Census Bureau Keeps America Funded

Cookie manufacturer: Three women want to help their children's elementary school raise money for new books. They develop a special recipe and name their cookies. The response to the cookies is so great that other local schools ask them to make cookies for them to sell. The women decide to start a business, but they need angel investors because they don't have the assets to borrow money from the bank. The angels want to know how many elementary, middle and high schools are in the U.S. The Census will tell you that.

Business book publisher: A book publisher thinks she has a group of books that would sell well abroad, but she can't market to the entire world. Her marketing team needs to identify countries that have the right demographic mix to be potential buyers. Again, you go to the Census Web site and the information is there.

The Census is one of the most critically competitive intelligence services the U.S. government offers. Without its information, companies, especially startups, could never prove their case to raise money. Every dollar spent on the Census is worth it, regardless of the political impact.