[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 123 (Monday, June 28, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 37246-37252]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-15605]
[[Page 37245]]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Part IV
Office of Management and Budget
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
2010 Standards for Delineating Metropolitan and Micropolitan
Statistical Areas; Notice
Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 123 / Monday, June 28, 2010 /
Notices
[[Page 37246]]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET
2010 Standards for Delineating Metropolitan and Micropolitan
Statistical Areas
AGENCY: Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of
Management and Budget (OMB), Executive Office of the President.
ACTION: Notice of decision.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: This Notice announces OMB's adoption of 2010 Standards for
Delineating Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Areas. The 2010
standards replace and supersede the 2000 Standards for Defining
Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Areas. In arriving at its
decision, OMB accepted the recommendations of the interagency
Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Area Standards Review
Committee (the Review Committee) as published in the February 12, 2009
Federal Register.
The SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION in this Notice provides background
information on the standards (Section A), a brief synopsis of the
public comments OMB received in response to the February 12, 2009
Federal Register notice (Section B), and OMB's decisions on the
recommendations of the Review Committee (Section C). The 2010 standards
appear at the end of this Notice (Section D).
The adoption of the 2010 standards will not affect the availability
of Federal data for geographic areas such as States, counties, county
subdivisions, and municipalities. For the near term, the U.S. Census
Bureau will tabulate and publish data from the 2010 Census for all
metropolitan, micropolitan, and combined statistical areas in existence
at the time of the census.
DATES: Effective Date: This Notice is effective immediately. OMB plans
to announce delineations of areas based on the 2010 standards and 2010
Census data in 2013. Federal agencies should begin to use the new area
delineations to tabulate and publish statistics when the delineations
are announced.
ADDRESSES: Please send correspondence about OMB's decision to Katherine
K. Wallman, Chief Statistician, Office of Management and Budget, Room
10201, New Executive Office Building, Washington, DC 20503, telephone
number (202) 395-3093, fax number (202) 395-7245, or E-mail
[email protected] with the subject 2010 MetroAreas.
Electronic Availability: This notice is available on the Internet
from the OMB Web site at http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/fedreg_default/.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Suzann Evinger, Office of Management
and Budget, telephone number (202) 395-3093, fax number 202-395-7245.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Outline of Notice
A. Background and Review Process
B. Summary of Comments Received in Response to the February 12, 2009
Federal Register Notice
C. OMB's Decisions Regarding Recommendations From the Metropolitan
and Micropolitan Statistical Area Standards Review Committee
Concerning Changes to the Standards for Defining Metropolitan and
Micropolitan Statistical Areas
D. 2010 Standards for Delineating Metropolitan and Micropolitan
Statistical Areas and Key Terms
A. Background and Review Process
1. Background
The metropolitan and micropolitan statistical area program, under
various names, has provided standard statistical area delineations for
approximately 60 years. In the 1940s, it became clear that the value of
metropolitan data produced by Federal agencies would be greatly
enhanced if agencies used a single set of geographic delineations for
the Nation's largest centers of population and activity. OMB's
predecessor, the Bureau of the Budget, led the effort to develop what
were then called ``standard metropolitan areas'' in time for their use
in 1950 census publications. Since then, comparable data products for
metropolitan areas have been available.
The general concept of a metropolitan statistical area is that of
an area containing a large population nucleus and adjacent communities
that have a high degree of integration with that nucleus. The concept
of a micropolitan statistical area closely parallels that of the
metropolitan statistical area, but a micropolitan statistical area
features a smaller nucleus. The purpose of these statistical areas is
unchanged from when metropolitan areas were first delineated: The
classification provides a nationally consistent set of delineations for
collecting, tabulating, and publishing Federal statistics for
geographic areas.
OMB establishes and maintains these areas solely for statistical
purposes. In reviewing and revising these areas, OMB does not take into
account or attempt to anticipate any public or private sector
nonstatistical uses that may be made of the delineations. These areas
are not designed to serve as a general-purpose geographic framework
applicable for nonstatistical activities or for use in program funding
formulas.
Furthermore, the Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Area
Standards do not produce an urban-rural classification, and confusion
of these concepts can lead to difficulties in program implementation.
Counties included in Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Areas
and many other counties may contain both urban and rural territory and
population. For instance, programs that seek to strengthen rural
economies by focusing solely on counties located outside metropolitan
statistical areas could ignore a predominantly rural county that is
included in a metropolitan statistical area because a high percentage
of the county's residents commute to urban centers for work. OMB urges
agencies, organizations, and policy makers to review carefully the
goals of nonstatistical programs and policies to ensure that
appropriate geographic entities are used to determine eligibility for
the allocation of Federal funds.
