Stand Up and Be Counted – Here Comes the 2010 Census

BY JANET HUNTINGTON
Sometime in mid-March every residence in Fountain will receive the 2010 Census form either by mail or hand delivery.
The form is simple and painless. There are 10 questions asking how many people live in your home, whether you own or rent your home, your telephone number, name, sex, age, race and if somebody in the home lives part -time somewhere else.
To some, this information may seem invasive or even frightening.
The idea of giving a government agency this kind of information may seem a bit too “big brother”, or even terrifying for immigrants or illegal residents.
But the website geneology.com states, since the first U.S. Census was taken in 1790, under the responsibility of Thomas Jefferson and not long after the 13 colonies became the United States, the purpose of the census is only to gather statistics for governmental planning. The census has been taken every ten years since.
In a meeting Thursday at Fountain City Hall, Partnership Specialist Deborah J. Muehleisen from the Denver Regional Census Center assured the assembled Complete Count Committee there was no cause for anxiety or suspicion.
“Not only is the information gathered completely confidential,” Muehleison said, “but this information is essential for every type of federal funding.”
“For every person not counted there is an annual loss of $893 in federal aid. It’s vital for the health of the community to count every single resident,” she added.
According to the United States 2010 Census (2010.census.gov) website accurate data reflecting changes in the community are crucial in apportioning seats in the U.S. House of Representatives and deciding how more than $400 billion per year is allocated for projects like new hospitals and schools.
Muehleison explained the need to count every resident, even if they are illegally in the country.
“Everybody who lives in a community uses its resources,” she said, “we are not interested in legal status, we simply want to know how many people live here.”
The Census Bureau goes to great lengths to protect the people in the census. The information gathered is not shared with any other government agency.
“The President of the United States doesn’t have access to this information.,” Muehleison stated, “the reason the census is gathered door-to-door is to continue the high level of personal privacy we have always been able to maintain.”
Filling out the U.S. Census form is not a voluntary act. The form is mandatory.
“If you don’t fill out the questionnaire, there will be up to six attempts at personal contact by a U.S. Census representative,” Muehleison said.
“If we can’t get the needed information in that time we will go to your neighbors to try to ascertain how many people are living at your address, its a whole lot easier to just fill out the form,” she added.
Muehleison wanted to stress the importance of not only making sure each member of your household is counted, but to assure all Fountain Valley residents of the confidentiality of any information gathered.
“We’re only counting numbers,” Muehleison stated, “it’s vital to the strength of the community as well as the country for every resident to be counted.”