Did anyone else receive one of these? According to their web site, US Code Title 13, sections Section 141 and Section 193 your response is required by law.
In reality, those sections outline that The Secretary (who is presumably defined elsewhere) can take surveys as a part of their census process. It is Section 221 that requires you to respond:
Whoever, being over eighteen years of age, refuses or willfully neglects, when requested by the Secretary, or by any other authorized officer or employee of the Department of Commerce or bureau or agency thereof acting under the instructions of the Secretary or authorized officer, to answer, to the best of his knowledge, any of the questions on any schedule submitted to him in connection with any census or survey provided…
That’s just a crock.
Oh, sure, census information is useful and all that. It’s just the principal of it. I guess I’ll have to ask the nice lady who came to my door for some evidence that she is an authorized officer or employee of the Deparment of Commerce, or a bureau or agency thereof acting under the instructions of The Secretary.
Heck, I’d pay the $100 if it weren’t for Title 18, Section 3571 (allegedly Section 3559 as well, but that seems to deal with imprisonment and not monetary fines). With it on the books, the “not greater than $100” fine becomes “not greater than $5000” fine. That really blows.
Comments
718 responses to “American Community Survey”
I followed that case. It was about the census long form not the ACS, which may have made a difference. The judge put a stay on the fines but probably learned that the CB had no intention of imposing the fines, so case dismissed. We’re fighting a very carefully orchestrated system of deception.
Cathy,
Just a point of correction, you do not need to be fined in order to sue the Census Bureau. None of the five plaintiffs in Morales v. Evans 116 F. Supp. 2d 801 (S.D. Tex. 2000) were fined. It was the threat of prosecution as criminals and fines that was at the heart of their case. Sadly, the presiding judge dismissed the case and it was affirmed on appeal. Even sadder, the Supreme Court did not grant certiorari.
Louis
In such a manner as they shall by law direct……. I take that to mean how the enumeration is conducted; collected in person, by mail or some other method. I do not take it to mean that the CB can ask every question they want in addition to the enumeration question so that the population can be counted by category.
No one has been fined for failing to answer the questions or the census since 1960. The CB won’t fine anyone now, since they don’t want a court ruling on the questions and surveys they conduct. Plus they don’t have the budget to confirm all the info they collect. The 10th Amendment will come back to bite the CB. The response rate for the decennial census is somewhere between 52-67% depending upon the state. This census will be the more complicated due to the past disasters, foreclosures and individuals moving to find work. The census is tied to the residence. I could refuse to fill out the census and move and nothing will happen. If the residence remains vacant, the count is 0. If I move to a new place after the the census, then oh well I guess I won’t be counted there either. Last census the CB omitted an entire apartment complex from the tally because it thought it was an office building.
Another thing which complicates the picture is the disappearing land-line. The CB defines an occupied residence as having a land-line. Cell phones don’t tie anyone to a residence. I have an out of state cell.
The present political climate has created enough unrest with all government functions. We need to get back to the basics as defined by the Constitution and get the gov out of our lives and away from our private info.
@Fast Track.
Actually, whether or not the Census information actually is confidential is irrelevant when lying on the Census. It’s legally confidential, and ergo, inadmissible as evidence in court. This means, unless you don’t know the law, you can easily get all of their evidence dismissed by reciting the law that states the information is confidential.
That is, if they can even find out who you are. There is more than one person living in my house, and I don’t plan on using anyone’s real name or phone number. First, they have to prove who did it, and then, they have to prove I did it without using their evidence. I don’t think they can pull it off. Do you?
Besides, I highly doubt they’re willing to spend thousands of dollars in court to obtain $500 for a wilfully false answer, but then the government has done stupider things than that just in the past 24 hours, so who the hell knows.
Census data is hardly confidential. The Census Bureau handed over info on Arab-Americans to Homeland Security about eight years ago. Data from the 1940 Census was used to imprison/detail Germans, Japanese, and Italians once we entered World War II late the following year.
While that’s disturbing enough (and when has ANYTHING the Federal government done ever been entirely confidential), I am still proud to be an American, even when my government gives me reason to not be.
I’m leaning heavily towards only putting the number of people in my household, period. However, there’s one thing that’s disturbing me. Everyone who keeps quoting Article I, Section 2, paragraph 3, seem to be missing a very important line in the code:
The actual Enumeration shall be made within three years after the first meeting of the Congress of the United States, and within every subsequent term of ten years, in such manner as they shall by law direct.
“In such a manner as they shall by law direct?”
That seems to cover their rears for a variety of possible prosecutable angles. It certainly leaves a very LARGE hole open for interpretation.
Honestly, I’m fed up with the nonsense from non-citizen President Barry Sotero and his socialist minions helping the American economy down the drain. It’s enough to make me not just want to vote them out of office, but to run for office myself and start beating some butt (legistlatively, of course).
Got my census and the address on it is wrong. The address on the announcement letter had the correct address. Way to go CB workers!!
Actually, there’s a contradiction of interests here. Federal law allows them to fine you for not answering or answering falsely or imprison you for answering falsely with the intent to screw up population information, but Census records are sealed and can’t be accessed from outside the Census for any reason.
They can’t be subpoenaed, requested, warranted, or even obtained under the Freedom Of Information Act until 72 years later when they become public information. I’m sure the statute of limitations is out by then, but I don’t plan to be alive then anyway, so I quiver when I hear the penalty.
If they take you to court or fine you for neglecting to answer, or lying with or without malicious intent, your best defence is, “How did you obtain that information? Oh yeah? It doesn’t sound like I even need to present evidence because that technicality just made this so much easier.”
Since early 2/10 I have received 4 letters, 1 postcard, 2 surveys, 24 calls on my caller ID that hang up before going to voice mail and two voice mails telling me to call the US Census Bureau with my case number.
They cannot knock on my door as the call up system to my condo is out of order and has yet to be replaced. I have chosen not to respond to them.
But if I did I would say: I do not have a problem with the 2010 Census as mandated by the U.S. Constitution. But I do have a problem with the American Community Survey that is merely a statute passed by Congress and violates our Consitutional rights.
So quite harrassing and threatening me through the U.S. Postal System and my telephone for I am exactly the kind of person that would make a federal case of this.
I emailed my Congressman asking what would happen to me if if refused to comply. He emailed me back with what would happen to the Census worker if they gave my information away. Because of that, and because he will not support a halt to fluoridation and to hold congressional hearings on the current scientific information proving it is harmful when ingested, he
no longer has my vote!
Just waiting for my 2010 census to arrive. I will answer the enumeration question only. The Constitution doesn’t say to enumerate by category. I will not supply names, ages, DOBs, genders, races, ethnicity or tenure. It is none of the federal government’s business. It is high time that this kind of statistical collection by the gov stops. I have no problem with any one who wishes to voluntarily disclose anything. I will not participate in a mandatory survey for any reason. The CB has wasted too much money for too long in an effort to invade personal privacy.
Finished my civic duty. Mailed in the 2010 Census Form. It was very quick, provided headcount, sex and age. Took 15 seconds to complete (5 entries in all), 2 seconds to close the envelop, and 19 seconds to put it in the mail box. 36 seconds all told is not bad.