Why you should respond to the 2010 census by mail + how Capitol Hill did in 2000

CHS likes very much the intersection of life and stats so we're looking forward to a special delivery in the coming week -- 2010 census questionnaires are on the way. The Census Bureau also makes a compelling argument for not procrastinating and sending in your response by mail: 
It costs the government just 44 cents for a postage-paid envelope when a household mails back the 10-question form, which should take just 10 minutes to complete. It costs the Census Bureau $57 to send a census taker door-to-door to follow up with each household that fails to respond. 

On the other hand, considering the economy, maybe we should create all the census work we can.

From the 2010census.gov site, here'a map showing the by-mail questionnaire participation for the Capitol Hill area in the 2000 census. Below, you'll find more details from the Census Bureau on this week's mailing.

2010 CENSUS FORMS ARRIVING IN MAILBOXES ACROSS WASHINGTON NEXT WEEK 

The once-in-a-decade census count has arrived. Households throughout Washington State can expect to receive the much-anticipated, 10-question form in their mailboxes as soon as Monday, March 15. A small percentage of rural areas received hand-deliver forms earlier this month.

Census officials hope that people will fill out their 2010 census questionnaires and mail them back as soon as possible, saving hundreds of millions in taxpayer dollars. It costs the government just 44 cents for a postage-paid envelope when a household mails back the 10-question form, which should take just 10 minutes to complete. It costs the Census Bureau $57 to send a census taker door-to-door to follow up with each household that fails to respond. In 2000, the nation reversed a three-decade decline in mail rates, achieving a mail-participation rate of 72 percent.

Mandated by the U.S. Constitution, the census takes place every 10 years. Census Day is April 1, 2010. Census data determine boundaries for state and local legislative and congressional districts. More than $400 billion in federal funds are distributed annually based on census data to pay for local programs and services, such as schools, highways, vocational training, emergency services, hospitals, unemployment benefits and much more.

Language-assistance guides and translations of the form are available online in 59 languages at www.2010census.gov. Telephone assistance is available in Spanish (1-866-928-2010), Chinese (1-866-935-2010), Vietnamese (1-866-945-2010), Korean (1-866-955-2010) and Russian (1-866-965-2010) in addition to English (1-866-872-6868). Deaf and hard-of-hearing persons can call the TDD number: 1-866-783-2010.

The US Constitution requires that everyone living in the United States be counted every ten years. All census information collected, including addresses, is confidential and protected by law (Title 13, U.S. Code, Section 9).    By law, the CensusBureau can’t share respondents’ answers with any government agency such as the FBI, the IRS, welfare and immigration. No court of law or law enforcement agency can find out respondents’ answers. All Census Bureau employees — including temporary employees — take an oath for life to keep census information confidential. Any violation of that oath is punishable by a fine of up to $250,000 and five years in prison.