Census going well in county
Some non-English speakers experienced some confusion, but overall return rates for forms are high.
Herald__ Everett.
Some Iraqi immigrant
s living in north Everett weren’t sure what the official-looking envelope was all about when it arrived in the mail a few weeks ago.
So they tossed it in the trash. Had they known more about the U.S. census, they said they wouldn’t have done that.
Now, they’re hoping for some help from Arabic speakers in order to fill out the questionnaire that goes out to U.S. households every decade.
“I received the form but I thought it one of the junk mail and advertisements,” said Ali Al-Abdallah, 41, in Arabic. “I get them everyday, so I threw it away.”
Despite the confusion among some recipients, Snohomish County was on pace to meet or beat its 2000 census participation rate of 73 percent, regional Census Bureau figures show. The county’s mail-in participation rate was 64 percent, the same as the national rate. Island County was at 68 percent. Everett was lagging behind other metropolitan areas in the state.
The Census Bureau’s goal is to beat the 72 percent national return rate from 2000.
Census information is important in deciding where to spend more than $400 billion each year for public hospitals and schools, job-training centers, bridges and other federally funded projects. It’s also used to determine each state’s number of representatives in Congress.
According to the U.S. Constitution, all residents are to be counted. For every person counted, $1,400 of federal tax funds are sent into the local community each year. That’s $14 million for the decade, for just 100 people.
Many immigrants do not know that they are to be counted. This hurts them — and their local communities.
“It doesn’t matter if they’re a citizen or not, we don’t even ask that question,” said Deni Luna, a media specialist for the census.
Nationwide, there are census workers who speak 100 different languages, Luna said. If someone locally cannot interpret, national resources are available. Information on the census Web site, www.2010census.gov, is offered in 59 languages.
“We are getting increasingly diverse,” Luna said. “The interesting thing about the Northwest area is that we have fairly even numbers. We don’t have any predominant racial minority.”
There are other reasons besides language or culture that people don’t fill out the forms.
They include people who are in trouble with law enforcement, haven’t paid taxes or have other reasons for not wanting the government to know where they are.
“What we want to assure them is that the census is absolutely safe, that the information is kept private, even from the president or any other government agency,” Luna said.
The information stays confidential for 72 years. After that, it’s available for research.
Abdallah Al-Badry, 35, another Iraqi living in Everett said he had no fears about filling out the form, but wasn’t quite sure how to do it.
“I don’t know how to write it,” Al-Badry said in Arabic. “We need a census worker who speaks Arabic to explain everything about that form and why we should fill it out.”
Census workers may soon be knocking on his door to help him answer the questions.
The Census Bureau will be will receive forms until April 22.
After that, workers are ready to head out to visit address where residents haven’t returned forms. They could stay on the job until July, depending on how much work they have to do. The government is still hiring for temporary census positions.
s living in north Everett weren’t sure what the official-looking envelope was all about when it arrived in the mail a few weeks ago.So they tossed it in the trash. Had they known more about the U.S. census, they said they wouldn’t have done that.
Now, they’re hoping for some help from Arabic speakers in order to fill out the questionnaire that goes out to U.S. households every decade.
“I received the form but I thought it one of the junk mail and advertisements,” said Ali Al-Abdallah, 41, in Arabic. “I get them everyday, so I threw it away.”
Despite the confusion among some recipients, Snohomish County was on pace to meet or beat its 2000 census participation rate of 73 percent, regional Census Bureau figures show. The county’s mail-in participation rate was 64 percent, the same as the national rate. Island County was at 68 percent. Everett was lagging behind other metropolitan areas in the state.
The Census Bureau’s goal is to beat the 72 percent national return rate from 2000.
Census information is important in deciding where to spend more than $400 billion each year for public hospitals and schools, job-training centers, bridges and other federally funded projects. It’s also used to determine each state’s number of representatives in Congress.
According to the U.S. Constitution, all residents are to be counted. For every person counted, $1,400 of federal tax funds are sent into the local community each year. That’s $14 million for the decade, for just 100 people.
Many immigrants do not know that they are to be counted. This hurts them — and their local communities.
“It doesn’t matter if they’re a citizen or not, we don’t even ask that question,” said Deni Luna, a media specialist for the census.
Nationwide, there are census workers who speak 100 different languages, Luna said. If someone locally cannot interpret, national resources are available. Information on the census Web site, www.2010census.gov, is offered in 59 languages.
“We are getting increasingly diverse,” Luna said. “The interesting thing about the Northwest area is that we have fairly even numbers. We don’t have any predominant racial minority.”
There are other reasons besides language or culture that people don’t fill out the forms.
They include people who are in trouble with law enforcement, haven’t paid taxes or have other reasons for not wanting the government to know where they are.
“What we want to assure them is that the census is absolutely safe, that the information is kept private, even from the president or any other government agency,” Luna said.
The information stays confidential for 72 years. After that, it’s available for research.
Abdallah Al-Badry, 35, another Iraqi living in Everett said he had no fears about filling out the form, but wasn’t quite sure how to do it.
“I don’t know how to write it,” Al-Badry said in Arabic. “We need a census worker who speaks Arabic to explain everything about that form and why we should fill it out.”
Census workers may soon be knocking on his door to help him answer the questions.
The Census Bureau will be will receive forms until April 22.
After that, workers are ready to head out to visit address where residents haven’t returned forms. They could stay on the job until July, depending on how much work they have to do. The government is still hiring for temporary census positions.
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