BROOKLINE — With residents spending time at home as part of the fight against COVID-19, the Select Board and Census Complete Count Committee would like to encourage residents to set aside 10 minutes to complete the 2020 census.
The 2020 Census can be completed online here. The Census can also be completed by mail or over the phone. The Census is available in 12 languages in addition to English. Residents should report all people living in their home, including children and infants, regardless of whether or not they’re named on the mortgage or lease.
The Census counts everyone living in the United States, regardless of citizenship status, and all respondents’ personal information is fully protected by law from being used for any other purpose beyond counting the population.
“It’s never been easier to fill out the census, and while the circumstances that are keeping us all home are certainly unfortunate, it does allow us all that little bit of extra time to take care of something as important as the census,” Select Board Member and Complete Count Committee Co-Chair Raul Fernandez said.
Select Board Member and Complete Count Committee Co-Chair Nancy Heller added, “I hope residents will set aside the 10 minutes it takes to complete the census and ensure that we get a full picture of the amount of residents in town, which will impact the way we’re represented in Congress and the federal funding we’ll receive for the next decade.”
Starting in March, residents nationwide began to receive invitations to complete the census. Due to COVID-19, the deadline for collection of data is Aug. 14.
According to Secretary of State William Galvin’s website dedicated to the Massachusetts 2020 Census, the census impacts how much federal and state funding is given to communities for various projects in areas like schools and childcare, roads and bridges, public transportation and public health.
The census also impacts the state’s representation in Congress and how many votes it has in the Electoral College, as well as representation in state and local government.
Anyone with questions about the 2020 United States Census may call the Secretary of the Commonwealth’s Census Division at 833-MA1-2020, or the Census Bureau at 1-844-330-2020 from 7 a.m. to 1 a.m.
For more information about the 2020 census, visit 2020census.gov.
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