2. Review Process
From the beginning of the program, OMB (or its predecessor) has
reviewed the metropolitan (and now micropolitan) statistical area
standards and, if warranted, revised them in the years preceding their
application to new decennial census data. During the 1990s, OMB
conducted a comprehensive review of the 1990 standards, leading to the
development of the core based statistical areas (CBSAs) (metropolitan
and micropolitan statistical areas) and combined statistical areas as
contained in the 2000 standards (available at: http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/fedreg/metroareas122700.pdf). Periodic review of
the standards is necessary to ensure their continued usefulness and
relevance. The current review of the metropolitan and micropolitan
statistical area standards is the sixth such review.
In 2008, OMB charged the Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical
Area Standards Review Committee with examining the 2000 metropolitan
and micropolitan statistical area standards and providing to OMB
recommendations for revising the standards that would be issued no
later than December 2010. Agencies represented on the Review Committee
included the Census Bureau (Chair), Bureau of Economic Analysis, Bureau
of Labor Statistics, Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Economic
Research Service/U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Center for
Health
[[Page 37247]]
Statistics, and ex officio, OMB. The Census Bureau provided research
support to the committee.
During the five years between the 2000 standards' implementation in
2003 and the commencement of the Review Committee's deliberations in
2008, OMB received very few inquiries from the public questioning the
conceptual framework of the 2000 standards and the resulting area
delineations. Therefore, the Review Committee concluded early in its
deliberations that the 2000 standards worked well and were generally
accepted. Thus, the Review Committee determined that it would not be
necessary or appropriate to seek wide-ranging public comment on all
aspects of the 2000 standards, particularly since a multiyear
conceptual review, with several rounds of public comment, had been
conducted prior to their adoption. Instead, the Review Committee
decided to limit its review, and subsequent recommendations, to a small
set of issues associated with the implementation of the 2000 standards.
OMB published the Review Committee's recommendations for revisions
to the 2000 standards in a February 12, 2009 Federal Register notice
entitled ``Recommendations From the Metropolitan and Micropolitan
Statistical Area Standards Review Committee to the Office of Management
and Budget Concerning Changes to the 2000 Standards for Defining
Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Areas'' (74 FR 7172-7177).
B. Summary of Comments Received in Response to the February 12, 2009
Federal Register Notice
The February 12, 2009 Federal Register notice requested comment on
the Review Committee's recommendations to OMB concerning revisions to
the 2000 Standards for Defining Metropolitan and Micropolitan
Statistical Areas, namely its recommendations concerning (1) the
qualification and titling of combined statistical areas; (2) the
updating of metropolitan and micropolitan statistical areas; and (3)
the replacement of the word ``definition'' with the word
``delineation.'' To help ensure the clarity of the 2010 recommended
standards, OMB also requested comments on the wording of the standards.
OMB received 40 comment letters in response to the February 12,
2009 notice.
Five commenters remarked on aspects of the Review Committee's
recommendations for eliminating local opinion from the qualification of
combined statistical areas and establishing a minimum employment
interchange measure of 15 for the automatic qualification of combined
statistical areas. Two commenters supported the elimination of local
opinion in combined statistical area qualification, with one of the two
expressing concern about setting the minimum employment interchange
measure threshold at 15. Two other commenters expressed concern about
both the potential consequences of eliminating local opinion and
setting the automatic threshold at 15. One commenter supported setting
the employment interchange measure at 15 for combining areas.
Two commenters remarked on the proposed combined statistical area
titling criteria. One commenter supported the committee's
recommendation, while the other commenter wondered if eliminating local
opinion would end potentially positive means of allowing individual
areas to express their opinions.
Five commenters remarked on aspects of the Review Committee's
recommendations concerning the update of metropolitan and micropolitan
statistical areas, including (1) the limiting of yearly updates as well
as (2) the planned update in 2018. All five commenters who offered
views on limiting yearly updates agreed with the Review Committee, as
did all four who offered views on the planned update in 2018.
Three commenters remarked on the Review Committee's recommendation
to replace the term ``definition'' with ``delineation'': Two agreed,
while one was indifferent. One of the three commenters wondered if it
would take a long period for the new term to gain general acceptance.
OMB has reviewed these comments, giving them careful consideration.
In some cases, however, we have concluded that we could not adopt the
suggestions made by commenters, particularly with respect to the
qualification and titling of combined statistical areas, without
undermining efforts to achieve a consistent, national approach designed
to enhance the value of data produced by Federal agencies.
