[StBernard] St. Bernard, Plaquemines and Orleans parishes encourage residents to cooperate with Census takers coming door to door

Westley Annis Westley at da-parish.com
Fri Apr 30 22:15:02 EDT 2010


St. Bernard, Plaquemines and Orleans parishes encourage residents to
cooperate with Census takers coming door to door
Millions of federal dollars; state and federal representation at stake

The leaders of St. Bernard, Plaquemines and Orleans parishes are encouraging
citizens to cooperate with Census takers who will be going door to door in
the upcoming weeks because getting an accurate population count is so
critical to the area’s future and because the three parishes currently have
low participation response rates.

“It is absolutely critical that we have an accurate population count so we
can get the much needed funding we deserve,” Parish President Craig P.
Taffaro, Jr. said. “Although we are receiving wide-spread reports that
residents didn’t get their forms delivered on their doors as promised, we
hope this next phase of the Census produces better results. Each 10,000
residents included in the 2010 Census means $31.1 million to the parish in a
variety of services and programs over the next 10 years.”

At this point, President Taffaro said it is important for residents to open
their doors when they receive a visit from the Census worker and help answer
the 10 short questions to ensure an accurate count.

Plaquemines Parish President Billy Nungesser agreed, and he said he hopes
the Census workers will do a better job in this phase of reaching residents.

“We want to encourage the Census to have the workers make an effort to come
when people are home,” President Nungesser said. “We need to make sure the
walkers are walking and really going to houses with some supervision. I know
they said there were going to initially leave the forms in packets on every
door, but I didn’t get one at my house and I live on Highway 23. I had to go
to the library to get mine. That raises some questions.”

New Orleans Mayor C. Ray Nagin said the importance of the 2010 Census cannot
be overstated.

“This is the first full Census since Hurricane Katrina,” said Mayor Nagin.”
Not only does it mean federal funding for our communities, but it also will
determine our political representation. In addition, it provides important
information to retailers and other businesses deciding where to locate. We
need every single person living in our communities to make sure they are
counted. This is critical to our ongoing recovery.”

According to officials, many residents have complained that they have not
received their forms, despite the Census statement that they were hand
delivered in all neighborhoods.  For instance, Hugh Craft, a St. Bernard
Parish School Board member, said he never received his form, and now he
can’t get one because the Census has removed all of the Be Counted sites at
public locations where forms were available. His neighbor told him they were
delivered on a very windy day, and he was home to receive his personally
from the Census worker.

As a result, Orleans, St. Bernard and Plaquemines parishes have some of the
lowest response rates in the state.
• Orleans has the lowest Mail Participation Rate in the state at 43 percent.
• St. Bernard has the third lowest Mail Participation Rate at 45 percent.
• Plaquemines has a low Mail Participation Rate at 56 percent.
By contrast:
• Jefferson Parish has one of the best Mail Participation Rates at 70
percent.
• St. Tammany Parish also has a high Mail Participation Rate at 72 percent.
• Louisiana’s Mail Participation Rate is 64 percent.
• The National Mail Participation Rate is 72 percent.

In an afternoon press conference on Wednesday that was webcast from
Washington D.C., the Director of the U.S. Census Robert Groves said that
600,000 Census workers will begin going door to door Saturday, May 1 to
reach the 48 million homes nationwide that did not return their forms.
Census workers who will have identification cards will visit residents
through mid-July. They will never ask to come inside, and they will ask 10
simple questions, such as name, age, race, Hispanic origin and home
ownership.

The Deputy Regional Director for the Census Jeff Behler said Wednesday that
residents who have not turned in a form will be visited by a Census taker
who will take their information in person.  

“Know that we will have a full staff out there knocking on every door, and
we will make every effort to count each house,” Behler said. “If we can’t
get someone from the household, we will reach out to someone knowledgeable
in the neighborhood. Not getting a response at all is not an option. This is
the only operation where we need to find someone at home.”

