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 For the 1980 census, the Census Bureau changed the name unincorporated place to census designated place in order to emphasize that these communities are described and delineated by the Census Bureau (albeit with State and local input), and do not represent an unabridged list of communities that lack legal definition. Also, with the advent of the General Revenue Sharing Program in the 1970s, the term unincorporated place had caused some confusion locally. This was particularly true in Northeastern and some Midwestern States where many of the MCDs were incorporated, and where their officials were displeased by the Census Bureau’s classification of any portions of their governments as unincorporated.

The 1980 census included a whole-town CDP category, whereby MCDs in New England, the Middle Atlantic States, Michigan, and Wisconsin were treated as places (for urban/rural qualification and whole-count purposes) if 95 percent or more of their population and 80 percent or more of their land area qualified for inclusion in a UA. The Census Bureau long has grappled with the proper treatment of these strong governmental entities, particularly in the classification of their populations as urban or rural. These MCDs also were treated as places in the 1940, 1960, and some earlier censuses. The Census Bureau dropped the whole-town CDP category for the 1990 census; CDPs defined within these largely built-up MCDs follow regular CDP criteria. That is, the entire MCD may be coextensive with a CDP, or the MCD may contain one or more CDPs. In its 1990 data presentations, the Census Bureau has included the MCDs in 12 States (the 6 New England States plus Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin) in some of the data products that present tabulations for places of 2,500 or more. The MCDs in these States serve as general purpose local governments, and they possess legal or governmental powers similar to those of incorporated places. As a result, data users interested in both kinds of entities can refer to them more easily (see ). 9-24Places