Don't be left out of 2010 Census

DOWNEY - U.S. Census 2010 is fast approaching and the city of Downey would like to remind residents about the importance of being counted.The census is conducted every 10 years, as required by the U.S. Constitution, and it is a count of every person living in the United States, which includes people of all ages, races, ethnic groups, citizens and non-citizens. Being counted in the census is significantly important because the information collected will affect funding for our local community. Each year, the federal government distributes more than $400 billion to cities based partially on the census data. This money is used to repair our roads, provide funding to our police and fire departments, and provide funding for our schools and many other services. Information from the census is used by businesses to locate supermarkets, new housing and other facilities. Census data also helps determine how many representatives we have in the state and federal governments. Information collected through the U.S. census is absolutely confidential. It is illegal for the Census Bureau, or its employees, to share your personal information with any other government agency such as law enforcement, IRS, welfare, FBI, immigration, etc. Your responses remain confidential for 72 years. Beginning in March, questionnaires will start to arrive by mail. Please take a moment to fill out the form and mail it back by April 1. This census questionnaire is one of the shortest in history! With only 10 questions, it should take only about 10 minutes to complete. Please make sure to participate in the census. If Downey is under-counted by just 100 people, the city could lose up to $1.3 million in funding over the next 10 years. Make Downey count! For more information on Census 2010, please visit http://2010.census.gov.

********** Published: February 5, 2010 - Volume 8 - Issue 42