New York City Council Wants Census Extension

[Census 2010]

On Monday, April 19 at 10 AM in Council Chambers, the Committees on Community Development, Governmental Operations and Civil Rights will hold a joint hearing on NYC's Census 2010 efforts and a resolution sponsored by Council Members Vann and Brewer. The resolution calls upon the U.S. Census Bureau to extend and/or reopen its April 15 deadline for accepting "mail-in" census forms and to keep both its Questionnaire Assistance Centers and Be Counted Sites open for an additional 30 days.

In New York City, only 56 percent of households have returned their census form to date. New York City has a uniquely hard-to-count population because of its large immigrant population, diversity in housing and areas of concentrated poverty. Brooklyn is performing the worst of the city's boroughs with a response rate of only 51 percent.
 
There have been several reports of households receiving multiple census forms, receiving the form late or receiving no form at all.