(Photo by Maria Dryfhout/shutterstock.com)
On Monday, the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO) Educational Fund shared the following media release and statement about the upcoming 2020 census in the wake of the COVID-19 global pandemic:
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO) Educational Fund today released a statement from CEO Arturo Vargas on census operations ramping up with the beginning of the self-response period against the backdrop of the coronavirus (COVID-19) situation:
“Among the many challenges the Census Bureau faces, the situation surrounding COVID-19 has emerged as the most significant thus far. As the Bureau and organizations like ours work to promote accurate information around the census and encourage participation, the unfolding public health issues around COVID-19 only exacerbate the difficulties of our existing efforts.
“As the self-response period begins today, with initial invitations arriving between March 12-20, we are aware that the Bureau is working tirelessly to adapt and continue moving forward with its operations amid the current situation, and we are ready to adjust our work accordingly as we learn about these changes.
“As the current public health situation poses additional stress on existing and commencing census operations, we believe the Bureau should use its emergency and rapid response contingency funds to update its paid media messaging campaign. Given the cancellations of many public gatherings, we also look to the Bureau for updates to its mobile assistance initiative meant to deploy outreach workers to such events.
“With everything we are seeing, the importance of self-response remains paramount. As the Bureau plans for its door-to-door, Nonresponse Followup operation, it is critical that households understand that self-responding to the census can help alleviate additional burdens to the Bureau, brought on by COVID-19. We strongly encourage every household to respond to the census as soon as it receives its invitation from the Census Bureau; this response can be online, by phone, or mail. Households that do not initially self-respond will receive a paper form the week of April 8-16. NALEO Educational Fund remains committed in its efforts to work alongside the Census Bureau for a full and accurate count.”
Self-respond to the census online here or by phone in English at 844-330-2020 or in Spanish at 844-468-2020.
The Census Bureau’s statement on COVID-19 and the 2020 Census can be found here.
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About NALEO Educational Fund
NALEO Educational Fund is the nation’s leading non-profit, non-partisan organization that facilitates the full participation of Latinos in the American political process, from citizenship to public service.
