Last week I had the privilege of attending the 2010 Census Kickoff in Detroit. I wanted to relay some of the information to each of you to prepare you for the census itself and to remind you of the importance of this questionnaire. I have included a list of ways that the census data is used for on the back of this communication.
The US Constitution requires a national census once every ten years to count the population and determine the number of seats each state will have in the US House of Representatives. More importantly the data is also used to determine federal funding for community services such as school lunch programs, senior services and new construction for highways and hospitals. The census bureau is reaching out to all organizations including labor for their assistance in this year’s census.
The census will be conducted again this year with questionnaires being mailed to families in March by US Mail or by being hand delivered. Each census will have ten questions pertaining to your household.
It is important to note that this information is confidential among the Census Bureau and an individual’s responses cannot be shared by law with anyone, including other federal agencies and law enforcement entities.
I also wanted to inform you of the potential job opportunities that the Census can provide with wages ranging from $8.25 to $19.50. If you know of anyone that is searching for work the census does provide temporary job opportunities. We have been told to have interested parties call 1-866-861-2010 or log on to the web and go to www.2010censusjobs.gov to apply.
Finally I have copies of what the census will look like as well as other literature and information available at the local if anyone is interested. If you wish to view this information on the web go to www.census.gov/2010census As always if there are questions or comments feel free to contact me at the local.