ALBANY, N.Y. (WWTI) — The official kick off to Census Push Week has begun.
Governor Andrew Cuomo announced on July 28 that the push week aims to ensure that every New Yorker is counted in the 2020 Census.
The Governor also announced ‘Friends and Family Day’, taking place on July 30, will use social media to encourage New Yorkers to text or call 10 people and remind them to participate in the census.
He also announced ‘Take 10 Minutes at 10’, which will encourage businesses, unions, and organizations employees to complete the Census on August 10.
Also, the Office of New Americans will host a Census Hotline Phone Bank event on August 5th and 6th from 2pm to 4 pm. The hotline will answer questions and provide information to primarily Spanish-speakers, but with full multi-language access available for all callers.
“The Census gives New Yorkers the chance to profoundly affect our state’s future, and since federal funding and representation in Congress are determined by the Census count, it’s absolutely critical that every New Yorker is counted,” Governor Cuomo said. “There’s no doubt that COVID-19 has presented unprecedented obstacles to completing the Census. However, the pandemic also highlights a key reason why the Census is so vital.”
Additional census outreach activities will include:
- MTA distributing census information on more than 5,434 digital screens, including stations and transit vehicles.
- The Department of State is training Community Action Agencies, which promote services that combat poverty, to raise awareness of the Census.
- The Department of Financial Services is delivering awareness messages and coordinating their use among the community banks, banks in underbanked areas, check cashers, and money transmission officers
- Empire State Development is promoting the Census with and distributing materials to the REDCs and their members, welcome centers and other ESD facilities
With Census responses in New York State resting at 58.1%, the state urged all to respond by the October 31 deadline.
The 2020 Census can be completed through the mail, over the phone, or online.
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