Welcome to

Census Bureau data shows Florida still lags behind the national response rate by seven percent.

Now as census workers attempt to follow up on nonrespondent households they face a new challenge.

One out of three census workers have either quit or didn’t show up for the job and that’s going to make it even harder to count historically underrepresented communities.

The Census Bureau reports that is has counted seven out of ten Floridians so far, but time is running out.

The deadline to finish is September 30th.

“Time is running out, but it’s not too late,” said Assistant Regional Census Manager Marilyn Stephens.

Reaching that hurdle will be difficult, one third of census workers have either quit or didn’t show up for the job.

The Bureau said it’s making up for the lost staff with longer shifts.

“We may not need as many people because we don’t look at our work in terms of bodies, it’s more that we look at it in terms of staff hours,” said Stephens.

But the lower than anticipated workforce is of great concern to State Rep Anna Eskamani.

She’s worried it’s those who could benefit the most from being counted who are most likely to go unreported.

“Especially in our communities of color and our communities that have been most directly impacted by COVID-19, which tends to be lower income,” said Eskamani.

The Census Bureau told us even in a normal year, lower income and minority groups are often less likely to return their census due to an inherent distrust of government.

But the Bureau asserts there’s nothing to fear.

Census information is highly confidential.

“That means no police, no FBI, no CIA. Not even the IRS,” said Stephens.

Eskamani added even a resident’s immigration status won’t be revealed in the census.

“When it comes to the US Census it does not matter. You will not be asked to disclose your documentation status,” said Eskamani.

And the census count won’t only influence funding for communities, but also the state’s representation in Congress with the potential of adding or taking away seats in the House.

It’s not too late to fill out your census form.

You can either return it by mail, over the phone by calling 844-330-2020 or for the first time ever you can respond online.