Census PUSH WEEK created to drive self-response rates, begins July 27

Counties and Cities Compete to Boost Census Participation via Big PUSH

Vermont Business Magazine The PUSH to increase participation in the 2020 Census is on!

Counties and major cities will compete in a regional challenge to determine who can PUSH a greater self-response rate during Census PUSH WEEK July 27-August 2. The primary goal of PUSH Week is to increase 2020 Census self-response rates via local activities, parades, social messaging campaigns, and Census Mobile Questionnaire Assistance events to ensure that everyone gets counted. For a list of events in Vermont where people can get help completing their questionnaires during PUSH Week, see below.

Community leaders and Census partners have done a great job promoting the message that completing the 2020 Census is safe, easy, and important. Currently, Chittenden County leads the state of Vermont with a response rate of 71.8%, but for Census PUSH Week, winners will be determined by the response rate increase over the entire week. That means Essex County, at 35.6% has an opportunity to win the week if its communities provide a strong PUSH! The % POINT INCREASE column, below, which will indicate self-response improvement, is what matters most in this competition.

Media advisories with updated information in the columns below will be provided on Tuesday, July 28 and Thursday, July 30. Final Census PUSH Week results will be delivered on Tuesday, August 4. It is important to note that residents may still self-respond to the 2020 Census at any point prior to the October 31 deadline.

Census PUSH Week

COUNTY SELF-RESPONSE RATE % POINT INCREASE NEW RATE

Mobile Questionnaire Assistance Events in Vermont during Push Week

About the Census: Census results help determine how billions of in federal funding flow into states and communities each year. Census results also determine how many seats in Congress each state gets. That is why local governments, nonprofits and businesses have partnered with the U.S. Census Bureau to boost self-response rates. These Census partners are making special efforts to connect with residents who are least likely to respond to the 2020 Census on their own. For more on the 2020 Census, including local response rates, operational adjustments associated with COVID-19, and opportunities to interview a Census representative, please contact the media specialist below.

Source: July 22, 2020 —US Census