The U.S. Census Bureau will be sending a form to you soon.
Cameron Parish, Partnership Specialist with the U.S. Census Bureau, urges you to fill out the survey and send it back in. Otherwise, you will get a personal visit from a Census representative. “The Census Bureau conducts a survey every ten years to count the population. This Census is going to occur on April 1st, 2010.”
“In previous years, it has been mainly a door to door operation but this year we’re sending out a form to households. It’s a ten question survey that folks will be expected to send in immediately once received.. It is a simple short form and we believe this will encourage participation. The only instance in which you should receive a visit from someone with the Census Bureau is if that form is not returned within the following month after receiving the form.”
“On this year’s form, we have just ten questions. Among those questions is ‘how many people are living in the household’. That is the most important question you can answer on that form. They ask questions with regard to race and ethnicity. They also ask for the sexes and ages of the folks who are living with you as well as things pertaining to whether or not that person stays somewhere else frequently or whether that person is a full time resident of the home.”
“Forms will begin arriving in mid-March and everyone in the nation should have a copy of this ten question survey in their hands by April 1st, either delivered to their mail box or directly to their front door. If you don’t fill out the forms someone will probably come and visit your house beginning in May to gather that information from you personally. So if you don’t want a knock on the door go ahead and fill out the form and send it to us.”
Our goal is to increase participation here and raise awareness of it’s importance because the Census determines how much money DeKalb County can receive for the construction and improvement of schools, roads, health care, and other services. The eligibility for the money is not based solely on demand but it’s based on the official numbers of the people living in the area, which are counted only every ten years by the U.S. Census Bureau. If those numbers are inaccurate, the county isn’t going to get it’s share of dollars that it needs to make improvements and attract desirable employers, such as manufacturing and retail so we want everyone to fill out the ten question survey and return it as quickly as possible so the county will receive the funds it is due.”
“We’ve identified certain groups that have historically been less likely to fill out those surveys. Among those groups are newly arriving immigrants, the Hispanic population, senior citizens, the disabled, and the African-American population, so we’re making special outreach efforts to contact those folks and encourage them to fill out the form. If it’s a challenge for them to fill it out, we’re offering assistance to help them understand the importance of why they need to be counted..”
The information gathered on the survey is confidential. Personal information is confidential for seventy two years. There are no questions on the form with regard to legal status. Since 1790, everyone in the country has been counted whether they were citizens nor not, free or slave. So it’s really not of any importance where that person comes from or what their legal status is. No information will be shared with any law enforcement agency.”
Meanwhile, the U.S. Census Bureau is now looking for applicants to fill thousands of jobs this spring in neighborhoods across the state.
If you are interested in working in the 2010 Census, call toll free at 1-866-861-2010 or go online to www.2010censusjobs.gov
For a temporary job with flexible hours, on-the-job training and good pay, remember: 1-866-861-2010 or www.2010censusjobs.gov.
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