Brooklynites who fail to complete the 2010 U.S. Census questionnaire will be in for a big surprise.
A representative for the U.S. Census Bureau revealed that residents who do not mail the forms back to the federal Department of Commerce will be visited by census staffers — repeatedly.
“We will come knocking on your door not once, not twice, not three times, not four times, not five times, but six times,” she said at a meeting of the Marine Park Civic Association, which represents a portion of southern Brooklyn.
Census workers will carry valid ID, which residents may ask to see.
Marine Park Civic President Greg Borruso offered some advice to residents uninterested in these visits.
“Mail the census form and you don’t have to worry about anyone ringing your bell,” he said.
The results of the questionnaires determine how much funding local hospitals and nursing homes receive, and are used to plan urban development projects and establish fair rents.
“The reason you fill out the census form is because you get money for your hospitals, for your schools,” Borruso said. “Tell your friends, tell your neighbors that it’s important to fill out the forms.”
The census questionnaires will be mailed next March and should be mailed back by April 1. Home visits would begin in May.
Recruitment is currently underway for census workers. For more details, call 212-356-3100. Additional information is available at www.2010census.gov.