Followup Procedures 



A thank you/reminder card was mailed to those on the 

 mail list in mid-January 1 988. Five followup letters, three of 

 which were accompanied by a report form, were sent to 

 nonrespondents at 4-week intervals starting in mid-February 

 and continuing until early June 1988. 



Telephone calls were made to all large farms who had 

 not responded. In addition, telephone calls were made to a 

 sample of other nonrespondents in counties that had a 

 response rate of less than 75 percent. A nonresponse 

 adjustment procedure was used to represent the final 

 nonrespondent farms in the census results. A description 

 of this procedure is included in the Census Estimation 

 section of appendix C. 



DATA PROCESSING 



Selected report forms were reviewed prior to keying the 

 data. These included reports with attached correspon- 

 dence and reports with remarks or no positive data on the 

 front page. 



The data from each report form were subjected to a 

 detailed item-by-item computer edit. The edit performed 

 comprehensive cfiecks for consistency and reasonable- 

 ness, corrected erroneous or inconsistent data, supplied 

 missing data based on similar farms within the same 

 county, and assigned farm classification codes necessary 

 for tabulating the data. Substantial computer-generated 

 changes to the data were clerically reviewed and verified. 



In the computer edit, farms with sales, acreage, or 

 commodities exceeding specified levels were tested for 

 historical comparability. Key items, such as acreage and 

 sales, were compared for substantial changes between 

 1 982 and 1 987. Sizeable historical differences were resolved 

 or verified by telephone, if necessary. Respondents who 

 reported sales or acreage above specified levels on non- 

 sample forms were sent correspondence requesting the 

 additional sample data. Prior to publication, tabulated 

 totals were reviewed by statisticians to identify inconsis- 

 tencies and potential coverage problems. Comparisons 

 were made with previous census data, estimates published 

 by the USDA, and other available data. 



MAJOR DATA CHANGES 



Prior to each agriculture census, the Census Bureau 

 reviews the content of the census forms to eliminate 

 questions no longer needed and to identify new items 

 necessary to meet user needs and to better describe the 

 agricultural situation in our Nation. Data requests are 

 solicited from farmers, farm organizations, land grant col- 

 leges and universities. State and federal agencies, and 

 members of the Census Advisory Committee on Agricul- 

 tural Statistics. Each agency and organization is asked to 

 identify and justify its specific data needs. The following 

 data inquiries were added to the 1 987 report form: 



Income from farm-related sources 



Acres under the Conservation Reserve Program 



Payments received for participation in federal farm 



programs 

 Grazing permits by source 



Additional data on production expenses were added in i 

 1987: ; 



Repair and maintenance expenses ' 



Cash rent 



Property taxes paid 



All other production expenses 



The following separate data inquiries were eliminated 

 from the 1 987 form: 



Storage capacity for petroleum products 

 Number of hired farm and ranch workers 

 Value of agricultural products sold directly to individuals 



for human consumption 

 Source of irrigation water 

 Tons of commercially mixed feed 

 Expenditures for coal, wood, and coke 

 Selected machinery items: automobiles, corn heads for 



combines, and field forage harvesters 

 Chinchillas 

 Worms 

 Tropical and baitfish 



FOLLOW-ON SURVEYS, SPECIAL CENSUSES, 

 AND RELATED PUBLICATIONS 



In addition to the 1987 Census of Agriculture for the 50 

 States, Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Amer- 

 ican Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the Northern 

 Mariana Islands, the census of agriculture program includes 

 the 1988 Farm and Ranch Irrigation Survey, the 1988 

 Agricultural Economics and Land Ownership Survey, and 

 the 1 988 Census of Horticultural Specialties. 



The 1988 Farm and Ranch Irrigation Survey provides 

 data on water use by irrigated farms and ranches. Data 

 include: the amount of water applied by crop, method of 

 water distribution, source of water, and energy costs for 

 pumping water. Data from this survey will be published as 

 volume 3, part 1 . 



The 1 988 Agricultural Economics and Land Ownership 

 Survey provides detailed data on debts, expenses, taxes, 

 credits, assets, land ownership, and farm and off-farm 

 income for farm operators. Many of these items, as well as 

 detailed data on landlord characteristics, are being col- 

 lected from the landlords of the farms involved in the 

 survey. Data from this survey will be published as volume 

 3, part 2. 



The 1988 Census of Horticultural Specialties covers 

 operations growing and selling $2,000 or more of horticul- 

 tural products such as greenhouse products, outdoor- 

 grown floricultural products, nursery products, mushrooms, 

 and sod. These data will be published as volume 4. 



Additional publications of the 1 987 Census of Agricul- 

 ture data include the Agricultural Atlas of the United States 

 (previously called the Graphic Summary), Coverage Eval- 

 uation, Ranking of States and Counties, and Government 

 Payments and Market Value of Agricultural Products Sold. 



A-2 APPENDIX A 



1987 CENSUS OF AGRICULTURE 



