After data collection was completed, any remaining incomplete or inconsistent information was imputed during the final content edit of the collected data. Imputations, or computer assignments of acceptable codes in place of unacceptable entries or blanks, were needed most often when an entry for a given item was missing or when the information reported for a person or housing unit on that item was inconsistent with other information for that same person or housing unit. As in other surveys and previous censuses, the general procedure for changing unacceptable entries was to allocate an entry for a person or housing unit that was consistent with entries for persons or housing units with similar characteristics. Imputing acceptable values in place of blanks or unacceptable entries enhances the usefulness of the data.

The data on fertility were derived from Question 17, and for the 2003-2006 ACS, from Question 18. The question asked if the person had given birth in the past 12 months, and was asked of all women 15 to 50 years old regardless of marital status.
Data are most frequently presented in terms of the aggregate number of women who had a birth in the past 12 months in the specified category, and in terms of the rate per 1,000 women.

The data on sex were derived from answers to Question 1. Individuals were asked to mark either "male" or "female" to indicate their sex. For most cases in which sex was not reported, the appropriate entry was determined from the person's given (i.e., first) name and household relationship. Otherwise, sex was imputed according to the relationship to the householder and the age of the person.