Last Day to Mail Back 2010 Census Forms

PRESS RELEASE

Residents Urged to Act Today or Risk Visit from Census Workers in May

WASHINGTON, April 16 /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ -- Today marks the last day for residents across America to mail back their 2010 Census questionnaires. Households that return their forms after April 16 will likely be visited by census workers when they begin May 1 going door to door to collect census responses.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20090226/CENSUSLOGO)
Residents are encouraged to mail back their 2010 Census forms today. Those who wait to mail back their forms should expect to be visited by census workers, who will visit homes in person to ensure an accurate count of every person living in the United States. Census takers, who are members of the community in which they are working, will visit a household up to six times, each time leaving a door hanger featuring a phone number. Residents can call the number on the hanger to schedule a visit and be counted.
"Now's the time to clear off your kitchen table and stick that form in the mail," U.S. Census Bureau Director Robert Groves said. "Residents who fail to mail back their forms today should be prepared to get a knock on their doors in May and July."
Nationwide, about 68 percent of households have mailed back their census forms. In 2000, the mail participation rate was 72 percent.

ABOUT THE 2010 CENSUS
The 2010 Census is a count of everyone living in the United States and is mandated by the U.S. Constitution. Census data are used to apportion congressional seats to states, to distribute more than $400 billion in federal funds to tribal, state and local governments each year and to make decisions about what community services to provide. The 2010 Census form is one of the shortest in U.S. history, consisting of 10 questions, taking about 10 minutes to complete. Strict confidentiality laws protect the respondents and the information they provide.

Editor's note: News releases, reports and data tables are available on the Census Bureau's home page. Go to http://www.census.gov and click on "Releases."

Public Information Office
301-763-3691
e-mail: pio.2010@census.gov

SOURCE U.S. Census Bureau
-0- 04/16/2010
/CONTACT: U.S. Census Bureau Public Information Office, +1-301-763-3691, pio.2010@census.gov /