The services portion of the economic census has seen the most changes over the years, as the country changed from an agricultural and manufacturing base to a services base. In 1997, the services area was divided into 11 different report sectors. Descriptions of each sector and its geographic coverage are described on the 1997 Economic Census page, from the U.S. Census Bureau.

Those sectors can be updated using the following sources:

• Information and Communication Technology Survey
• Service Annual Survey
• Public Elementary-Secondary Education Finance Data
• Health Insurance Data
• County Business Patterns
  County Business Patterns is an annual series that provides subnational economic data by industry. The series is useful for studying the economic activity of small areas; analyzing economic changes over time; and as a benchmark for statistical series, surveys, and databases between economic censuses. This series has been published annually since 1964 and at irregular intervals dating back to 1946. The comparability of data over time may be affected by definitional changes in establishments, activity status, and industrial classifications.