According to the U. S. Bureau of the Census, the resident population of the United States was 309,112,098 on April 21, at 1:17 PM. I do not like working with numbers in general, but can you imagine the difficulty of counting millions of active American people with an expectation for accuracy?

Like all concerned citizens who realize the importance of filling out the U. S. Census questionnaire when it arrives, I have been waiting in vain for my questionnaire. I say “in vain” because rather than a 2010 census form, I have a Fax Alert from the PSATS (Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors) indicating that residents who pick up their mail at a post office box most likely did not receive a U.S. Census questionnaire!

From what I understand from the Communications Office for the northwestern Pennsylvania Postal Service, the lists from many Post Offices included households who receive their mail at a Post Office box and the Census Bureau forbids (not too strong a word from what I understand) delivery of the 2010 census forms to post office boxes.

If we think about this prohibition in terms of correctness in making a count, it has the foretaste of wisdom. Some households could have two post office boxes, one for a business as well as a personal one, and of course there are people who have multiple post office boxes for reasons we regular people don’t understand.

Sadly, the government and legitimate businesses have come to regard post office box addresses with suspicion and made guarded adjustments accordingly. (Have you ever tried to have new checks delivered to a post office box? I think I’ve mentioned that bit of bad behavior before!)

I said all this to say all of us who have mail delivered to post office box addresses will have an opportunity to meet a census taker face to face. (Which is costing the government money on one hand and providing summer jobs on the other – you can analyze how you feel about that information for yourself!) Additionally, you may call the Census 2010 Help Line at 1-866-872-6868, at no cost, to take the survey over the phone in English, Chinese, Korean, Russian, Spanish or Vietnamese. Although today I tried several times to call this number but it is an automated answering machine, I have a terrible cold, so it keeps asking me to repeat my answer.

According to the census web site April 16 was the deadline for mail in forms, but I have a form in front of me indicating the return date is May 1, 2010. I am not sure which is correct and I cannot get to the information on the “Help Line” because of my cold. I wonder if I will have someone I know as the census taker at my house!

Since I was on the 2010 Census website (2010.census.gov) I decided to do some research related to census costs. I surmised from their blog that there are complaints about the Census Bureau spending $2.5 million for Super Bowl ads.

This seems like a big expense until folks understand that it costs the Census Bureau even more to follow up with the households that didn't fill out their census forms.

For every 1% reduction in response rate it costs the Census Bureau approximately $80 million to follow up. Wow – where do all the post office box holders fit in that cost estimate? And did you know this? Complete responses are required by law. If you send in an incomplete form, someone will be required to visit.

So those of you who thought you were okay giving almost no information to your government were actually part of the follow up cost problem. I’m just trying to be informative here!

One thing I have been trying to do for the Borough of Conneautville is gather demographic information regarding the borough and surrounding area, as all federal and state grants require demographic statistics to provide evidence for statements made in a grant application.

Recently I was told the 2000 census data was the only demographic information they accepted as true because the 2010 data would not be available until 2011. Truthfully, the information we do not give the U. S. Bureau of the Census about ourselves will work against us.

Federal, state and local governments need data about age to interpret most social and economic characteristics such as forecasting the number of people eligible for social security and Medicare. The data is also widely used for planning and evaluating government policies and programs that provide funding and services for children, working age adults, women of childbearing age or the older population. So, for those of us who, by necessity, will talk with a census taker, let’s be kind, give accurate information and remember we live in a free nation, we have a stable election process that is not under threat by a military regime, and the most difficult part of our day is the decision on what we’ll eat for dinner.

After traveling outside the U. S. A., I am so very thankful I am a citizen when I step back on U. S. soil; it brings a somewhat arrogant smile to my face!