BRATTLEBORO — If you have not completed your U.S. Census form yet, you can complete it without leaving home or coming in contact with another person.
Staff at Brooks Memorial Library can assist in accessing the census questionnaire. Call 802-254-5290, ext. 1206, or email info@brookslibraryvt.org for assistance.
But if you are doing it yourself, there are three simple ways to complete the federal questionnaire:
• Online: Go to 2020census.gov. Can't find your 12-digit code that you received in the mail? No problem. Just follow the instructions, and you will still be able to complete the questionnaire online.
• By phone: Call 844-330-2020 to get started in English. The census can be completed by phone in any of 14 languages.
• By mail: All homes that do not respond online or by phone will receive a paper questionnaire. Simply respond using a blue- or black-ink pen, and return the questionnaire in the envelope provided.
Your answers will be kept confidential. Every employee takes an oath to protect your personal information for life, and the U.S. Census Bureau cannot release any information that identifies you individually.
The results of the 2020 Census will help determine how hundreds of billions of dollars in federal funding flow into the community, county, and state every year for the next decade, as money for many such programs is based on population as measured by the every-10-year population count. This money means better health care, schools, roads, job opportunities, housing assistance, disaster assistance, and more.
As of mid-April, Windham County had the second lowest census response rate (24.9 percent) in the state, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.