140 Census Bosses Took Vegas Trip

[frontrange]

Source: Denver CBS 4 TV

...A CBS4 investigation has learned the U.S. Census Bureau sent 140 administrators from Colorado and nine other Rocky Mountain and southwestern states to Las Vegas for several days to discuss "lessons learned" from the 2010 census that could be applied in the next census in 2020. The trip cost an estimated $100,000 in airfare, meals and hotel costs and is coming under withering criticism from a Colorado congressman.

Asked why the Census Bureau couldn't have saved taxpayers money by gathering the information by surveys or electronically, Jost said his agency has had video meetings, webinars and has done mail and web-based surveys. But he said, "Sometimes you just need to sit down and hash things out face to face with these people."

Read more: http://cbs4denver.com/investigates/census.meeting.las.2.1923049.html

[itsrobert]

1. $$100K isn't a lot of money. How much did the DADT surveys cost?

DADT surveys are all over the military and townhall meetings are being held all around the globe. I'm sure it's costing in excess of $5 Million to coduct.

[Brickbat]

2. $100K for more than 100 people?

Sounds like they got a bargain.

[Exultant Democracy]

9. for the hotel, meals and flights, yeah that is a pretty good deal.

[elocs]

3. I wonder what Einstein thought that would be a good idea, resulting in great PR? n/t

[gkhouston]

4. Flights and hotels for Vegas were probably cheap. Doesn't sound like that much

money for a multi-day trip for that many people.

[CreekDog]

5. rooms were $61/night...and $59 with their group discount

could you find cheaper in another city without losing the savings in increased airfare to get there?

[seattleblue]

6. That is not the point.

It was a unnecessary meeting. It could have been done by video conference. The spokesmen said they have that capability "but sometimes you just need to get together". Yeah and it just happens it is in a 24 hour party town that 'you just need to get together'. If they really wanted to learn some 'lessons' for 2020 they would have invited a few of the workers who actually did the work. The managers were in their offices not in the field. They don't have a clue about what the lessons were.

[nyy1998]

7. And a corporation NEVER takes a "retreat" to "discuss"

It didn't seem that expensive from an overall or a per capita cost.

Could they have done it somewhere else or via teleconference? Sure, but it's not that most outrageous abuse of taxpayers dollars(for that, we should look at the Pentagon)

[seattleblue]

8. What a corporation does is the shareholders problem not the taxpayers.

Sure it is not a big abuse but if one has the attitude that everyone else is abusing and their abuse is bigger than mine then nothing ever gets solved. Also I repeat the managers should not have been meeting because they don't have a clue about Census problems. I worked on and off for the Census over the last two years on different projects and Census management was out to lunch literally.

[Obamanaut]

10. There are folks who have no problem with this. I think it is an imprudent

use of tax dollars.