Rocio Villalobos 
RGV – “The ultimate goal is to complete our mission while at the same time keeping our people and members of the public safe,” Dennis Johnson, 2020 Census Deputy Regional Director said.
The U.S. 2020 Census is more than two months into its count and stands at a response rate of 53% nationally, which Deputy Regional Director Dennis Johnson says is on track with their projections.
The final reminder to fill out the questionnaire is arriving in mailboxes now through the beginning of May. Shortly after, unresponsive households would typically be visited by a census taker, but the threat of COVID-19 has temporarily suspended field operations.
“Within the next month or so we will restart many of those operations in preparation for completing, as soon as it’s safe in each area, we want to make sure that we’re not getting out too quickly and not making a bad situation worse,” said Johnson.
He says they’re practicing safety guidelines set by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), while following county and state restrictions.
At 35 percent, Cameron and Hidalgo counties’ response rate is more than 10 percent behind the national average.
To help ensure an accurate count, the Census Bureau has asked Congress for a 120 day extension, pushing the deadline for the counts to be delivered to the President by April 30, 2021 and redistricting data by July 31.
“Keeping in mind everyone wants a complete and accurate count and the extension would hopefully help improve our count and make sure everyone is included in the census. I’m hoping we all come to an agreement that if we extend it a little longer we’ll have much better information.”
And for the first time in history, the census can be submitted online. Johnson urges college students to ensure they are counted, as this data determines funding to critical student programs, including school safety, mental health services, federal pell grants and more.
For answers to where you should be counted based on your residence, visit 2020census.gov.
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