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Rep. Petri says that more people need to respond to the 2010 Census. "As of Tuesday, the Census Bureau was still waiting to hear from 23 percent of Wisconsin households. We need to do better than that," he said.
Last month the Census Bureau sent a 10 question census form to each residence in the country. The deadline to complete and return the forms is Friday, April 16.
"It costs the government just 42 cents to receive a questionnaire back in the mail, but the cost is $57 if a census worker has to go out to a house to collect the information. If every household mailed back their census form, taxpayers could reduce the cost of the census and save $1.5 billion," Petri said. "People tell me they want to reduce the deficit. Filling out and returning your census form is one way to do that."
The 2010 Census is a count of everyone living in the United States and is mandated by the U.S. Constitution. Census data are used to apportion congressional seats to states, to distribute more than $400 billion in federal funds to tribal, state and local governments each year and to make decisions about what community services to provide. The 2010 Census form is one of the shortest in U.S. history, consisting of 10 questions, taking about 10 minutes to complete. Strict confidentiality laws protect the respondents and the information they provide.
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