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Census 2000 will be the largest peacetime effort in the history of the United States. Hundreds of thousands of census takers and support personnel will be needed to account for the anticipated 118 million housing units and 275 million people across the United States. But it isn’t its size that makes Census 2000 important. It is all the things that we will learn about ourselves that will help America succeed in the next millennium. The census is as important to our nation as highways and telephone lines. Federal dollars supporting schools, employment services, housing assistance, highway construction, hospital services, programs for the elderly and more are distributed based on census figures.

About a week before Census Day, April 2, 2000 most households will received a questionnaire by mail. The Census 2000 questionnaire will be easy to read and simple to fill out. Most people will only be asked about seven subjects: name, sex, age, relationship, Hispanic origin, race and housing tenure (whether home is owned or rented). A longer form is also being used and in addition to the seven questions above it will add 27 more, including education, ancestry, employment, disability and house heating fuel. One out of six housing units will receive a long form nationwide.

Census 2000 will help decision-makers understand which neighborhoods need new schools and which ones need greater services for the elderly. But they won’t be able to tell what your community needs if you and your neighbors don’t fill out your forms and mail them back.

By law, the Census Bureau cannot share your answers with others, including welfare agencies, the immigration and Naturalization Service, the Internal Revenue Service, courts, police and the military. Anyone who breaks this law can receive up to five years in prison and $5,000 in fines.

The Census Bureau can help you participate. To assist you in completing the form, Questionnaire Assistance Centers will open in Fort Myers. To answer your questions, a toll-free telephone number will be provided on the form. To make sure you’re included, we’ll make additional forms available to people who did not receive on in the mail.

Your participation in Census 2000 is important, safe and easy. Just complete the form when your receive it in the mail and mail it back. For additional information about Census 2000 visit the Census Bureau’s Internet site at http://www.census.gov.