Have You Received A Letter From The US Census..

It's bullshit. The next census won't be until 2030.

This is the first page of the survey. Note the text at the top.

R1, this is supposedly not the same thing as the census.

I have little doubt this is some sort of shenanigan the Trump administration is trying to pull in order to justify cutting funds to certain areas in the country.

Ignore it. I think you're right; this is some Trump admin bullshit, an attempt to get personal information about people.

It's not addressed to me by name. Only "to the resident of".

This is what I get when I Google "is the American Community Survey legit'.

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Yes, the American Community Survey (ACS) is a legitimate and official survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau, a division of the Department of Commerce. It is not a scam, and responses are required by law.

ACS vs. the decennial census

The ACS should not be confused with the once-a-decade U.S. Census, though both are overseen by the same agency.

Decennial census: Counts the entire U.S. population once every 10 years to determine the apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives.

American Community Survey (ACS): Gathers detailed demographic, economic, housing, and social information from a rolling, annual sample of about 3.5 million households. It replaced the "long form" of the decennial census.

Why the ACS is conducted

The data collected by the ACS is vital for making important decisions and distributing federal funds.

Guides funding: ACS data determines how over $675 billion in federal funds are distributed to states and communities each year.

Informs leaders: Federal, state, and local leaders use the statistics to guide planning for local services and infrastructure, such as new schools, hospitals, and fire stations.

What happens if you are selected

Mandatory participation: If your address is randomly selected, you are legally obligated to respond. Refusal to participate can result in a fine, though the Census Bureau typically makes multiple attempts to contact you first.

Verification: To avoid scams, you can verify any mailing, phone call, or in-person visit by checking for the U.S. Department of Commerce seal or by calling a regional Census Bureau office. The official online response website is respond.census.gov/acs.

Confidentiality: All responses are confidential and protected by law. The data is used only to produce anonymous statistics and cannot be used against you.

No, this is not illegal, or b.s., or a scam. The American Community Survey takes place annually, between censuses, and is a snapshot much more detailed than the census, and includes information on housing, etc. It is a real thing that is used by city planners and others all the time. It is not a Trump thing at all. Very valuable data. Your response is aggregated and the same privacy safeguards as in the census apply.

I would urge you to complete it. Not a big deal but important.

I'm a retired city government employee and know about this!

Don't do it, OP.

R6 In normal times, I'd trust this and complete it.

In these times, I trust nothing and I'd chuck it.

I worked for the 2020 census for pin money five years ago. I think you should fill out the survey, OP. It is important to gather information to figure out how to spread around federal money. If you don't fill out your survey, then the money for your community or state might go to another state. I'll doubt you want that.

R9 wants to get paid.

What a sad testament to our times that we're suspicious of something seemingly so innocuous.

Throw it out. I’m pretty sure DOGE eliminated all this.

It’s a fake. It’s a fundraiser for Trump. Easy to check out online.

oh jesus, do your civic duty and complete the goddam form. what were you planning to do otherwise, play some stupid videogame?

They got you R14.

R14 also just wrote a stern letter to the NFL to complain about Bad Bunny being the Super Bowl halftime performer.

I spent my life working for government. What kind of crap government tells you something is "required by law" without telling you which law?

R17 Exactly!

I may have to end up doing it, but I'm going to make the sons of bitches work for it.

[quote]The next census won't be until 2030.

Oh yeah?

I worked for the census in 2010. Plenty of people on my route refused to answer the census questions (because they weren't going to give Obama their information). Nobody got prosecuted for turning me away.

I received one of those in 2008 or 2009. When I Googled, the first results were hysterical statements from Ron Paul about how insidious and evil this was, so I replied posthaste because Ron Paul is kookoo.

Trump and 2025 are desperate to sabotage future censuses, for two reasons. Number 1, they don't want data publicly available, Number 2 they want to tailor the population by excluding non-whites as much as possible.

I've been doing historical research since 2000, and use census data from 1850 to 1940 a lot. It's nice to be able to find so many people who were living in very rural areas or in crowded tenements, and to see that they were personally represented.

I wouldn't trust anything from the Dump Administration.

What R6 said. It does seem kinda nebulous and suspect when you first open it but it IS real.

My neighbor was selected - did not take this seriously as they were away for a few months and he got in trouble. I think he had to pay a fine.

Sounds like another scam to get info.

R24 That's bullshit. You can't fine someone for not completing something that came in the mail unregistered.

LIE!

Unless it comes registered mail where you have to sign to prove you received it, they can't prove you ever received anything, mail gets lost all the time. However that doesn't mean that they can't make things difficult for you, if they want to. This current administration has a mean streak a mile long.

Not a scam.

More info

R29 I don't trust a thing that comes from the federal government these days.

As far as I'm concerned, it's a scam.

Many decades ago I worked for the Census Bureau. It is responsible for much more than the population count every ten years. There are multiple surveys conducted by the Census every year. They provide crucial information to each governmental agency so that Congress can appropriately allocate funds and resources.

Don't fall for what R32 is telling you, OP.

R33 You’re not making sense.

How is my former employment with the Census Bureau something to “fall for”?

I worked on a housing census processing completed surveys. This took place during a year with a 5 in it. The Census doesn’t just wake up every decade, They gather information constantly. What’s unusual about that?

Educate yourself. You don’t want to sound like a conspiracy loon.