After some additional research, I've learned that the question of counting non-citizens is already addressed in federal law, and it's pretty much as I expected - if they are residing here on the day the census begins, they are counted where they reside. Citizenship has nothing to do with it.
"Decennial U.S. Census figures are based on actual counts of persons dwelling in U.S. residential structures. They include citizens, non-citizen legal residents, non-citizen long-term visitors and illegal immigrants. The Census Bureau bases its decision about whom to count on the concept of usual residence. Usual residence, a principle established by the Census Act of 1790, is defined as the place a person lives and sleeps most of the time."
Further down it says that private American citizens living abroad are excluded from the census, even if they may vote. Federal employees and their dependents living with them abroad, however, are counted.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Census
Both statements are footnoted if you want to do further research.
This also addresses your scenario about attendees at a festival; those who reside here - legally and illegally - are counted at their usual place of residence as of Census Day. Those who are only in the country for the festival (short-term visitors) are not counted at all.
Questions about folks who have multiple residences, those who have no fixed residence, those who are homeless, those who are moving to a new residence on Census Day, infants born on Census Day, etc., are all covered in detail by US Code Title 13, which is a typically mind-numbing federal document... |
