JACKSON – According to a press release issued by the United States Census Bureau on Tuesday, self-response and field data collection operations for the 2020 Census will conclude today, Thursday, October 15, 2020. The decision comes after the Supreme Court approved a request to suspend a lower court order that extended the count's schedule.

As of today, Mississippi has a 60.2% self-response rate, which is lower than our final self-response rate from the last census count in 2010 (61.3%). In the 2010 Census, more than 265,000 Mississippians went uncounted. If this happens again, we could lose billions of dollars in federal funding for our state.

Census data impacts how hundreds of billions of dollars in federal funding are allocated to more than 100 programs, including transportation, education and healthcare. The results of this once-a-decade count also determine the number of seats each state has in the House of Representatives. In the 2000 Census, our state lost a congressional seat (MS-5) due to low participation. Since then, we only send four representatives to Washington D.C. each term, resulting in one less person to speak for Mississippi. 

If you have not done so already, please take the time to respond to the 2020 Census before the end of today.It takes less than ten minutes, your answers are protected under law, and your participation can make a significant impact on our state for the next 10 years. Respond online, by phone, or by mail. The U.S. Census Bureau issued the following about the new deadline:

• Internet self-response will be available across the nation through October 15, 2020 through 11:59 p.m. Visit 2020Census.gov to respond today.
• Phone response will be available for its regularly scheduled time on October 15, 2020. Click here for schedule and a list of numbers.
• Paper responses must be postmarked by October 15, 2020.
• Nonresponse Follow-up census takers will continue resolving nonresponding addresses through the end of the day on October 15, 2020.