2020 Census: Field Operations Resume in Washington

Update: As of Monday, May 25 the response rate for the entire state was 65.4%, meaning that 65.4% of all households have answered the census!

Congratulations to Clallam County which became the sixth county to reach its 2010 response rate milestone!

2020 Response Rate Map

Track your community’s self-response progress on the 2020 Response Rate Map. Live data is updated every day about noon. Please note that the 2020 map data does NOT include anyone counted via the group quarters or transitory locations operations, and other special operations in remote or certain tribal areas. It also does not include responses collected during the non-response follow-up operation.

Field Operations Restarting in Washington

The Census Bureau is pleased to announce that it will resume field operations in the state of Washington on Monday, May 11. Census workers will resume delivering invitations and questionnaires to those households that did not receive them when all field operations were suspended in March as a result of the COVID-19 virus.

This operation will affect about 5 percent of the households in the state, primarily more rural areas and households with PO boxes that do not receive mail at a physical address. We call this operation Update Leave.

This work does not require any interaction with the public – census workers will not ring doorbells or collect census information. All they will do is leave a packet with a questionnaire and instructions about how to respond at the front door. For information about how to identify a census worker, click here. They will also wear appropriate protective gear as needed.

Once people receive their invitation, we ask them to respond as soon as possible

OPERATIONS SCHEDULE

Operation	Scheduled dates
Self-Response Period — Underway	March 12 – Oct. 31
Field Operations Restart – Underway	May 11
Update Leave — Underway	May 11
Group Quarters (paper and e-response)	April 2 – Sept. 3
Group Quarters (in-person enumeration)	July 1 – Sept. 3
Non-Response Follow-Up	Aug. 11 – Oct. 31
Transitory Locations	Sept. 3-28
Counting the Homeless	TBC
Mobile Questionnaire Assistance	TBC

Other Updates

Census Extension. The Census Bureau has officially requested statutory relief from Congress to add 120 calendar days to the requirement to deliver final apportionment counts. Under this request, the bureau would extend field data collection and self-response to Oct. 31, which would result in data to be delivered to the president by April 30, 2021, and to the states no later than July 31, 2021. This is just a request and must be approved by Congress before any change to operations is made.
Call Center Capacity Increased. As of April 14, the bureau is increasing the capacity of its call centers and is reinstating the callback option for the phone lines. The callback option – callers can leave a message and receive a timely call back from a census taker – will be available in all languages.
Questions about ZIP Codes. Some people have asked why their mailing addresses do not seem to match where they live. The Census Bureau does not use mailing address for a residence to assign housing units to the proper political jurisdiction or census geography. Instead, the bureau uses the physical location of a housing unit to assign it to the proper geographic area. The bureau recognizes that the post office “city” names associated with a ZIP may differ from the legal municipality or district in which the housing unit is actually located. For more information, click here.
Rumors. There is a rumor going around the country that census responses might be used to determine your eligibility for government benefits, including any potential stimulus package. This is false. Please continue to check the rumors page at https://2020census.gov/en/news-events/rumors.html for updated information.
COVID-19. The U.S. Census Bureau is carefully monitoring the COVID-19 virus and is following the guidance of federal, state and local health authorities. We appreciate your support and patience as operations are adjusted.

Recruiting for Jobs

The Census Bureau still has jobs available for the 2020 Census. Almost every county has positions available. Please help us spread the word. Applicants can apply online at 2020census.gov/jobs.

2020 Response Rate Map

As of Sunday, May 10 the response rate for the entire state was 63.9%, meaning that 63.9% of all households have answered the census

Top 20 Response Rates by County
(as of May 10)

1	Clark County	68.8%
2	Benton County	68.3%
3	King County	68.1%
4	Spokane County	67.8%
5	Kitsap County (tied)	67.5%
	Thurston County (tied)	67.5%
7	Snohomish County	67.3%
8	Whatcom County	66%
9	Cowlitz County	64.4%
10	Walla Walla County (tied)	64.1%
	Pierce County (tied)	64.1%
12	Asotin County	63.9%
13	Island County	62.7%
14	Clallam County	62.6%
15	Franklin County	59.2%
16	Skagit County	59%
17	Jefferson County	58.5%
18	Yakima County	57.8%
19	Douglas County	54%
20	Lewis County	53.8%

Counties That Have Surpassed 2010 Rate
	County	Current Rate	2010 Rate	Increase	Date Reached
1	Jefferson County	58.4%	55.7%	2.7%	May 1
2	Kitsap County	67.4%	66.3%	1.1%	May 6
3	Island County	62.6%	62.1%	.5%	May 8

Census Webinars

Missed one of our recent webinars? Recordings are available online from Washington Nonprofits.

Topic	Recording
Census Operational Update	Watch
Statistics in Schools	Watch
Social Media and Video Contest	Watch
Health Care Community	Watch
Higher Education	Watch
Tribal Community	Watch
Faith-based Community	Watch
Military Veterans	Watch
Immigrants and Refugees	Watch
Young Children	Watch
Chambers of Commerce	Watch
Migrant Workers	Watch
Small Towns and Rural Areas	Watch