SPARTANBURG, S.C. (WSPA) – The U.S. Supreme Court decided to deny the demands for the already extended Census due date to be pushed back further.
Thursday is the last day to fill out the 2020 U.S. Census. The original due date was in July but state and federal governments need the information by Dec. 31st. The survey takes about 5 minutes to complete and for some it’s more important than anything right now.
“It takes less than 10 minutes to ensure that your community gets the resources it needs over the next 10 years,” Marilyn Stephens, Assistant Regional Census Manager, said.
The Census gathers information about the population such as demographics and household size. The data gathered will influence funding to critical federal aid programs and initiatives such as child care programs, grants and funding, housing, SNAP Program and infrastructure.
Data collected by the Census so far shows that as of October 14th, roughly 60% of South Carolinians have filled out their census on their own by phone, mail or online. Several Upstate counties including Spartanburg, Greenville and Anderson have a self-response rate slightly above average for the state.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau the momentum has never died down for their workers and they’ve had boots on the ground for months now with workers going door to door urging citizens to fill out their census survey.
“We’re still following up with non-responsive households because some people have been displaced by storms or they weren’t at home when they came by. In these last hours we will be knocking on doors,” Stephens said.
Stephens said it’s critical to include children in the survey which could influence child care costs and class sizes in the state of S.C.
“A parent brought it to my attention. She said ‘my little girl had to sit out of the Head Start Program for a year’ she couldn’t get an early head start because they told her there were no more slots. The director told her that the numbers don’t support the need. The funding only provided so many slots,” Stephens said.
To fill out your 2020 U.S. Census, click here.
