Census deadline is around the corner

Sebastopol has an 81.1% self-response rate
The deadline to complete the 2020 Census is nearing and the county of Sonoma is trying to encourage residents to fill out their information. The deadline to fill out the census is Sept. 30.
According to census.gov, Sonoma County has an overall self-response rate of 69.4%, slightly above the state’s self-response rate of 68.2%.
The census asks questions of people in homes and group living situations, including how many people live or stay in each home, and the sex, age and race of each person. The goal is to count everyone once, only once, and in the right place.
The census doesn’t ask about citizen status and folks are counted regardless of immigration status. Information given as part of the census won’t be shared with law enforcement and answers don’t impact government benefits. Additionally, the Census Bureau won’t ask for money or donations, bank or credit card information or your Social Security number.
Federal funds, grants and support to states, counties and communities are based on population totals and breakdowns by sex, age, race and other factors. With more than $675 billion per year in federal funds on the line for schools, hospitals, roads, public works and other vital programs, a complete count is considered vital.
The first results from the 2020 Census in the form of total population counts for the nation and each state will be publicly available in late 2020 or early 2021. In 2021 each state will receive their local-level census data on race and the voting age population.
As required by law, the Census Bureau provides this key demographic data to the states so they can redraw the boundaries of their U.S. Congressional and state legislative districts. This data will also be used to potentially redraw local voting districts in places like Windsor or provide data for municipalities moving toward district elections in the future.
There are three ways to complete the 2020 Census questionnaire:
●    Online – Go to my2020census.gov for the online questionnaire that will take minutes to complete. You can select from 13 languages, including English and Spanish.
●    Phone – Representatives are available from 4 a.m. to midnight, seven days a week. For English, call 844-330-2020; for Spanish, call 844-468-2020; and for TDD call 844-467-2020. Check my2020census.gov for other language support.
●    Mail – Mailings for the 2020 Census were sent out starting in April 2020 to homes that did not respond by phone or online. Completed questionnaires should be sent to: US Census Bureau, National Processing Center, 1201 E 10th Street, Jeffersonville, IN 47132.
One person, who must be at least 15 years old, should respond for each household. They should live in the home or place of residence themselves and know general information about each person living there, such as type of home, other persons in the home and their age, date of birth, sex and race/ethnicity.
According to the county of Sonoma, Community Action Partnership is setting up a Mobile Questionnaire Assistance location for the census on Sept. 18 from 4 to 8 p.m. at El Mitote Food Park, 665 Sebastopol Road, Santa Rosa, CA.
Additional reporting by Heather Bailey.