MAINE — The U.S. Census Bureau is continuing its efforts to collect and process data for the 2020 Census, and a Maine company is working to get the word out to residents who have not yet responded.
The U.S. Census Bureau has been preparing for this once-a-decade population count for years, said officials at communications venture Dirigo Partners. The company offered 10 tips to help residents respond to the Census.
- If you don’t regularly check the mail, please do so now. By now, most households have received at least one invite to respond to the 2020 Census, which includes instructions for how to respond online, by phone, or by mail.
- Even if you don’t get an invitation in the mail, you can go online at 2020census.gov and respond now. You don’t have to wait for the paper questionnaire to arrive either.
- Your name isn’t on it. The invitation will be addressed to “Resident” – that’s you (and everyone in your household). Don’t throw it out just because your name isn’t on it. But do be aware of scam and fraud mail – learn more here.
- Determine how you will respond: online, by phone, or by mail.If you want to answer on paper, you can. Paper questionnaires are arriving by mail to households that haven’t yet responded.
- Responding online is easy. Your invitation includes a Census ID number. But if you lose it, you can use your address. You can go online on any device including a laptop, tablet, or smartphone. Remember: If you respond online, you must complete the census in one sitting. You will not have the ability to save your progress and come back to finish.
- You can respond in English and 12 different languages online and by phone. There will be a drop-down menu online, or a special phone number on your invitation. Other languages are: Spanish, Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, Russian, Arabic, Tagalog, Polish, French, Haitian Creole, Portuguese, and Japanese. The Census Bureau also offers webpages and guidesin 59 non-English languages, including American Sign Language, and guides in Braille and large print.
- On the paper questionnaire use blue or black ink – no pencils! You can write in the margins, though, if you need space. Be sure to return the questionnaire in the envelope provided. If you lost it, return it to: U.S. Census Bureau, National Processing Center, 1201 E 10th Street, Jeffersonville, Indiana 47132.
- Figure out who is “Person 1/Head of Household.” If you’re the only person in your home, then you are Person 1. If more than one person lives in your home, Person 1 is generally someone whose name is on the mortgage or rental agreement and who is over age 15.
- Count everyone who lives in your home — including children. Count everyone who lives and sleeps in your home most of the time, including relatives, friends and others. Learn more about who to countand special circumstances for specific groups of people such as military. If more than 10 people live in your home, respond online at 2020census.gov where there is plenty of space.
- Respond as soon as you can. Respond on your own now to avoid a visit from a census taker later this year.
U.S. Census Bureau Director Stephen Dillingham said field and self-response data collection will end Sept. 30.
At the beginning of August, 93 million households, nearly 63 percent of all U.S. households, had responded to the 2020 Census, according to the bureau, which will help determine how hundreds of billions of dollars in federal funding flow into communities every year for the next decade.
Learn more at 2020census.gov.
