GOV
2020 Census
Shape the future of the City of St. Louis
What Is the Census?
The Census is a count of every person residing in the United States of America for the purposes of political apportionment, redistricting, allocating federal funding, and compiling statistics and demographic data for public use. The Census is mandated by Article 1, Section 2 of the Constitution and participation is required by law.
Countdown
Census Day was Apr. 1
Learn how to participate in the 2020 Census below.
Response Rates for City of St. Louis
Data provided by the U.S. Census API. Last updated 3:00 PM Eastern on 1/29/21.
How to Respond
By April 1st, 2020, every home will have received an invitation by mail with instructions on how to participate in the 2020 Census. You will have three options for responding:
- Online.
- By phone.
- By mail.
Respondents do not need a unique identification code to respond. The online forms will be available in the following languages: English, Spanish, Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, Russian, Arabic, Tagalog, Polish, French, Haitian Creole, Portuguese, and Japanese. There will be additional language guides and glossaries available in over 40 additional languages.
Visit https://my2020census.gov/ to respond.
If you would like to respond online but do not have internet access, there are many locations across the city with internet access.
About the 2020 Census
What is the Census?
The Census is a count of every person residing in the United States of America for the purposes of political apportionment, redistricting, allocating federal funding, and compiling statistics and demographic data for public use. The Census is mandated by Article 1, Section 2 of the Constitution and participation is required by law.
What will be asked?
The number of people living or staying in your home, the type of home you live or stay in, your telephone number, your name, your sex, your age, your date of birth, your ethnicity, and your race. These questions will also need to be filled out for any additional people living or staying in your home on April 1st, 2020. The Census does not share your telephone number and it will only be used to verify information on your Census form, if necessary.
Who will be counted?
When filling out the form, count every person living in your home as of April 1st, 2020. This includes any friends or family members who are living and sleeping there most of the time or if someone is staying in your house and has no usual home elsewhere. Please be sure to count roommates, young children, newborns, and anyone who is renting space in your home.
Some groups such as students, service members, people in correctional facilities, people who move on Census Day (April 1st, 2020), newborn babies, visitors, foreign citizens residing in the United States, residents of foreign countries, people in health care facilities, people living in transitory locations, people displaced by natural disasters, people experiencing homelessness, and people who do not have fixed addresses may have special considerations that affect how they respond.
Your response matters
The 2020 Census will determine congressional representation, inform hundreds of billions in federal funding, and provide data that will impact communities for the next decade. Health clinics. Fire departments. Schools. Even roads and highways. The census can shape many different aspects of your community.
Learn More
Confidentiality
Under Title 13 of the U.S. Code, all of the information you provide to the U.S. Census Bureau is protected and cannot be released in a manner that identifies you individually. Additionally, none of the personal information collected by the Census Bureau can be used against respondents by any government agency or court. Over its history, US courts have repeatedly upheld Title 13's protections ensuring that your information can’t be shared with anyone for nonstatistical purposes.
Every Census Bureau employee and contractor swears an oath to always protect your information and violations of that oath are punishable by a fine of up to $250,000 and/or up to five years in prison.
The information you provide will be used to determine political apportionment and redistricting, guide more than $675 billion in federal funding that is distributed each year to states and communities, and provide important statistics and demographic information to businesses, governments, and communities.
Get Involved
Whether it’s working for the Census, becoming a Census partner, or just spreading the word, there are many ways for individuals to support the 2020 Census.
Employment
There are many positions available with the Census in locations all over the United States. You can apply now to be a Census taker, Census field supervisor, recruiting assistant, office operations supervisor, or clerk. Join the 2020 Census Team today! To be eligible, applicants must be at least 18 years old, have a valid Social Security Number, and pass a Census Bureau-performed background check and a review of criminal records, including fingerprinting.
For more information on applying for work with the U.S. Census Bureau, please visit: https://2020census.gov/jobs
Census partners
Census partners are part of a network of nonprofit, corporate, and community organizations working to encourage households to respond to the 2020 Census. Census partners can assist with the 2020 Census by including information about the 2020 Census in correspondence, providing a link to the 2020 Census on their website, providing computers or tablets to complete the 2020 Census job application or fill out the 2020 Census form, share Census operational and educational materials with their networks, and invest directly in organizations and activities that help to achieve a complete and accurate count.
For more information on becoming a Census partner, please visit: https://census.gov/partners
Spreading the word
Every one of us has a stake in ensuring that our community conducts a complete and accurate count. You can help by encouraging friends, family, and neighbors to participate and spreading the word at work, at community gatherings, on social media, and wherever there are people to be counted.
For more information on how you can get involved, please visit: https://2020census.gov/en/how-to-help.html
