Census aims to count every person living in the US, only once and in the right place
Every 10 years, the Census Bureau counts everyone who lives in the United States and its five major territories. The first people have already been counted for the 2020 census, and the process will continue through the coming months. 2020 should be the easiest year yet to participate, as it marks the first time that everyone can respond online, by phone or by mail.
The census is required by the U.S. Constitution to determine the number of seats each state gets in the House of Representatives. It also provides data for redrawing legislative districts. Responding is important because state, local and federal lawmakers use statistics from the decennial census to help them determine how more than $675 billion in federal funds will be spent every year for the next 10 years.
Funds influenced by census statistics are used for critical infrastructure and public services such as roads and bridges, hospitals and health care clinics, emergency response, and schools and education.
While counting began in remote Alaska on Jan. 21, typical households will begin receiving postcards with instructions for completing the census in mid-March. Households in east Phillips County will receive an invitation in English to participate in the census online. Households in west Phillips County will receive a an invitation in English to participate online as well as a paper census form that can be filled out instead because this area has had low internet usage.
About 10% of Colorado households will have a census packet hand-delivered to their physical address. This includes households without a standard street address that receive mail only through a post office box.
Internet self-response and census questionnaire assistance are available in 12 non-English languages: Spanish, Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, Russian, Arabic, Tagalog, Polish, French, Haitian Creole, Portuguese and Japanese. The paper questionnaire and field enumeration materials are also available in Spanish.
The census includes 10 questions and should take just 10 minutes per person to complete. The questions are:
— Name.
— Phone number.
— Age.
— Sex.
— Hispanic Origin.
— Race.
— Relationship to householder.
— Household tenure (own/rent).
— Number of persons in the household.
— Does a person usually stay or live somewhere else.
Whether you choose to respond online, by phone or by mail, it’s important that every person in the household is counted and that answers are given based on circumstances April 1, 2020. A college student living in a dorm April 1, for example, will be counted at the dorm.
People often missed in the census include roommates, young children, newborns and anyone renting a space in the home. If you’re unsure who to count, visit https://2020census.gov/en/who-to-count.html.
In May, census takers will begin to visit households that have not responded to help make sure everyone is counted. To avoid a visit to your home, simply respond when you receive your mailing. Four reminders will be sent before a census employee follows up in person.