The 2010 Census will be fully under way in just one week, and Harris County officials are stressing the importance for all county residents to cooperate for a full and accurate count.
To ensure that complete count, Harris County is working to educate residents that the Census encompasses everyone, no matter who they are.
Harris County Judge Ed Emmett said it was crucial to the county’s future that everyone be counted.
“Our residents need to know that we need everyone to participate in the Census; nobody should be left out,” Emmett said. “It is vital that every single resident of Harris County is counted, so that our communities may gain the federal dollars and political representation they deserve.”
All residents should be counted where they live most of the time. In addition to residents who own or lease their own households, the following groups of people must also be counted by the Census:
- All students attending universities or colleges who currently live in campus dormitories or apartments.
- Residents living in Harris County on a student or work visa.
- Those living with relatives or friends because of a natural disaster or foreclosure.
- Soldiers currently stationed on military bases
Harris County residents who are experiencing some form of displacement or lack of permanent address must also take part in the Census. These residents will be counted at area service-based locations, such as homeless shelters and soup kitchens.
Additionally, “Be Counted” forms are Census questionnaires that will be available at various community locations for those who either did not receive a Census questionnaire in the mail or who were not otherwise included on any other Census form.
“The Census doesn’t discriminate,” Emmett said. “If you don’t receive a questionnaire in the mail this month, that doesn’t mean you don’t count. Be sure to follow up at a service-based location near you to obtain a form.”
For more information about Harris County’s 2010 Census campaign, visit www.PowerinNumbersHarrisCounty.com.
