Senator Malcolm Smith Urges You to Be Counted

If you knew you were going to get a large tax refund, you’d probably send in your tax return right away.  Well, you are in line for a large tax refund – courtesy of the U.S. Census.   You’ve already received your Census 2010 questionnaire in the mail.  It’s your ticket to tens of thousands of dollars for better schools, health care and transportation in your neighborhood.  Unlike your tax return, the census questionnaire has only 10 easy questions, takes about 5 minutes to fill out, and costs nothing. 

The 2010 Census is a count of everyone living in the United States and is mandated by the U.S. Constitution.  Federal, state and local governments base their funding decisions on Census data.  How much money will be available for schools, a health clinic or is based on information that comes from the Census.  The federal government provides over $30,000 in resources for each person counted in the Census.

But thousands of our people in our community were not counted in the last census.  In fact, not even half the households in some of our neighborhoods returned their census form.  That means we were passed over for millions of dollars in state and federal resources.  Our community lost out.

But we can make sure it doesn’t happen again.  April 1^st is national Census Day – the day to fill out your census form and return it by mail.

Don’t worry - your privacy will be protected.  It doesn’t matter if you have someone living with you the landlord doesn’t know about, if you have unpaid parking tickets, or if someone living in your home is not a citizen.  The census is prevented by law from sharing the information you provide on the questionnaire.

Senator Malcolm A. Smith’s office is working with neighborhood churches, schools and businesses to make sure everyone understands how important it is to be counted in the upcoming 2010 Census. 

You can make sure our community gets its fair share.  You can make sure your tax dollars go to work right here in our community.  Let your neighbors know returning the Census form is easy, safe and important for our future.

If you have any questions about the census, or need help with the questionnaire, please contact Senator Malcolm Smith’s office at 718-528-4290.