The Census Bureau has created a local phone number to assist Kern County residents respond to the 2020 Census.

The local help line is 661-546-8811.

As of Wednesday, Kern County ranked 34 out of California’s 58 counties, with a response rate of 62.7 percent.

Those who have not responded to the 2020 Census can respond online, by mail or by phone, but the deadline is quickly approaching. There is exactly two weeks till the Sept. 30 deadline.

Households can still respond now by responding online at 2020census.gov or 2020census.gov/es (Spanish website) by phone at 844-330-2020 or the Spanish line at 844-468-2020, or by completing and mailing back the paper questionnaire they received. Households can respond online or by phone in one of 13 languages and find assistance in many more. Those that respond will not need to be visited to obtain their census response.

The U.S. Constitution mandates a census of the population every 10 years. The goal of the 2020 Census is to count everyone who lives in the United States. Census statistics are used to determine the number of seats each state holds in the U.S. House of Representatives and informs how billions of dollars in federal funds will be allocated by state, local and federal lawmakers annually for the next 10 years.