Census hiring resumes as Bay Area offices reopen

Logo courtesy of the Santa Clara County website.

While COVID-19 has thrown a wrench into normal operations for the U.S. Census, operations are quickly ramping back up.

Phased reopenings of census offices in our region began June 8, according to the department. Those facilities, which organize operations in specific regions, had been closed for more than two months.

California, which is currently above the national average in self-response rates, was among six states bringing efforts back online.

The pandemic has accelerated Census efforts to move as much of the data collection online as possible.

Santa Clara County has the highest response rate in California, at more than 70.5% of expected responses.

In this next phase of outreach, Census workers will hand deliver paperwork to households without regular mailing addresses.

The Census Bureau is also hiring and training new employees for its August phase of operations. In that stage, approximately 500,000 workers will knock on the doors of non-respondents. All Americans are required by law to complete the Census by October 31.

To fill out the Census, click here.