The United States Census Bureau will be sending out invitations across the country to participate in the 2020 Census between March 12 and March 20.
This invitation will include instructions on how to respond to the 2020 Census online or by phone, says the US Census Bureau. Once a household receives the invitation, they are encouraged to respond as soon as possible.
“The Census Bureau is ready for the nation to respond next month,” said Census Bureau Director Dr. Steven Dillingham. “Millions of Americans are applying for 2020 Census jobs, more than 270,000 local and national organizations are engaged, and in less than 30 days the majority of U.S. households will receive an invitation to respond to help ensure that every person in the U.S. is counted.”
Households will begin receiving by April 1 — Census Day — an invitation delivered either by mail or by a census taker. The Bureau is reminding residents that mailings will be sent to households that do not respond, and in the fourth mailing every household that has not yet responded will receive a paper questionnaire.
“The 2020 Census is on mission, on schedule, and on budget to promote an accurate count,” Dillingham continued. “The invitations will remind respondents to include everyone living in the household, whether they are related or not.”
Once households receive invitations, the Bureau asks that people respond to the 2020 Census by using the provided Census ID. If a household is unable to enter the Census ID people can still respond, by providing an address, according to the Bureau.
If households do not response to any invitations, a census taker will follow up in person sometime between May 13 and July 31.
Information provided on the Census questionnaire is private. Every Census employee takes an oath to protect personal information for life. Answers are kept anonymous and are used to produce statistics, the Bureau says.
The 2020 Census will determine how hundreds of billions in funding with be dispersed for schools, hospitals, roads and more. It will also determine how many seats in congress each state gets.
For more information about the 2020 Census, visit 2020census.gov.