Supreme Court to rule on census sampling

Supreme Court to rule on census sampling

The Supreme Court Thursday agreed to decide whether the Clinton administration can use statistical sampling for the 2000 census and will likely reach an agreement by March, the Associated Press reported.

The justices will hear arguments in the case on Nov. 30.

Both the administration, which wants to use sampling, and the GOP-controlled House, which wants it banned, said a decision by March is vital. The administration is seeking to overturn a three-judge federal panel's August invalidation of the Census Bureau's planned use of the sampling method that is designed to correct the undercount experienced in the 1990 census.