within the local unit of general purpose government represented by the census liaison or an adjacent local unit of general purpose government. ``(3) The Bureau should respond to each recommendation made by a census liaison concerning the accuracy of address information, including the determination (and reasons therefor) of the Bureau regarding each such recommendation. ``(4) For the purposes of paragraph (1), in a case in which a local unit of general purpose government is within another local unit of general purpose government and is not independent of the enclosing unit, the census liaison shall be designated by the local unit of general purpose government which is within the enclosing local unit of general purpose government. ``(5) A census liaison may not use information made available under paragraph (1) for any purpose other than the purpose specified in paragraph (1). ``(c) For the purposes of this section-- ``(1) the term `local unit of general purpose government' has the meaning given such term by section 184(1) of this title; and ``(2) the term `State' includes the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, American Samoa, Guam, the Virgin Islands, and any other territory or possession of the United States.''. (b) Confidentiality.--Section 9(a) of such title is amended-- (1) by inserting ``or local government census liaison,'' after ``thereof,''; and (2) by inserting ``or 16'' after ``section 8''. (c) Penalty.--Section 214 of such title is amended by inserting ``or whoever, being or having been a census liaison within the meaning of section 16 of this title,'' after ``title,'' the second place it appears. (d) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of chapter 1 of such title is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 15 the following: ``16. Address information reviewed by local governments.''. SEC. 3. DEVELOPMENT OF APPEALS PROCESS BY ADMINISTRATOR OF THE OFFICE OF INFORMATION AND REGULATORY AFFAIRS. The Administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, acting through the Chief Statistician and in consultation with the Bureau of the Census, shall develop an appeals process for those States and local units of general purpose government which desire to appeal determinations of the Bureau of the Census pursuant to section 16(a)(2) or (b)(3) of title 13, United States Code. Appeals under such process shall be resolved before the decennial census date. The Chief Statistician shall publish the proposed appeals process for a period of public comment before finalizing such process. SEC. 4. AUTHORITY OF UNITED STATES POSTAL SERVICE TO SHARE ADDRESS LISTS. Section 412 of title 39, United States Code, is amended-- (1) by striking out ``Except'' and all that follows through ``law,'' and inserting in lieu thereof ``(a) Except as specifically provided by subsection (b) or other law,''; and (2) by adding at the end the following: ``(b) The Postal Service shall provide to the Secretary of Commerce for use by the Bureau of the Census such address information, address- related information, and point of postal delivery information, including postal delivery codes, as may be determined by the Secretary to be appropriate for any census or survey being conducted by the Bureau of the Census. The provision of such information under this subsection shall be in accordance with such mutually agreeable terms and conditions, including reimbursability, as the Postal Service and the Secretary of Commerce shall deem appropriate.''. Speaker of the House of Representatives. Vice President of the United States and President of the Senate.
summary: Census Address List Improvement Act of 1994 - Directs the Secretary of Commerce to: (1) publish standards defining the content and structure of address information which States and local governments may submit to the Secretary to be used in developing a national address list; (2) develop and publish a timetable for the Bureau of the Census to receive, review, and respond to the submitted information before the decennial census date; (3) provide for a response by the Bureau that specifies its determinations regarding such information and the reasons for such determinations; and (4) be subject to the review process developed under this Act relating to such responses. Directs the Secretary to provide officials who are designated as census liaisons by local governments with access to census address information for the purpose of verifying the accuracy of the Bureau's address information for census and survey purposes and together with such access, provide an explanation of duties and obligations under this Act. Limits such access to the addresses within the local government represented by the census liaison or an adjacent local government. Requires the Bureau to respond to each recommendation made by a census liaison concerning the accuracy of address information, including the determination (and reasons therefor) of the Bureau regarding each such recommendation. Prohibits a census liaison from using information made available under this Act for purposes other than the purposes specified in this Act. Makes provisions that require, with exceptions, that such information be treated as confidential applicable to local government census liaisons. Imposes a fine and up to five years' imprisonment on whoever being or having been a census liaison wrongfully discloses such information. Requires: (1) the Administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, acting through the Chief Statistician, to develop an appeals process for those States and local governments which desire to appeal determinations of the Bureau; and (2) the Postal Service to provide to the Secretary for use by the Bureau such address, address- related, and point of postal delivery information, including postal delivery codes, determined by the Secretary to be appropriate for any census or survey being conducted by the Bureau.