Li Qiang signs State Council order to publish the revised "National Agricultural Census Regulations"

People’s Finance News (People’s Finance Network), March 26 — On March 26, the State Council Premier Li Qiang recently signed a State Council Order to promulgate the revised National Agricultural Census Regulations (hereinafter referred to as the Regulations), which will come into effect on May 1, 2026. The Regulations consist of 7 chapters and 44 articles. The main revised contents are as follows.

First, improve the foundational system for agricultural censuses. Add “all parties’ joint participation” as a principle for the organization and implementation of the agricultural census. Add matters such as the development of rural industries, rural development, and rural governance as contents of the agricultural census. Add new census methods such as remote sensing measurement, and clarify that agricultural censuses should make full use of materials such as administrative records and big data from society.

Second, strengthen data-quality control and document management. Improve the post-census quality sampling and inspection system, and clarify that the office of the State Council leading group for agricultural censuses formulates post-census quality sampling and inspection plans, uniformly organizes the post-census quality sampling and inspection work, and uses the inspection results as an important basis for evaluating the data quality of agricultural censuses at the national and local levels. Specify confidentiality obligations of the census office and census personnel, and provide corresponding legal liabilities for relevant acts of compromising confidentiality, leaking secrets, and related wrongdoing. Establish and improve systems for preserving and managing agricultural census materials for the census office, and make provisions for archiving and transferring agricultural census materials, among other matters.

Third, prevent and punish data falsification. In the legislative purpose, add requirements to safeguard the authenticity and completeness of agricultural census data. Add provisions that leaders of localities, departments, and units may not, in any way, require the census office or census personnel to forge or tamper with agricultural census materials, nor may they explicitly or implicitly instruct lower-level units and their personnel or agricultural census respondents to report false agricultural census data, etc. Require agricultural census respondents to provide, on time, the materials needed for the agricultural census; they may not provide materials that are untrue or incomplete; and they may not late-report or refuse to report agricultural census materials, etc. Provide that the census office and census personnel must truthfully collect and submit agricultural census materials; they may not forge or tamper with agricultural census materials; and they may not, in any way, require agricultural census respondents to provide untrue agricultural census materials, etc. Clarify that for statistical falsification and other wrongdoing, such as falsification in agricultural census work, accountability and investigation will be carried out in accordance with law, penalties will be increased, and punishment will be strengthened up to the point of pursuing criminal responsibility. (Xinhua News Agency)