Census Tract Coding System

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A census tract is a small statistical subdivision of a county with (generally) between 2,500 and 8,000 residents. The boundaries of census tracts are established cooperatively by local committees and the Census Bureau. An attempt is made to keep the same boundaries from census to census so that historical comparability will be maintained. This goal is not always achieved; old tracts may be subdivided due to population growth, disappear entirely, or have their boundaries changed. The census tract definition used to code the case's census tract field  must be recorded so that data are correctly grouped and analyzed.