{"id":1274,"slug":"acs-margins-of-error-false-positives","title":"ACS 5-Year Estimates carry margins of error that produce \"false positives\" in small/rural areas if ignored","kind":"reference","scope":"business","status":"current","audiences":["kevin","smb-owner","candid-team"],"topics":["open-data","accuracy-risk-published-data"],"reference_body":"**Claim:** For neighborhood-level analysis the **American Community Survey (ACS) 5-Year Estimates** are the granular source, and every estimate carries a **margin of error (MOE)** that, if ignored, produces \"false positives\" in small/rural areas.\n\n**Source:** Census Bureau ACS Business handbook; blueglassinsights.com.\n\n**Confidence:** Verified.\n\n**Why this matters for Candid:** Any site-selection or trade-area analysis that uses ACS micro-area numbers must publish (and design around) the MOE. Cross-link [[rule-label-every-published-data-figure-with-vintage]] and the accuracy-risk topic.","rationale_body":null,"metadata":null,"links":{"outgoing":[],"incoming":[{"slug":"research-brief-data-driven-tools-smb-june-2026","title":"Research brief: live data and data-driven tools for SMBs — when it's an edge, when it's overkill (June 2026)","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"relates-to"},{"slug":"census-business-builder","title":"Census Business Builder — free US Census tool; pick business type + location → demographics, consumer spending, competition","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"relates-to"},{"slug":"rule-label-every-published-data-figure-with-vintage","title":"R6 — Every published number gets a label (what it is) and a vintage (how fresh); the Zestimate defence depends on it","kind":"rule","scope":"business","link_type":"depends-on"}]},"created_at":"2026-06-20T16:57:38.866Z","updated_at":"2026-06-20T16:57:38.866Z"}