Q. When does the Census begin?
A. Residents will begin receiving information in the mail in March 2020. The official start of the Census is April 1, 2020.
Q. Can I complete my Census form online?
A. Yes! This is the first year that residents can complete their Census form online. Each household will receive a unique identifier that will allow them to go online and provide the information. For those residents who aren’t comfortable completing the form online, they will be able to do it by phone or the traditional paper format.
Q. How does the Census impact my life?
A. It’s about fair representation. Every 10 years the results of the census are used to examine population shifts in order to reapportion congressional and state legislative seats in each state and to allocate federal resources back into our Fort Worth community.
Q. What information is asked during the Census?
A. This the information that residents will be asked to provide during the Census.
- Number of people at address
- Any additional people living or staying there
- Own or rent
- Phone number
- Information for each person living in the residence
- Sex
- Age
- Race
- Hispanic, Latino or Spanish origin
Q. I don’t feel comfortable sharing my information, why is it necessary?
A. Census data is confidential. Federal law protects your census responses. Answers can only be used to produce statistics on a community level – individual household statistics are not available for 72 years.
Q. I have trouble completing census forms, how can my voice be heard?
A. 2020 will be easier than ever, you will be able to respond to the census one of three ways – online, by telephone or the traditional paper long form paper in 13 languages. Support is available to help residents in a total of 59 languages other than English as they prepare to take the census.
Q. Why does my family need to be counted?
A. Because everyone counts. The census counts every person living in the U.S. only once and in the right place. Census data is used to ensure quality -of-life, plan for new schools, public safety and neighborhood improvements. Don’t forget to count your roommates and all children under 5 years old!
Q. Why should I take time to fill out the census?
A. It means $675 billion. Census data determines how more than $675 billion are spent, supporting your state, county and community’s vital programs.