In addition to the recommendations on which OMB requested comment,
individuals also offered comments--not requested by OMB--on other
aspects of the standards and the program. As indicated in the February
12, 2009, Federal Register notice, the 2000 standards were the result
of an extensive and comprehensive review. In conducting the recent
review, the Review Committee concluded that the 2000 standards have
worked well during the past decade, and recommended only some modest
specific changes on which OMB sought public comments. The comments
summarized below relate to aspects of the statistical area standards
that were not open for public comment.
One commenter suggested alternative means of titling metropolitan
statistical areas with more than one county: (1) Titling based on the
county seat of each county in the metropolitan statistical area; or (2)
listing the most populous urban centers of each county. Another
commenter suggested that titling a merged metropolitan statistical area
be based on the names of the areas being merged. Two commenters asked
OMB to consider shorter titles for areas.
One commenter suggested that the central county criteria be
modified so that section 2(b) is used in a much more limited fashion,
only applying that criterion to those potential metropolitan and
micropolitan statistical areas that would otherwise not contain a
central county.
One commenter suggested an alternative method of qualifying
outlying counties that measures commuting to the central counties and
does not require adjacency to the balance of the area. One commenter
questioned the sole reliance on commuting for outlying county criteria,
while two other commenters suggested that the outlying county criteria
should be modified to follow the outlying county criteria in the 1990
OMB standards, rather than the 2000 OMB standards. One commenter
suggested the use of the employment interchange measure, as well as a
measure of ``outleakage'' of consumer spending, to qualify counties to
a county that contains a principal city.
Thirteen commenters expressed concern about the current
delineations of the Greensboro-High Point, Winston-Salem, and
Burlington, North Carolina metropolitan statistical areas, and
suggested that OMB find ways to merge or otherwise bring together the
three individual areas--and in the case of a few commenters, additional
territory--into a single metropolitan statistical area.
Four commenters expressed concerns about the current delineations
of selected CBSAs in Michigan. All four commenters suggested a
reconfiguration of the Grand Rapids area, with two of the four also
questioning the delineation of selected other areas in the State.
One commenter suggested that the term ``metropolitan statistical
area'' only apply to those areas that do not belong to combined
statistical areas. This commenter further suggested that
[[Page 37248]]
components of combined statistical areas should be designated using
some other category name.
One commenter suggested that OMB consider separate coding sequences
for metropolitan statistical areas and for micropolitan statistical
areas, and that OMB consider using headings such as ``Metropolitan
CBSAs'' and ``Micropolitan CBSAs.'' Also, one commenter asked OMB to
consider maintaining the same statistical area codes for areas
delineated in the update scheduled for 2018 as will have been
established in the review scheduled for 2013, including cases where
titles have changed but where boundaries have not changed. Furthermore,
the commenter also suggested that OMB consider an interagency process
to investigate the feasibility of creating classifications of territory
within metropolitan statistical areas.
Some out-of-scope comments focused on the use of the statistical
areas, including the presentation of data. One commenter asked OMB to
consider researching the uses of statistical areas. The commenter also
asked OMB to mandate that data provided for metropolitan and
micropolitan statistical areas be displayed with data for the combined
statistical area associated with those metropolitan or micropolitan
statistical area components, and that data displayed at the
metropolitan division level be displayed with data for the metropolitan
statistical area of which the metropolitan division is a component. In
addition, five commenters requested that OMB consider elimination of
the prohibition against commingling in ranking combined statistical
areas, on the one hand, and metropolitan statistical areas that do not
belong to combined statistical areas, on the other hand.
One commenter asked for the inclusion of local opinion in the
metropolitan and micropolitan statistical area qualification process,
and another requested using local opinion in metropolitan division
qualification. Another commenter more generally advocated some use of
local opinion in the standards.
Sixteen commenters offered suggestions on an unidentified Federal
program that appears to be unrelated to the metropolitan and
micropolitan statistical areas program.
We have reviewed the out-of-scope comments and concluded that we
could not accept suggestions that would alter the underlying concepts
and framework of the 2000 standards, adhering instead to a more focused
update. However, OMB, in consultation with the Census Bureau and the
Review Committee, may give further consideration to the out-of-scope
comments relating to the presentation of data when it updates the
guidance on uses of the areas in its statistical areas bulletin.
C. OMB's Decisions Regarding Recommendations From the Metropolitan and
Micropolitan Statistical Area Standards Review Committee Concerning
Changes to the Standards for Defining Metropolitan and Micropolitan
Statistical Areas
This section of the Notice provides information on the decisions
OMB has made on the Review Committee's recommendations. In arriving at
these decisions, we considered the public comment on the Review
Committee's recommendations published in the Federal Register on
February 12, 2009. OMB also benefited from the deliberations of the
Review Committee as well as the research support provided by Census
Bureau staff. We have relied upon and very much appreciate the
technical and subject-matter expertise, insight, and dedication of the
Review Committee members and the Census Bureau staff.
