Completing the 2010 Census Questionnaire: Simple and Safe

The 2010 Census questionnaire asks only a few simple questions of each person- name, relationship, gender, age and date of birth, race and whether the respondent owns or rents his or her home. This simple, short questionnaire takes just a few minutes to complete and return. 2010 Census will be the short form only – just 10 easy questions.

www.census.gov/2010census

Why Is The Census Taken?

• The U.S. Constitution (Article 1, Section 2) mandates a headcount every 10 years, of everyone residing in the United States: in all 50 states, Puerto Rico, and the Island Areas. This includes people of all ages, races, ethnic groups, citizens, and non citizens. The first census was conducted in 1790 and has been carried out every 10 years since then.
     

• The next census occurs in 2010. The population totals from this census will determine the number of seats each state has in the U. S. House of Representatives. States also use the totals to redraw their legislative districts.
      

• The U.S. Census Bureau must submit state population totals to the President of the United States by December 31, 2010.
     

• The population count totals also affect funding in Deerfield, and data collected in the census help inform decision makers about how the community is changing. Approximately $300 billion in federal funding is distributed to communities each year. It’s extremely important that Deerfield gets an accurate population count as there is a great deal of money involved in the final census numbers. Various funding such as the State of Illinois income tax funding and the federal government’s motor fuel tax funding are based on census numbers.
     

• Census data helps potential homeowners research property values, median income, and other demographic information about a particular community.
     

• Corporations use population data for market research to determine locations for commercial enterprises, such as food stores, pharmacies, and other essential services.

Will the 2010 Census be the same as 2000 Census?

No, there are some important changes:

• 2010 Census will be short form only – just 10 easy questions.
    

• The long form is now part of the annual American Community Survey.
     

• Handheld computers with Global Positioning System will be used to check our address list in 2009.

Coming Soon

Census questionnaires will be mailed in March 2010

• Your answers are protected by law (Title 13 of the U.S. Code, Section 9) and are strictly confidential. It is illegal for the Census Bureau, or its employees, to share your personal information with any other government agency – not law enforcement, IRS, Welfare, FBI, Immigration, etc.
    

• No court of law, not even the President of the United States, can access your individual responses.