The U.S. Census Bureau will hold a prerelease webinar on January 22 at 1 p.m. ET to discuss the upcoming release of the 2020-2024 American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates. The session aims to help users understand how to access ACS data and provide guidance on comparing statistics across different geographic areas and time periods.
The ACS collects information on topics such as language spoken at home, education, commuting patterns, employment, mortgage status, rent, income, poverty levels, and health insurance coverage. It remains the primary source for local-level estimates for most of these subjects.
According to the Census Bureau, embargo subscribers will be able to view the new statistics starting January 27 at 10 a.m. ET. The data will cover a range of geographic areas including all states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, congressional and state legislative districts, metropolitan and micropolitan statistical areas, counties, places, census tracts, and block groups.
Embargoed access for subscribers will last until January 29 at 12:01 a.m. ET. During this period wire services are not allowed to distribute news stories or data files before the official public release date in accordance with the Census Bureau’s embargo policy. All datasets will become publicly available by January 29 at 10 a.m. ET.
Individuals interested in embargo access can register through www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/archives/embargoed_releases.
The webinar presenters include Gretchen Gooding from the American Community Survey Office Outreach and Education Branch; Vicki Mack from the American Community Survey Office; and Jewel Jordan from the Public Information Office.
The event will feature an audio conference alongside an online presentation. Attendees do not need to call in separately for audio access. Both credentialed media representatives and data users may submit questions during or after the presentation using provided channels.
Registration for participation is available at www.census.gov/data/academy/webinars/2026/2020-2024-acs-5-year-prerelease.html.
