[Editor's Note. I received an email which had this document attached. When I went into it on Google Docs, it was still being edited. So who knows how current it is by the time you read this!]

Everyone is encouraged to self-respond immediately to ensure being counted

Santa Fe, NM — The official deadline for the 2020 Census is now in the hands of Federal Courts, with lawsuits ongoing in both Maryland and California.

"While there is justifiable cause for hope, it is not completely clear when the count will end," said Pam Coleman, Director of the State Personnel Office and Chair of the State Complete Count Commission. "At the direction of a Federal District Court, Census Bureau has reinstated its October 31 deadline. However, the Census has stated they plan to appeal the Judge's order.

The Census Bureau originally announced it would keep counting households until Monday, October 5, despite the Court's order. However, late yesterday, U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh, issued an order clarifying her mandate that the Census Bureau continue the once-in-a-decade count until at least the end of October. The order is in response to a suit brought by the National Urban League and others.

Complicating the matter is the fact that regardless of the eventual outcome of this court case and another in Maryland, the appeals process keeps the final deadline in question. The Census Bureau has already indicated they will appeal Judge Koh's order to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. The outcome of that process could then be further appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court.

"We've built up great momentum over the past few months," said Coleman. "Since July, New Mexico has been responding at a faster pace than every other state in the nation. We urge everyone who has not yet responded to the 2020 Census to do so today and to urge and encourage all of your family, friends, and colleagues to do the same."

In July and August New Mexico's self-response rate increase was greater than any other state in the nation. In September, only New York had a similar increase.

According to the Census Bureau, as of the end of September, 58.2% of New Mexico households had self-responded to the census - just 1.8% away from the self-response rate from 2010. An additional 39.9% of households have been counted by census workers through the in-person process known as Non-Response Follow-Up.

The financial impact of the census is equivalent to every resident of New Mexico receiving ten dollars, per day, for ten years. Based on current response rates, New Mexico is at risk of missing out on over a billion dollars in federal resources over the next decade. Those funds go directly to critical services like health care, education, public safety and infrastructure. The census can be completed at 2020census.gov or by calling 1-844-330-2020 (English), 1-844-468-2020 (Spanish) or 1-844-467-2020 (TDD).