The U.S. Census Bureau is encouraging Wisconsin counties to consider participating in their County Consolidated Boundary and Annexation Survey (C-BAS).  The deadline to participate is August 1.

In essence, C-BAS shifts authority for submitting updated municipal boundary information from local municipal clerks to county governments.  While the BAS program has existed for years, many municipal clerks do not participate in the optional program. Therefore, the Census often operates on outdated boundary information.  Once signed up for the C-BAS program, counties are able to send boundary updates to Census on behalf of municipalities that allow them to do so.

For more information on C-BAS, contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it (630-288-9258) with the Chicago regional office of the U.S. Census, or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

As a side note, I am working on a more in-depth article that explains a new project initiated by the Wisconsin Legislative Technology Services Bureau (LTSB) to significantly improve the accuracy of administrative boundaries in Wisconsin.  The LTSB initiative leans heavily on county participation in C-BAS.  Watch for more information next week.