Guide to Completing the 2020 Census
- In mid-March, households will begin receiving official Census Bureau mail with detailed information on how to respond to the 2020 census.
- Every home will have received an invitation to participate in the census by April 1.
- You will have three options for responding: online, by phone or by mail.
- Local census takers will assist those who do not initially respond beginning in May.
Note:
You should respond to the census based on where you live on
April 1, 2020. Parents or guardians should not include a student as part
of their household when responding to the census unless the student is living with
them on April 1.
Information Collected
The census will collect basic information about the people living in your household. Examples include:
- The total number of people living or staying in a home on April 1, 2020.
- Whether the home is owned, rented or occupied without rent.
- A phone number for a person in the home.
- The name, sex, age, date of birth and race of each person in the home.
- Whether each person is of Hispanic, Latino or Spanish origin.
- The relationship of each person to a central person in the home.
- The Census Bureau will never ask for Social Security numbers, bank or credit card account numbers, money or donations or anything on behalf of a political party. View this sample paper form for details on information that will be collected through the census.
- You can skip questions, submit an incomplete census form, and still be included in the head count. However, you may be fined for refusing to answer a question or intentionally giving false information.