HARRISBURG — Department of Community and Economic Development Secretary Dennis Davin has encouraged all Pennsylvanians to mitigate risk of COVID-19 by responding to the Census early.
“We encourage all Pennsylvanians to take immediate advantage of the new option to respond to Census invitations online this year as DCED continues to monitor the COVID-19 spread state wide and works with the administration to encourage social distancing to protect the health of our communities,” said Sec. Davin. “The sooner individuals respond via phone or online, they are assisting in social distancing efforts to limit Census workers being required to follow-up on invitations by making door-to-door visits.”
Although National Census Day is April 1, 2020, last week households began receiving invitations to complete the Census, and it has never been easier for Pennsylvanians to respond online, by phone, or by mail.
The United States Constitution requires a Census count once every 10 years and counts every person living in the United States once and only once. The results of the 2020 Census will help provide fair representation when determining congressional districts, policy, decision making, and distribution of billions of dollars in federal funding that impacts the daily lives of Pennsylvanians over the next 10 years.
The Wolf Administration has taken a proactive approach to prepare for COVID-19 in Pennsylvania. Governor Tom Wolf recently issued an emergency disaster declaration to free up funding and resources to respond to COVID-19. The Pennsylvania Department of Health (DOH) is providing daily updates on COVID-19 via press release.
