Not too late to be included in 2010 census

U.S. Rep. Raul Grijalva is encouraging residents of Yuma, and throughout his district, to make sure they are counted in the 2010 census, which ends Friday.

“Since the census count only takes place every 10 years, it is critical that people take this last opportunity to respond to the census questions by Friday,” Grijalva said. “Being counted in the census means better schools for our children, more firefighters and police officers to protect our community, and fair representation at all levels of government.”

It's still not too late to be included in the 2010 census, Grijalva said.

Residents who aren't sure whether they received a census form, who did not mail it back or who were not contacted by a census worker at their home can quickly, safely and confidentially answer census questions by calling the following U.S. Census Bureau phone numbers from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday:

• 1-866-872-6868 — general toll-free English language assistance line

• 1-866-928-2010 — Spanish language assistance line

Grijalva said services such as Head Start programs, public day care for children, school lunch programs, public schools, public transportation and hospitals rely on federal funds allocated based on the number of people living in each state, as reported by the census.

An accurate count, Grijalva said, helps the federal government allocate more than $400 billion annually for these and other programs.

James Gilbert can be reached at jgilbert@yumasun.com or 539-6854.