OMB presents below its decisions on the Review Committee's specific
recommendations:
1. Recommendations Concerning Combined Statistical Areas
OMB accepts the Review Committee's recommendation to eliminate the
use of local opinion in the qualification of combinations with
employment interchange measures between 15 and 25. Adjacent core based
statistical areas (CBSAs) should automatically qualify for combination
if they possess an employment interchange measure of 15 or higher. OMB
also accepts the recommendation to eliminate the use of local opinion
in combined statistical area titling; each combined statistical area
should be titled using the names of the two principal cities with the
largest populations in the combined statistical area, as well as the
name of the third-largest principal city, if present.
The 2000 standards provided for combined statistical areas to
recognize ties between contiguous metropolitan and/or micropolitan
statistical areas that are less intense than those captured by mergers,
but still significant. (Mergers occur when adjacent CBSAs become a
single CBSA because the central county or counties (as a group) of one
CBSA qualify as outlying to the central county or counties (as a group)
of the other CBSA.) These combinations were based on the employment
interchange measure between two CBSAs, defined as the sum of the
percentage of commuting from the smaller area to the larger area and
the percentage of employment in the smaller area accounted for by
workers residing in the larger area.
In reviewing the 2000 standards, OMB agrees with the Review
Committee that combined statistical areas can serve as an important
geographic tool for the Federal statistical data community. Under the
current system--in which adjacent metropolitan and/or micropolitan
statistical areas combine automatically if they have an employment
interchange measure of 25 or more, while areas with an interchange
measure of less than 25 but at least 15 qualify with the support of
local opinion--the universe of combined statistical areas is
heterogeneous and incomplete. This calls into question the
comparability of the areas. Applying only statistical rules when
delineating areas--the means by which the other statistical areas
delineated by OMB currently qualify--minimizes ambiguity and maximizes
the replicability, transparency, and integrity of the process. OMB
agrees with the committee on applying only statistical rules,
automatically combining all areas with the minimum employment
interchange measure of 15.
Under the 2000 standards, local opinion also was used for
determining titles for combined statistical areas. OMB agrees with the
committee that just as the qualification of combined statistical areas
should be based on the application of statistical rules, so too should
combined statistical area titling. OMB agrees with the committee's
recommendation for the elimination of local opinion from combined
statistical area titling and instead titling combined statistical areas
in essentially the same manner as their component metropolitan and or
micropolitan statistical areas: The title of a combined statistical
area should be based on the names of the two principal cities with the
largest populations in the combination, as well as the name of the
third-largest principal city, if present. To avoid a source of
potential confusion, however, OMB also agrees with the committee's
recommendation for dropping the name of the third-most-populous
principal city from the title of a combined statistical area if the
combined statistical area title duplicates that of one of its component
CBSAs.
2. Recommendations Concerning Postcensal Updates
OMB accepts the Review Committee's recommendation that OMB: (1)
Limit its yearly updates after the initial delineation based on the
2010 standards
[[Page 37249]]
to the identification of new metropolitan and micropolitan statistical
areas (and reflect certain changes to principal cities such as names
and legal status) and (2) conduct a broader update in 2018 based on
those aspects of delineation that can be performed using Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program total population estimates as well as the
2011-2015 American Community Survey 5-year commuting and employment
estimates.
For some purposes, frequent updates of the areas are desirable, but
for other purposes stability of the inventory of areas has advantages.
OMB notes that the committee examined the criteria for statistical
area updates in the 2000 standards as well as the application of those
criteria. Annual postcensal updates of statistical areas since 2003
have been extensive and have included: (1) Qualification of new
micropolitan statistical areas; (2) qualification of new metropolitan
statistical areas; (3) qualification of new and expanded combined
statistical areas, (4) qualification of new principal cities; (5)
deletion of principal cities; and (6) changes in the titles of
metropolitan statistical areas, micropolitan statistical areas, and
metropolitan divisions, based on the addition and/or deletion of
principal cities as well as changes in the relative population size
rankings of principal cities.\1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ The 2000 standards also included criteria for updating areas
in 2008 based on American Community Survey 5-year commuting and
employment estimates. Given a subsequent change in the American
Community Survey production and release schedule, that 2008 update
could not be implemented.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
OMB agrees with the Review Committee's observation that aspects of
yearly updates can present potential difficulties to producers and
users of metropolitan and micropolitan statistical area data, including
the potentially considerable workload that yearly postcensal update
titling and coding changes can pose for maintaining large databases.
