U.S. Census 2010 answers questions on cost, and more

Why is the United States Census 2010 spending taxpayer money on costly TV ads during a recession? Why can't we answer the Census online? Why does the questionnaire, which was mailed out this week, include the outdated and potentially offensive word "Negro" as a description of one ethnic group?

Those answers and others are on the U.S. Census 2010 Web site, along with lots of interesting other facts about the use of the Census. Here are a few money-related exceprts from The Whole Story, one of the Census information pages: 

Q: Why is the the Census spending money on advertising during these tough economic times?

A: Our experience in Census 2000 proved that paid advertising is a wise investment that reduces the overall cost of the census. For every one percent increase in mail response in 2010, the census will save $85 million that would otherwise have to be spent on door-to-door follow-up with households that didn't respond.

Census 2000 was the first census to use paid advertising rather than rely solely on donated public service announcements. It helped reverse a three-decade-long decline in mail response rates.

Q: I know the Census is coming, so why are you sending me multiple mailings? 

A: Years of research have shown that higher percentages of people receiving the mailed census questionnaire return a completed form after they receive the advance letter compared with those who receive merely the census form with a simultaneous request to return it. ... The advance letter is also a way for us to protect the American public from any scams that use the census to exploit people. The scam artists don't take the time, nor do they exercise the courtesy that we do, to alert the households of an upcoming request. This feature of the 2010 Census is a cost-saver in the long run.

Q: What is the cost per household to conduct the census, and how much is the Census Bureau spending per household on advertising on TV, radio, etc.?

A: The Census Bureau is spending about $1 per person on our combined promotion and outreach efforts. It costs just 42 cents to mail back the census form in a postage-paid envelope. It costs taxpayers $25 per person to send a census taker door-to-door to collect the same information if they didn't mail it back.

The Census has a long list of additional Q&As on its Question and Answer Center page.  You also can post a individual question. Yesterday I posted a question on the Census's Ask Question page and was pleased by the speed and precision of the answer. A friend who owns an apartment in New York in which she stays on weekdays and a home in Connecticut where she lives on weekends, holidays and school vacations, wanted to know whether to fill out the forms sent to both residences, or just to one. I posted the question at 9:20 am yesterday, and received an answer by 3:38 pm. The answer—fill out the New York questionnaire—was personalized, not canned, and clearly written by an individual. I was impressed.—Tobie Stanger