Why is the LUCA Program important to your community?
An accurate population count starts with an up-to-date and accurate address list.  Having a housing unit or group quarters address list on the Master Address File ensures that the people residing at the address will be enumerated.  A February 2003 Government Accountability office report indicated that in fiscal year 2000, about $283 billion in federal grant money was distributed to state and local governments by formula; states received their share of the money based in part on factors such as annual population estimates derived from the 1990 decennial census.  When the population estimates were updated to reflect the 2000 census results, an additional $388 million in federal grant funding went predominately to the 23 states that had above-average estimates revisions.  Clearly the stakes are high and a complete count is vital to cities and towns nationwide.

How is the LUCA Program administered?
The LUCA Program is made possible by the Census Address List Improvement Act of 1994 (Public Law 103-430) which provides an opportunity for designated representatives of tribal, state, and local governments to review the addresses contained on the census address list.  The program operates as follows:

• Each invited government designates a LUCA liaison to review the portion of the census address list covering the area under its jurisdiction.  The LUCA liaison will be subject to the same confidentiality requirements as census workers, which prohibits the disclosure of census information.  The address list is confidential under Title 13 of the U.S. Code and participants must review a set of security guidelines and sign a confidentiality agreement promising to protect the confidentiality of the addresses.

• The Census Bureau will send the LUCA liaison an address list from the Master Address File, corresponding maps, and the address count list.

• In areas with city-style addresses, the LUCA liaison can update individual addresses on the list, as well as add addresses missing from the list.  The Census Bureau will verify the updates during the Address Canvassing Operation and provide feedback to the participants about the results.