OMB supports a more limited yearly update, identifying only new
metropolitan and micropolitan statistical areas.\2\ (The identification
of a new metropolitan or micropolitan statistical area can lead to the
creation of a new combined statistical area or the expansion of an
existing combined statistical area.) OMB would continue to reflect
changes to principal cities based on changes in their names and legal
status. For example, if a principal city disincorporates or changes its
name, that would be reflected in the yearly update of the inventory of
principal cities, CBSA titles, and codes.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\ A metropolitan statistical area that qualifies under the
yearly update due to a special census or population estimate will
not contain an urbanized area as delineated by the Census Bureau,
unless that special census generates a new urbanized area. Also, the
Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program produces and
disseminates the official total population estimates of cities that
are used in the update process.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
OMB agrees with the Review Committee's recommendation for a more
comprehensive update of metropolitan and micropolitan and related
statistical areas in 2018 based on those parts of delineation that can
be updated using Census Bureau Population Estimates Program total
population estimates and the 2011-2015 American Community Survey 5-year
commuting and employment estimates. The urbanized areas and urban
clusters used in the 2018 update will be those delineated with 2010
Census data, plus any urban areas delineated later through special
censuses. The central counties of CBSAs identified on the basis of a
2010 Census population count, or on the basis of population estimates
or a special census count in the case of postcensally delineated areas,
would constitute the central counties for purposes of this set of area
delineations.
3. Recommendation Concerning the Use of the Word ``Definition''
OMB accepts the Review Committee's recommendation that OMB replace
the word ``definition'' with the word ``delineation'' in the proposed
2010 standards.
During much of the history of the metropolitan and micropolitan
statistical area program, the term ``definition'' has been used to
refer to the boundaries or geographic makeup of an area (e.g., the
definition of the Altoona, PA Metropolitan Statistical Area). While the
program's use of the term has been careful and consistent, it is not
intuitive for those first encountering the program.
OMB agrees with the committee that the program's use of the term
``definition'' occasionally has caused misunderstandings and accepts
the committee's recommendation to replace ``definition'' with
``delineation'' to reference the geographic boundaries of the
statistical areas.
D. 2010 Standards for Delineating Metropolitan and Micropolitan
Statistical Areas and Key Terms
The Office of Management and Budget will use these standards to
delineate Core Based Statistical Areas (CBSAs) beginning in 2013.
A CBSA is a geographic entity associated with at least one core of
10,000 or more population, plus adjacent territory that has a high
degree of social and economic integration with the core as measured by
commuting ties. The standards designate and delineate two categories of
CBSAs: Metropolitan Statistical Areas and Micropolitan Statistical
Areas.
The purpose of the Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Area
standards is to provide nationally consistent delineations for
collecting, tabulating, and publishing Federal statistics for a set of
geographic areas. The Office of Management and Budget establishes and
maintains these areas solely for statistical purposes.
Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Areas are not designed as
a general-purpose geographic framework for nonstatistical activities or
for use in program funding formulas. The CBSA classification is not an
urban-rural classification; Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical
Areas and many counties outside CBSAs contain both urban and rural
populations.
CBSAs consist of counties and equivalent entities throughout the
United States and Puerto Rico. In view of the importance of cities and
towns in New England, a set of geographic areas similar in concept to
the county-based CBSAs also will be delineated for that region using
cities and towns. These New England City and Town Areas (NECTAs) are
intended for use with statistical data, whenever feasible and
appropriate, for New England. Data providers and users desiring areas
delineated using a nationally consistent geographic building block
should use the county-based CBSAs in New England.
The following criteria apply to both the nationwide county-based
CBSAs and to NECTAs, with the exceptions of Sections 7 and 9 in which
separate criteria are applied when identifying and titling divisions
within NECTAs that contain at least one core of 2.5 million or more
population. Wherever the word ``county'' or ``counties'' appears in the
following criteria (except in Sections 7 and 9), the words ``city and
town'' or ``cities and towns'' should be substituted, as appropriate,
when delineating NECTAs. Commuting and employment estimates are derived
from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey.
Section 1. Population Size Requirements for Qualification of Core Based
Statistical Areas
Each CBSA must have a Census Bureau delineated urbanized area of at
least 50,000 population or a Census Bureau delineated urban cluster of
at least 10,000 population. (Urbanized
[[Page 37250]]
areas and urban clusters are collectively referred to as ``urban
areas.'')
Section 2. Central Counties
The central county or counties of a CBSA are those counties that:
(a) Have at least 50 percent of their population in urban areas of
at least 10,000 population; or
(b) Have within their boundaries a population of at least 5,000
located in a single urban area of at least 10,000 population.
A central county is associated with the urbanized area or urban
cluster that accounts for the largest portion of the county's
population. The central counties associated with a particular urbanized
area or urban cluster are grouped to form a single cluster of central
counties for purposes of measuring commuting to and from potentially
qualifying outlying counties.
Section 3. Outlying Counties
A county qualifies as an outlying county of a CBSA if it meets the
following commuting requirements:
(a) At least 25 percent of the workers living in the county work in
the central county or counties of the CBSA; or
(b) At least 25 percent of the employment in the county is
accounted for by workers who reside in the central county or counties
of the CBSA.
A county may be included in only one CBSA. If a county qualifies as
a central county of one CBSA and as outlying in another, it falls
within the CBSA in which it is a central county. A county that
qualifies as outlying to multiple CBSAs falls within the CBSA with
which it has the strongest commuting tie, as measured by either 3(a) or
3(b) above. The counties included in a CBSA must be contiguous; if a
county is not contiguous with other counties in the CBSA, it will not
fall within the CBSA.
Section 4. Merging of Adjacent Core Based Statistical Areas
Two adjacent CBSAs will merge to form one CBSA if the central
county or counties (as a group) of one CBSA qualify as outlying to the
central county or counties (as a group) of the other CBSA using the
measures and thresholds stated in 3(a) and 3(b) above.
Section 5. Identification of Principal Cities
The Principal City (or Cities) of a CBSA will include:
(a) The largest incorporated place with a 2010 Census population of
at least 10,000 in the CBSA or, if no incorporated place of at least
10,000 population is present in the CBSA, the largest incorporated
place or census designated place in the CBSA; and
(b) Any additional incorporated place or census designated place
with a 2010 Census population of at least 250,000 or in which 100,000
or more persons work; and
(c) Any additional incorporated place or census designated place
with a 2010 Census population of at least 50,000, but less than
250,000, and in which the number of workers working in the place meets
or exceeds the number of workers living in the place; and
(d) Any additional incorporated place or census designated place
with a 2010 Census population of at least 10,000, but less than 50,000,
and at least one-third the population size of the largest place, and in
which the number of workers working in the place meets or exceeds the
number of workers living in the place.
Section 6. Categories and Terminology
A CBSA is categorized based on the population of the largest urban
area (urbanized area or urban cluster) within the CBSA. Categories of
CBSAs are: Metropolitan Statistical Areas, based on urbanized areas of
50,000 or more population, and Micropolitan Statistical Areas, based on
urban clusters of at least 10,000 population but less than 50,000
population. Counties that do not fall within CBSAs will represent
``Outside Core Based Statistical Areas.''
A NECTA is categorized in a manner similar to a CBSA and is
referred to as a Metropolitan NECTA or a Micropolitan NECTA.
Section 7. Divisions of Metropolitan Statistical Areas and New England
City and Town Areas
(a) A Metropolitan Statistical Area containing a single urbanized
area with a population of at least 2.5 million may be subdivided to
form smaller groupings of counties referred to as Metropolitan
Divisions. A county qualifies as a ``main county'' of a Metropolitan
Division if 65 percent or more of workers living in the county also
work within the county and the ratio of the number of workers working
in the county to the number of workers living in the county is at least
.75. A county qualifies as a ``secondary county'' if 50 percent or
more, but less than 65 percent, of workers living in the county also
work within the county and the ratio of the number of workers working
in the county to the number of workers living in the county is at least
75.
A main county automatically serves as the basis for a Metropolitan
Division. For a secondary county to qualify as the basis for forming a
Metropolitan Division, it must join with either a contiguous secondary
county or a contiguous main county with which it has the highest
employment interchange measure of 15 or more. After all main counties
and secondary counties are identified and grouped (if appropriate),
each additional county that already has qualified for inclusion in the
Metropolitan Statistical Area falls within the Metropolitan Division
associated with the main/secondary county or counties with which the
county at issue has the highest employment interchange measure.
Counties in a Metropolitan Division must be contiguous.
(b) A NECTA containing a single urbanized area with a population of
at least 2.5 million may be subdivided to form smaller groupings of
cities and towns referred to as NECTA Divisions. A city or town will be
a ``main city or town'' of a NECTA Division if it has a population of
50,000 or more and its highest rate of out-commuting to any other city
or town is less than 20 percent.
After all main cities and towns have been identified, each
remaining city and town in the NECTA will fall within the NECTA
Division associated with the city or town with which the one at issue
has the highest employment interchange measure. Each NECTA Division
must contain a total population of 100,000 or more. Cities and towns
first assigned to areas with populations less than 100,000 will be
assigned to the qualifying NECTA Division associated with the city or
town with which the one at issue has the highest employment interchange
measure. Cities and towns within a NECTA Division must be contiguous.
Section 8. Combining Adjacent Core Based Statistical Areas
(a) Any two adjacent CBSAs will form a Combined Statistical Area if
the employment interchange measure between the two areas is at least
15.
(b) The CBSAs thus combined will also continue to be recognized as
individual CBSAs within the Combined Statistical Area.
Section 9. Titles of Core Based Statistical Areas, Metropolitan
Divisions, New England City and Town Divisions, and Combined
Statistical Areas
(a) The title of a CBSA or NECTA will include the name of its
Principal City with the largest 2010 Census population. If there are
multiple Principal Cities, the names of the second-largest and (if
present) third-largest Principal Cities will appear in the title in
order of descending population size. If the Principal City
[[Page 37251]]
with the largest 2010 Census population is a census designated place,
the name of the largest incorporated place of at least 10,000
population that also is a Principal City will appear first in the title
followed by the name of the census designated place. If the Principal
City with the largest 2010 Census population is a census designated
place, and there is no incorporated place of at least 10,000 population
that also is a Principal City, the name of that census designated place
Principal City will appear first in the title.
(b) The title of a Metropolitan Division will include the name of
the Principal City with the largest 2010 Census population located in
the Metropolitan Division. If there are multiple Principal Cities, the
names of the second-largest and (if present) third-largest Principal
Cities will appear in the title in order of descending population size.
If there are no Principal Cities located in the Metropolitan Division,
the title of the Metropolitan Division will use the names of up to
three counties in order of descending 2010 Census population size.
(c) The title of a NECTA Division will include the name of the
Principal City with the largest 2010 Census population located in the
NECTA Division. If there are multiple Principal Cities, the names of
the second-largest and (if present) third-largest Principal Cities will
appear in the title in order of descending population size. If there
are no Principal Cities located in the NECTA Division, the title of the
NECTA Division will use the names of up to three cities or towns in
descending 2010 Census population size.
(d) The title of a Combined Statistical Area will include the names
of the two largest Principal Cities in the combination and the name of
the third-largest Principal City, if present. If the Combined
Statistical Area title duplicates that of one of its component CBSAs,
the name of the third-most-populous Principal City will be dropped from
the title of the Combined Statistical Area.
(e) Titles also will include the names of any State in which the
area is located.
Section 10. Updating Schedule
(a) The Office of Management and Budget will delineate CBSAs in
2013 based on 2010 Census data and 2006-2010 American Community Survey
5-year estimates.
(b) In subsequent years, the Office of Management and Budget will
designate a new Metropolitan Statistical Area if:
(1) A city that is outside any existing CBSA has a Census Bureau
special census count of 10,000 to 49,999 population, or a population
estimate of 10,000 to 49,999 for two consecutive years from the Census
Bureau's Population Estimates Program, or
(2) A Census Bureau special census results in the delineation of an
urban cluster of 10,000 to 49,999 population that is outside of any
existing CBSA.
(c) Also in subsequent years, the Office of Management and Budget
will designate a new Metropolitan Statistical Area if:
(1) A city that is outside any existing Metropolitan Statistical
Area has a Census Bureau special census count of 50,000 or more
population, or a population estimate of 50,000 or more for two
consecutive years from the Census Bureau's Population Estimates
Program, or
(2) A Census Bureau special census results in the delineation of a
new urbanized area of 50,000 population or more that is outside of any
existing Metropolitan Statistical Area.
(d) Outlying counties of CBSAs that qualify after the first
delineation (in 2013) will qualify, according to the criteria in
Section 3 above, on the basis of American Community Survey 5-year
commuting estimates.
(e) The Office of Management and Budget will review the
delineations of all existing CBSAs and related statistical areas in
2018 using 2011-2015 5-year commuting and employment estimates from the
Census Bureau's American Community Survey. The urbanized areas and
urban clusters used in these delineations will be those based on 2010
Census data or subsequent special censuses for which urban areas are
created. The central counties of CBSAs identified on the basis of a
2010 Census population count, or on the basis of population estimates
from the Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program or a special
census count in the case of postcensally delineated areas, will
constitute the central counties for purposes of the these area
delineations. New CBSAs will be designated in 2018 on the basis of
Census Bureau special census counts or population estimates as
described above in Sections 10(b) and 10(c); outlying county
qualification will be based on 5-year commuting estimates from the
American Community Survey.
(f) Other aspects of the Metropolitan and Metropolitan Statistical
Area and related statistical area delineations are not subject to
change between decennial censuses.
