The 2020 Census counts every person living in the 50 states, District of Columbia, and five U.S. territories — once every 10 years.
The 2020 Census will gather information from mid-March to July 31, with the official Census Day being April 1. All information is confidential, protected by law and only used to produced statistics.
Each home will receive an invitation to respond to a short questionnaire—online, by phone, or by mail. Personal information, including your address, gathered through the 2020 Census will not be shared with any level of law enforcement and can’t be used against you. The sole purpose of the Census is to provide up-to-date statistics.
Census statistics impact our daily lives, informing important decisions about funding for services and infrastructure such as health care, senior centers, jobs, political representation, roads, schools and businesses. Most grant money is determined through population statistics. These statistics accurately determine how many representatives each state has in Congress and inform the redrawing of congressional district boundaries.
You can learn how to participate in the count, learn more about the questions that are asked and how your answers will be used, plus see how the 2020 Census compares to the first count taken in 1790 by visiting Census.gov.
