SAN ANTONIO – The 2020 Census campaign, along with the League of United Latin American Citizens, city and county leaders led a caravan of cars through San Antonio’s West Side on Saturday morning to increase community participation in the census.
City Census Administrator Berta Rodriguez said less than 50% of the population has responded to the census.
“What we know from our current data is that households in this area have not responded to the census,” Rodriguez said. “We know that less than 50% of the population here has responded.”
The goal of the caravan was to raise awareness on the importance of households not delaying their participation in the questionnaire.
“The data will be better quality data if an individual responds on their own,” Rodriguez said. “We want to encourage people that this is the time to get counted in the safety of your home.”
Whether it’s online, by phone or mail, on average the questionnaire takes about 10 minutes to complete. Quality data can allow for San Antonio and Bexar County to get their share of billions of dollars in federal funding each year, for the next 10 years.
“We really need individuals to understand it’s time to get counted now,” Rodriguez said. “If hospitals and clinics are important to our community, if the local school is important to you and your community, if the roads and highways that you travel on are important to you, you need to get counted because all of that is impacted by Census data.”
Staff from the Census Bureau also visited neighborhoods like the Casino homes and Las Palmas to distribute information that can assist resident’s participation in the 2020 Census.
The U.S. Census Bureau’s efforts to increase participation will continue next weekend on the city’s East Side where data also shows low participation.
The deadline to fill out the census form online or by mail is at the end of October.
For more information on the 2020 Census, click here.