The Department of Homeland Security published in December a privacy impact assessment for the sharing of immigration-related data with the U.S. Census Bureau during the 2020 population count.
DHS said the assessment seeks to describe the development of a memorandum of understanding between the bureau and the department as well as analyze the collection, dissemination and use of DHS data by the bureau.
According to the privacy assessment, DHS will share administrative records with the bureau to update the 2020 Census person files, generate citizen voting age population statistics and carry out testing of citizenship models.
The document also states several privacy risks, including the risk of retaining DHS data for longer than necessary, using information for unauthorized purposes and assigning inaccurate immigration status to an individual.
The department’s plan to share citizenship and immigration data about individuals with the bureau seeks to comply with an executive order signed in July with regard to the collection of data about citizenship status as part of the 2020 census.
