Kay Harris
The Valdosta Daily Times
VALDOSTA — The 2010 Census is underway, with letters mailed out to residences this week as a prelude to the official form, which will be in the mail in the next 10 days.
Taken every 10 years, the census is the government’s official count of the total population in the United States and Puerto Rico. The forms are due back by April 1, 2010 and, if you don’t return yours in the stamped envelope provided by the due date, you will receive a personal visit from a census worker to ensure that an accurate count is taken.
Participation in the census is mandatory and is constitutionally required every decade. The 2010 form is the shortest one in history, at 10 questions.
According to the official Web site, www.2010census, the two primary benefits of being counted are:
• When voting districts are drawn, they are drawn using the census information. States can gain or lose congressional districts based on the census.
• Federal dollars are distributed to communities based on census population counts for education, transportation, health care, emergency services, etc. More than $400 billion in funding is allocated annually, based on the census data.
The most frequently asked questions, according to the official Web site, include how collected information is used.
“Title 13 of the U.S. Code protects the confidentiality of all your information and violating this law is a crime with severe penalties.”
The information is not published and cannot be shared with other government agencies, including the Immigration Service. The government is more concerned with getting a complete count of everyone, regardless of legal residency.
To safeguard your information, the Census Bureau encourages individuals to mail the forms back as soon as possible, always ask a census worker for identification before answering questions in person, and never answer questions online under the guise of the collection of census information. There is no online option for submitting the form and if someone contacts you to submit information online, report them to the Census Bureau immediately.
In addition, according to the Web site, a census worker is not allowed to ask to enter your home, under any circumstances, and they carry official government badges. If you are still unsure of their identity, contact the Regional Census Center in Atlanta at (404) 335-1555.
