Block Parties, Bike-a-Thons, Crawfish Boils on Tap for 2010 Census March to the Mailbox Effort to Boost Mail-Back

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 7, 2010
Contact: Jenna Steormann Arnold
U.S. Census Bureau--Dallas Regional Census Center
2777 N. Stemmons Fwy., Suite 200
Dallas, TX 75207
214-637-9698 Media hotline 214-796-0815 Cell
E-mail: jenna.n.steormann@census.gov

Block Parties, Bike-a-Thons, Crawfish Boils on Tap for 2010 Census March to the Mailbox Effort to Boost Mail-Back

AUSTIN, Texas – Block parties, bike-a-thons, picnics and crawfish boils are on the agenda for this weekend, when cities and local community groups stage awareness events in neighborhoods and communities across the country to urge households to mail back their 2010 Census questionnaires.
The effort is a final appeal to get residents to complete the 10-question Census form and mail it back so that everyone is counted and that each community gets its fair share of political representation and federal funding. Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi have had among the lowest 2010 Census participation rates in the nation.
To help out, awareness events are planned for every corner of every state to promote Census 2010 participation, the final publicity push before Census workers are dispatched to the field to knock on doors and gather the information in person. Among them:
*** Mailbox Mixer at Martin Middle School Family Resource Center
Where: 1601 Haskell St.
When: Friday, April 9, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.


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The 2010 Census has used a wide-ranging multi-pronged campaign to raise awareness and participation of the 2010 Census to reduce the expense of door-to-door canvassing by Census enumerators, a costly and time consuming operation. While a Census form can be returned by mail for less than 50 cents, it costs an average of $57 for each household to send workers to retrieve the information in person. If 100 percent of all households mailed back their forms, taxpayers would save about $1.5 billion.
The decennial Census is taken every 10 years to count everyone in the United States where they live, a mandate in Article 1, Section 2, of the U.S. Constitution.
An accurate count is important because the numbers collected determine how seats in the U.S. House of Representatives are divided among the states and is a factor in the redistribution among states of $400 billion annually of federal monies for public infrastructure and programs, such as funding for highways, health programs, public housing and economic development.
The 2010 Census questionnaires should have arrived by mail or hand-delivery. It is the shortest in recent history, consisting of only 10 questions. It takes fewer than 10 minutes to complete and will affect life in your community for the next 10 years. The census has been taken every decade since 1790.
If you need help filling out your Census questionnaire or want the questions explained, please call 866-872-6868. If you have not received a Census form by April 12, please call the number to request a replacement questionnaire.
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