This layer is an archive of Version 1.0 of the CEJST data as a fully functional GIS layer. See an archive of the latest version of the CEJST tool using Version 2.0 of the data released in December 2024 here.
This layer assesses and identifies communities that are disadvantaged according to updated
Justice40 Initiative criteria.
Census tracts in the U.S. and its territories that meet the Version 1.0 criteria are shaded in semi-transparent blue colors to work with a variety of basemaps. See this web map for use in your dashboards, story maps, and apps.
Details of the assessment are provided in the popup for every census tract in the United States and its territories American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. This map uses 2010 census tracts from Version 1.0 of the source data downloaded November 22, 2022.
If you have been using a previous version of the Justice40 data, please know that this Version 1.0 differs in many ways. See the updated Justice40 Initiative criteria for current specifics.
Use this layer to help plan for grant applications, to perform spatial analysis, and to create informative dashboards and web applications. See this blog post for more information.
From the source:
This data "highlights disadvantaged census tracts across all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. territories. Communities are considered disadvantaged:
- If they are in census tracts that meet the thresholds for at least one of the tool’s categories of burden, or
- If they are on land within the boundaries of Federally Recognized Tribes
Categories of Burdens
The tool uses datasets as indicators of burdens. The burdens are organized into categories. A community is highlighted as disadvantaged on the CEJST map if it is in a census tract that is (1) at or above the threshold for one or more environmental, climate, or other burdens, and (2) at or above the threshold for an associated socioeconomic burden.
In addition, a census tract that is completely surrounded by disadvantaged communities and is at or above the 50% percentile for low income is also considered disadvantaged.
Census tracts are small units of geography. Census tract boundaries for statistical areas are determined by the U.S. Census Bureau once every ten years. The tool utilizes the census tract boundaries from 2010. This was chosen because many of the data sources in the tool currently use the 2010 census boundaries."
Purpose
The goal of the Justice40 Initiative is to provide 40 percent of the overall benefits of certain Federal investments in [eight] key areas to disadvantaged communities. These [eight] key areas are: climate change, clean energy and energy efficiency, clean transit, affordable and sustainable housing, training and workforce development, the remediation and reduction of legacy pollution, [health burdens] and the development of critical clean water infrastructure." Source:
Climate and Economic Justice Screening tool
"Sec. 219. Policy. To secure an equitable economic future, the United States must ensure that environmental and economic justice are key considerations in how we govern. That means investing and building a clean energy economy that creates well‑paying union jobs, turning disadvantaged communities — historically marginalized and overburdened — into healthy, thriving communities, and undertaking robust actions to mitigate climate change while preparing for the impacts of climate change across rural, urban, and Tribal areas. Agencies shall make achieving environmental justice part of their missions by developing programs, policies, and activities to address the disproportionately high and adverse human health, environmental, climate-related and other cumulative impacts on disadvantaged communities, as well as the accompanying economic challenges of such impacts. It is therefore the policy of my Administration to secure environmental justice and spur economic opportunity for disadvantaged communities that have been historically marginalized and overburdened by pollution and underinvestment in housing, transportation, water and wastewater infrastructure, and health care." Source: Executive Order on Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad
Use of this Data
"The pilot identifies 21 priority programs to immediately begin enhancing benefits for disadvantaged communities. These priority programs will provide a blueprint for other agencies to help inform their work to implement the Justice40 Initiative across government." Source: The Path to Achieving Justice 40
The layer has some transparency applied to allow it to work sufficiently well on top of many basemaps. For optimum map display where streets and labels are clearly shown
on top of this layer, try one of the
Human Geography basemaps and set transparency to 0%, as is done in
this example web map.
Browse the Data
View the Data tab in the top right of this page to browse the data in a table and view the metadata available for each field, including field name, field alias, and a field description explaining what the field represents.
Symbology updated 2/19/2023 to show additional tracts whose overlap with tribal lands is greater than 0% but less than 1%, to be designated as "Partially Disadvantaged" alongside tracts whose overlap with tribal lands is 1% or more.
Comments (8)
We found a copy of the newer version of the CEJST tool here: https://edgi-govdata-archiving.github.io/j40-cejst-2/en/#3/33.47/-97.5
Will this data remain available despite the Trump administration seemingly ending the Justice40 initiative and the Council on Environmental Quality (all hyperlinks are dead)?
I see that there is a new version 2.0 of this dataset as of Dec 20, 2024. Will there be a new item from @esri_demographics? Would be great to have it noted in the metadata here that this version is deprecated.
We use it in several ways. 1) the layer is added directly to several of our equity-focused maps that support business planning 2) We use it as an input data source for some of our own equity metrics.
We are reviewing the new version in the coming weeks for possible inclusion in Living Atlas. How are you using the current layer available in Living Atlas?
Why is the legend not coming when I add this map to my personal map? I am using the URL provided, but when loaded, it's just a flat layer. Can someone check it out?
The column name provided for N_TRN in the shapefile download from https://screeningtool.geoplatform.gov/en/downloads is listed as "Transportation Factor (Definition N)". Your hosted feature layer alias is "Clean Transit Disadvantaged." Not sure where the clean transit alias comes from, but I believe the alias should be "Transportation Factor (Definition N)."
Good eye! "Clean Transit" was renamed in the November version, and while I updated it in most places, I missed these aliases. I have updated "N_TRN" alias to "Transportation Disadvantaged" and made similar corrections to the other 7 factors' aliases. Each field's long description now mentions Definition N. The reason I opted for "Transporation Disadvantaged" over the original "Transportation Factor (Definition N)" was to facilitate basic understanding of this field. The web site uses "category" throughout, and I did not see "factor" in use anywhere.