Although the forms were to be removed from public locations last week,
residents who still want to fill out a Census form may call the Census
Telephone Questionnaire Assistance Center and fill out the form by answering
the questions over the phone. Even if they do call the center, a Census
worker may still go their homes and they should still cooperate just to
ensure they are counted. This center is a national program operated by a
contractor that does have voice prompts that will get you to a live person
who will take your response over the phone.

The Telephone Questionnaire Assistance (TQA) at the US Census at the
following numbers:

*              ENGLISH - 1-866-872-6868
*              Spanish: 1-866-928-2010
*              Vietnamese: 1-866-945-2010
*              TDD (Telephone Display Device for the hearing impaired):
                1-866-783-2010
*              Chinese: 1-866-935-2010
*              Korean: 1-866-955-2010
*              Russian: 1-866-965-2010

Workers are supposed to try several times to reach those who have not turned
in their forms They will make an initial visit and leave a card with a phone
number if the resident is not home, Behler said. They will return several
times and try by phone if possible to reach the resident. Ultimately, they
will try to get the information from a knowledgeable neighbor if possible.

In St. Bernard, Plaquemines and Orleans parishes, where all Census forms
were hand-delivered, Behler said that process gave Census workers a chance
to update their address lists to show the addresses of the most recently
completed residences. They will use those addresses to help determine where
workers will be sent in the follow-up phase of the Census process.

Additionally, in late March, President Taffaro, President Nungesser and New
Orleans Mayor C. Ray Nagin sent letters the party leaders in U.S. Congress
and in the U.S. Senate requesting additional special Census counts to be
conducted in 2011 and 2012, giving the dynamics of our local population that
includes residents who are still rebuilding and intending to move back.

“A special census is a great thing to do,” Behler said. He said the national
director of the U.S. Census Robert Groves also has agreed with the concept
for areas devastated and still reeling from recent catastrophic disasters.
“That is something that is being considered if we could get approval and
funding. We know that April 1 2010 is not the ideal time to take a Census
count. There are a lot of communities that are in the same situation” as St.
Bernard, Plaquemines and Orleans.

FACTS ABOUT THE NON-RESPONSE FOLLOW-UP PHASE OF THE CENSUS:

• On May 1st, Census takers will begin visiting households that did not mail
back a form or that did not receive a form at their home.
• Open your door to Census takers. Answering their questions is easy,
important and safe. All of the information will be kept confidential.
• By answering 10 simple questions, you will affect your voice in Congress
and help our community get its share of more than $400 billion per year in
federal funds.
• Some households that filled out a form may still get a visit from a Census
taker. For example, a household that returned an incomplete form or
submitted a form too late to be checked off the Census list will get a
visit. Follow-up visits ensure that everyone is counted in the Census.
• Census workers will make their initial visits during afternoons, early
evenings, and weekends.
• Census takers will identify themselves as working for the U.S. Census
Bureau, show you their ID and ask to confirm your address.
• The Census taker will NEVER ask to enter your home.
• The Census taker will provide an information sheet that explains how your
answers will be kept confidential, and the Census taker will record your
information on the Census form.
• The 2010 Census does NOT ask about citizenship or immigration status.
Census workers will NEVER ask for Social Security numbers, credit card
numbers, or bank account information.
• They will have a Census ID badge that contains a Department of Commerce
watermark and a bag with a Census Bureau logo.
• Your participation in the 2010 Census is both vital and required by law.
(Section 221 of Title 13 of the U.S. Code.)
• If no one answers the door, the Census taker will leave a “Notice of
Visit” with a phone number that the resident can call to schedule a visit or
to conduct the interview over the phone. The Census taker will visit that
home up to two additional times.

• If Census workers are unable to reach a household member in-person, they
will also attempt to contact the household by phone to conduct the
interview.
• If the Census taker is not able to get in touch with the residents after
the third personal visit, the Census taker will try to find a person
knowledgeable about the housing unit and its occupants to help complete the
questionnaire, in order to help get a count of everyone.
• If a Census taker leaves a notice that they visited, it is important that
you cooperate with them so your information can be accurately included in
the Census. Please call them back to schedule the most convenient time for
them to visit and complete your Census form.

###




More information about the StBernard mailing list