Census Worker at Your Door

The US Census may knock on your door if you did not complete your census forms. Please read the following to know how to tell if that door knocker is really with the census or it is a scam:

To ensure a complete and accurate count of residents nationwide, the Census Bureau on May 1, 2010 will begin Non-Response Follow Up field operations as census takers contact those households that did not mail back completed census questionnaires.

Every 10 years, the U.S. Census Bureau is mandated by the government to count everyone living in the United States. By achieving an accurate count of the U.S. population, census data helps form the basis for many important political, economic, and social decisions that affect our nation and impact our daily lives.

“We need the help and cooperation of every household we visit to answer ten short questions,” said Dwight P. Dean, Detroit Regional Director for the U.S. Census Bureau. “Answering the questions asked by the Enumerators helps every community get its fair share of billions in federal funds and the correct number of political representatives in the U.S. Congress.”

A U.S. Census taker will have a census ID badge that contains a Department of Commerce watermark. The census taker may also be carrying a bag with a Census Bureau logo. If asked, he or she will provide you with photo identification, supervisor contact information and/or the Local Census Office phone number for verification. The 2010 Census only includes the 10 questions found on the 2010 Census form. Census workers will never ask for Social Security numbers, credit card numbers or bank account information. Further, census workers will never ask to enter a home. If census workers are unable to reach a household member in-person, they will also attempt contact by phone to conduct the interview with a household member. Census workers will never attempt to contact individuals by e-mail.