Down for the Count (Census)

[sonias]

Texas Tribune 3/29/10
Down for the Count

Texans have plenty at stake from an accurate and complete count by the U.S. Census Bureau, especially with the prospect of an extra four seats in Congress. If only more of us would go to the mailbox.

With national Census Day coming this week, Texas ranks near the bottom in the rate at which states' residents are returning the questionnaire mailed to 134 million homes two weeks ago. As of Friday, we rank several percentage points below the national rate — ahead of only Alabama, New York, Alaska, Georgia and Florida, according to data downloaded from the bureau's website on Friday.

The "mail participation rate," as it's known, is significant for census officials, who sent reminder postcards last week. The more people who respond by mail, the fewer workers the government must hire to walk door-to-door, gathering the basic information about residents' age, gender and ethnicity. In fact, if 100 percent of Americans mailed in the form, the bureau estimates it could save $1.5 billion.

So far, though, only about a quarter of Texans have returned their forms, which began arriving two weeks ago.

Oh boy, the looney teabag types are suppressing our census count. Hell Mississippi and Louisiana are doing better than Texas! :mad:

Get those census forms in Texans!