Section 11. Definitions of Key Terms
Census designated place--A statistical geographic entity that is
analogous to an incorporated place, delineated for the decennial
census, consisting of a locally recognized, unincorporated
concentration of population that is identified by name.
Central county--The county or counties of a Core Based Statistical
Area containing a substantial portion of an urbanized area or urban
cluster or both, and to and from which commuting is measured to
determine qualification of outlying counties.
Combined Statistical Area--A geographic entity consisting of two or
more adjacent Core Based Statistical Areas with employment interchange
measures of at least 15.
Core--A densely settled concentration of population, comprising
either an urbanized area (of 50,000 or more population) or an urban
cluster (of 10,000 to 49,999 population) delineated by the Census
Bureau, around which a Core Based Statistical Area is delineated.
Core Based Statistical Area (CBSA)--A statistical geographic entity
consisting of the county or counties associated with at least one core
(urbanized area or urban cluster) of at least 10,000 population, plus
adjacent counties having a high degree of social and economic
integration with the core as measured through commuting ties with the
counties containing the core. Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical
Areas are the two categories of Core Based Statistical Areas.
Delineation--The establishment of the boundary of a statistical
area, or the boundary that results.
Employment interchange measure--A measure of ties between two
adjacent entities. The employment interchange measure is the sum of the
percentage of workers living in the smaller entity who work in the
larger entity and the percentage of employment in the smaller entity
that is accounted for by workers who reside in the larger entity.
Geographic building block--The geographic unit, such as a county,
that constitutes the basic geographic component of a statistical area.
Main city or town--A city or town that acts as an employment center
within a New England City and Town Area that has a core with a
population of at least 2.5 million. A main city or town serves as the
basis for delineating a New England City and Town Area Division.
Main county--A county that acts as an employment center within a
Core Based Statistical Area that has a core with a population of at
least 2.5 million. A main county serves as the basis for delineating a
Metropolitan Division.
Metropolitan Division--A county or group of counties within a Core
Based Statistical Area that contains an
[[Page 37252]]
urbanized area with a population of at least 2.5 million. A
Metropolitan Division consists of one or more main/secondary counties
that represent an employment center or centers, plus adjacent counties
associated with the main/secondary county or counties through commuting
ties.
Metropolitan Statistical Area--A Core Based Statistical Area
associated with at least one urbanized area that has a population of at
least 50,000. The Metropolitan Statistical Area comprises the central
county or counties containing the core, plus adjacent outlying counties
having a high degree of social and economic integration with the
central county or counties as measured through commuting.
Micropolitan Statistical Area--A Core Based Statistical Area
associated with at least one urban cluster that has a population of at
least 10,000, but less than 50,000. The Micropolitan Statistical Area
comprises the central county or counties containing the core, plus
adjacent outlying counties having a high degree of social and economic
integration with the central county or counties as measured through
commuting.
New England City and Town Area (NECTA)--A statistical geographic
entity that is delineated using cities and towns as building blocks and
that is conceptually similar to the Core Based Statistical Areas in New
England (which are delineated using counties as building blocks).
New England City and Town Area (NECTA) Division--A city or town or
group of cities and towns within a NECTA that contains an urbanized
area with a population of at least 2.5 million. A NECTA Division
consists of a main city or town that represents an employment center,
plus adjacent cities and towns associated with the main city or town,
or with other cities and towns that are in turn associated with the
main city or town, through commuting ties.
Outlying county--A county that qualifies for inclusion in a Core
Based Statistical Area on the basis of commuting ties with the Core
Based Statistical Area's central county or counties.
Outside Core Based Statistical Areas--Counties that do not qualify
for inclusion in a Core Based Statistical Area.
Principal City--The largest city of a Core Based Statistical Area,
plus additional cities that meet specified statistical criteria.
Secondary county--A county that acts as an employment center in
combination with a main county or another secondary county within a
Core Based Statistical Area that has a core with a population of at
least 2.5 million. A secondary county may serve as the basis for
delineating a Metropolitan Division, but only when combined with a main
county or another secondary county.
Urban area--The term used by the Census Bureau to refer
collectively to urbanized areas and urban clusters.
Urban cluster--A statistical geographic entity delineated by the
Census Bureau, consisting of densely settled census tracts and blocks
and adjacent densely settled territory that together contain at least
2,500 people. For purposes of delineating Core Based Statistical Areas,
only those urban clusters of 10,000 more population are considered.
Urbanized area--A statistical geographic entity delineated by the
Census Bureau, consisting of densely settled census tracts and blocks
and adjacent densely settled territory that together contain at least
50,000 people.
Cass R. Sunstein,
Administrator, Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs.
[FR Doc. 2010-15605 Filed 6-25-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE P