Good day! Please excuse cross-postings:

As the 2020 Census launch draws closer, rural and small libraries might be wondering how best to work with a population with limited access to internet or who are "digitally timid," and all of us might be wondering how to spot and address misinformation and disinformation about the Census as it arises in social media and other arenas.

This publication has a fantastic collection of frequently asked questions, tools to combat disinformation on social media, ways to help if someone is attempting to do the Census on an off-brand device that doesn't play as well with websites, etc. It is really useful not only for Census but also for knowing hot to spot disinformation in general:

https://beeckcenter.georgetown.edu/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/2020-Census-Digital-Preparedness-Playbook_final.pdf

Included in the playbook is a link to this map, which breaks down exactly how an invitation to participate in the Census will be distributed to each region. For example, by clicking on Piscataquis County, we learn: "The Census Bureau will invite households in Tract 9603.02 to participate in the 2020 Census by:

  *   Mailing a letter to 0.1% of the tract's housing units, beginning March 2020.
  *   Hand-delivering a census packet to 15.4% of the tract's housing units, beginning March 2020.
  *   Counting 84.5% of the tract's housing units in-person by a census enumerator (in Alaska starting Jan. 2020, in March everywhere else).
  *   For households receiving a hand-delivered census packet:

  *   Census staff will drop-off an invitation to participate to 15.4% (or 327) of the tract's housing units. This packet will include a paper version of the census questionnaire, as well as online instructions and a unique ID for online response. Householders can then submit their census information either online or by phone, or by mailing back the questionnaire.
  *   If householders do not respond, the Census Bureau will send reminder mailings to fill out the questionnaire. (Note: you can't obtain a paper form simply by calling the Census Bureau. All forms are coded to a specific address.)
  *   For households to be counted in-person:

  *   Census staff will visit 84.5% (or 1,792) of the tract's housing units to enumerate the households directly in-person.
  *   For households receiving a mailing:

  *   The Census Bureau will mail an invitation letter to 0.1% (or 2) of the tract's housing units.
  *   The mailing for households in this tract is called Internet Choice because it will include a paper version of the census questionnaire (English-only), as well as online instructions and a unique ID for online response.
  *   Based on the latest American Community Survey (ACS), this tract had a low self-response rate and either a higher population of people age 65 or more, low internet subscribership rates, or low internet response during the latest ACS.
  *   The Bureau wants to make it easier for households in this tract to respond to the 2020 Census by sending them the paper questionnaire AND the online/phone instructions.
  *   The packet also will include a Language Assistance insert with instructions in English plus 12 other languages for calling a phone assistance line with questions or to provide your responses right over the phone.
  *   If your household does not respond initially by mailing back a completed census form, or online or by phone, the Census Bureau will send you two reminder mailings.
  *   Visit the Census Bureau's website<https://census.gov/library/visualizations/2019/comm/2020-everyone.html> for more information on how the Bureau will be inviting householders to participate in the 2020 Census.
  *   You can also view the Bureau's Mail Contact Strategies map<https://gis-portal.data.census.gov/arcgis/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=7ef5c37c68a64ef3b2f1b17eb9287427> and/or the Bureau's online map of Type of Enumeration areas<https://gis-portal.data.census.gov/arcgis/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=cbf242acb9f849f381090cf144715340>."



You can visit and explore the map here: https://www.censushardtocountmaps2020.us/

Finally, for people working with patrons who are uncomfortable with computer technology but would like to do the Census online, there is a tutorial designed especially to make it easier here: https://www.easycensushelp.org/2020censusdesk.html

Thank you all for helping out with this important work. A lot of federal funding - including library funding from LSTA and workforce development funding from WIOA - is determined based on an accurate count. Your library is the most important economic tool your community has in this project right now.

Respectfully,

Lisa


Lisa M. Shaw
Maine State Library
Rural & Small Libraries Specialist
Workforce Development
145 Harlow St.
Bangor ME 04401
(207) 947-8336 xt 114
(207) 217-1565 (mobile)
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https://www.maine.gov/msl/libs/index.shtml
https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisanealshaw/