FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 19, 2000

Contact: Josh Freed
(202) 225-4431
 
WASHINGTON, DC — U.S. Representative Diana DeGette (CO-1) applauded area citizens for returning their U.S. Census forms and achieving an overall 70% response rate for Colorado, beating the national average of 67%.

Among the highlights of the U.S. Census numbers released today by the U.S. Census Bureau, Aurora ranked fourth in the country in improving its response rate over the 1990 Census and Denver County surpassed its expected response rate of 68% by two percentage points (70%).

“The Census is absolutely vital to the people of our state and our area,” said Rep. Diana DeGette. “By ranking above the national average, Colorado’s citizens are assured of receiving their fair share of federal funding for hundreds of programs and projects throughout the state.”

Rep. DeGette added, “I am so pleased that outreach efforts to encourage citizens to turn in their forms were successful. I think many people realized the importance of these numbers in determining federal funding for transportation, infrastructure, and community projects, as well as critical social services.”

According to the Census Bureau, nearly 7 of 10 homes in the country filled out and returned a Census form. The U.S. Census is conducted every 10 years to determine population shifts and growth throughout the United States. More information is available at www.census.gov.
 
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