Burlington County Deputy Director Tom Pullion makes final plea for residents to complete 2020 Census

MOUNT HOLLY – Burlington County Board of Chosen Freeholders Deputy Director Tom Pullion reminded residents that there is still time for them to get counted in the 2020 Census and that those who have not responded should do so right away.

“The deadline for completion of the county has been pushed back but there’s little time to waste,” said Pullion. “To everyone who has responded already, thank you. To those that haven’t, please do it now before it’s too late.”

As of Friday, Oct. 8, a total of 77.4% of Burlington County households had self-responded to the Census, a more than two percentage point improvement over the county’s 75.3% self-response rate in 2010.

Only two counties – Hunterdon and Somerset – had higher self-response rates than Burlington County.

The U.S. Constitution requires the census be conducted every 10 years to get an accurate count of the nation’s population. The numbers are then used to determine the apportionment of seats in the U.S. House of Representatives and to draw the borders of both congressional and legislative districts in each state.

The population numbers are also used to divide up federal funding for schools, hospitals, roads and other public projects.

This year’s count was originally slated to end on July 31 but was pushed back to Oct. 31 due to the coronavirus outbreak. It was then moved to Sept. 30, before a U.S. Appeals Court ordered it to continue through Oct. 31.

Since the deadline remains the subject of litigation, Pullion urged any resident who hasn’t self-responded or been counted by a Census worker to respond online or by phone right away.

He also credited the hard work of the County’s Census Coordinator and other volunteers for the County’s strong showing so far.

As part of the outreach to promote participation, Burlington County’s government held or participated in more than 200 outreach events throughout the county, and the county’s Census coordinator and other county volunteers have had interactions with more than 13,000 residents.

“We’re proud of how many of our residents have responded, but with billions in federal funding at stake, we don’t want to miss counting a single resident,” the freeholder said. “Consider this month sudden-death overtime. There is no time left to wait.”

To get counted visit, 2020census.gov/ or call 844-330-2020.