Census Information Center Urging Oklahomans To Fill Out American Community Survey

The Census Information Center of Eastern Oklahoma is urging Oklahomans to fill out the American Community Survey if it shows up in their mailbox. The survey is sent out each month by the U.S. Census Bureau. It is a much more in-depth version of the decennial census that comes out every ten years.

The American Community Survey is sent out to roughly one in 40 people every year, which adds up to about 10,000 people annually just in Tulsa alone.

This is a different questionnaire than the decennial census you filled out last year, CIC officials say this survey is more in-depth about the members of your household. The questions include topics on housing characteristics, socioeconomics, your education level, job information, income range, citizenship status, and more.

If your home is chosen to participate, you will get a postcard in the mail with instructions on how to fill out the survey online. If you don’t fill it out online, the survey will be mailed to you in a paper hard copy to fill out and mail back.

There is an English and Spanish option presented online.

The Census Information Center’s Melanie Poulter said this survey impacts how nice and well-funded the community is.

“It allows us to understand the makeup of our populations in any given area so that planning efforts initiatives can be offered appropriately,” Poulter said.

The results for each month are released a year later as that data comes in.

“It’s important to fill this out,” Poulter said. “We get to have the information coming in constantly which helps us look into the community’s needs regularly.”

If you have any questions about the survey, you can call the Census Information Center of Eastern Oklahoma at 1-800-642-0469 or 1-800-523-3206.