Today, communities across the nation have new American Community Survey (ACS) statistics to help them make informed decisions. The ACS one-year estimates released today provide statistics on dozens of economic, social, housing and demographic topics that are important to people and communities across America.

The ACS is the nation’s largest household survey and it is the only available source of data for many of the issues that it covers. With data released every year, it covers every geographic area in the U.S. – making it the only uniform measure that every county, city and community nationwide can use. Business and community leaders use ACS data to analyze how the needs of their neighborhoods are evolving, and how to use their resources to meet those needs.

For example, the City of New Orleans is putting Census data to use through an innovative program that distributes smoke alarms to households that need them. This is just one powerful example of how people in communities nationwide benefit from the ACS data released today.

Last year, the New Orleans Fire Department and Office of Performance and Accountabilityused block group-level data from our American Community Survey five-year estimates to identify homes that were most in need of smoke alarms – such as people living in older structures or with young children – and more likely to have fatalities due to fire. Equipped with this data, they have distributed over 10,000 smoke alarms to New Orleans residents since March 2015.

New Orleans used reliable and publicly available data from the Census Bureau about its community to make informed decisions about how to protect residents. Census Bureau data make our governments more responsive and better informed, our businesses more competitive, and our communities better served. This is just one example of how communities have tailored ACS data to guide specific local decisions.

We depend on the public’s cooperation to produce high-quality statistics about our people, places and economy, and I thank everyone who has participated in the ACS and provided important data that the nation depends on. The Census Bureau is proud to provide the timeliest, comprehensive, and statistically precise data available for community decision making – free of charge.

To access today’s release of one-year estimates from the American Community Survey, check out the press release with the findings, and check Census.gov in December for the release of the ACS 5 year data. Use the hashtag #ACSdata to let us know how you use ACS data to benefit your community.