FITCHBURG — Persuading every resident in the city to respond to the 2020 Census became more critical than ever in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting economic recession, officials said on Wednesday.
“We need an accurate count,” Joan David said, Mayor Stephen DiNatale’s executive assistant. “The census can increase federal funding and it helps the most vulnerable people among us.”
David said the census paves the way forward for the next 10 years in the city, and officials are doing everything they can to get the word out.
That includes advertising on billboards, hanging banners downtown, and sending several mailings home to residents, she said.
David said the city even sent home coloring books with many kindergarten students in the hopes that it will persuade parents to fill out the census.
Churches have also been contacted to help distribute Census 2020 posters and ads will play on local radio stations in the coming weeks.
“We’re doing everything we can right now,” she said. “All of these outreach efforts are to get our numbers up.”
As of Monday, the cumulative self-response rate for Massachusetts to the 2020 Census is 64%, compared to 61.9% nationally, and 60.7% in Fitchburg.
Massachusetts currently ranks 20th in overall self-response rates and 12th for internet responses.
While Fitchburg hovers around the national average, the city ranks 262nd in overall self-response rates out of all cities and townships, of which there are 349 total.
While residents would typically have until the end of July to complete the 2020 Census, the response time was recently extended to Oct. 31.
“Fitchburg is a very diverse city and we need an accurate count of everyone in the 2020 Census,” DiNatale said. “We are working with community partners to help the City of Fitchburg accomplish our goal of counting everyone.”
The census can be completed by phone, online, or by paper this year.
It takes approximately 10 minutes to complete the questionnaire. The online questionnaire will be available in 12 non-English languages.
According to DiNatale, the census is a mandatory count of everyone living in the country, including people of all ages, races, ethnic groups, citizens and non-citizens.
Most residents should have received the census correspondence prior to Census Day on April 1.
The 2020 Census will provide a snapshot of the nation and the results importantly determine the number of seats each state has in the House of Representatives. It is also used to draw congressional and state legislative districts.
DiNatale said the results also inform how federal funding is allocated to important programs, including Medicaid, Head Start, block grants for community mental health services, Meals on Wheels, and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, also known as SNAP.
The census also determines how funding will be dispersed to local fire departments, police departments, hospitals, and schools.
If you have not completed it, you can do so now over the phone at 844-330-2020 or online at 2020census.gov.
