Form 1 2020 Census Opinion Survey Paper

2020 Census Opinion Survey

Instructions: Please use a black or blue pen to complete this form. Mark
change an answer, darken the box
and mark the correct answer.

Start Here

A1

Complete this form and mail it back as soon as
possible.
This form asks you about how you feel about
the privacy and confidentiality of the Census.
Your participation is voluntary and there is no
penalty for not responding. However, it should
only take about 10 minutes for you to fill out
this short survey and it is important that we
hear from as many people as possible to help us
plan for the next Census.

to indicate your answer. To

Did you personally complete the 2020 Census
for this address?
Yes

Ú GO TO A3

No

Ü

If that person is available, please ask them to fill
out this questionnaire, if not, please go to the
next question

A2

Were you living or staying here on April 1,
2020?
Yes
No

A3

Ú GO TO A3
Ú GO TO A3

What is your name?

Ü

GO TO Q1

This collection of information has been approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). The eight-digit OMB approval number
0607-0971 confirms this approval. If this number were not displayed, we could not conduct the census. The approval expires on 02/28/2023. The
Census Bureau estimates that completing the questionnaire will take 10 minutes on average. Send comments regarding this estimate or any other
aspect of this survey, including suggestions for reducing the time it takes to complete this survey, to U.S. Department of Commerce.

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1

1

Did you respond to the 2020 Census online, on paper, on the telephone, or in person?
Online
On paper
On the telephone
In-person

2

The following questions are about the census. How sensitive do you consider each of the following census
questions to be?
Extremely
sensitive

Very
sensitive

Somewhat
sensitive

A little
sensitive

Not at all
sensitive

a. Your name
b. Your date of birth
c. Whether you are of Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish origin
d. Your race
e. Your household members' name(s)
f. Date(s) of birth for household member(s)
g. Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish origin of household member(s)
h. Race(s) of your other household members
i. How your household member(s) are related to you
j. Whether this home is owned or rented
k. The number of people in your household

3

Thinking about the 2020 Census in general, how important do you think it is for the Census Bureau to ask the
questions they do on the census form?
Extremely important
Very important
Somewhat important
A little important
Not at all important

4

Do you believe that answering and submitting your census form could benefit YOU?
Yes
No

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2

5

Do you believe that answering and submitting your census form could benefit YOUR COMMUNITY?
Yes
No

6

Do you believe that answering and submitting your census form could harm YOU?
Yes
No

7

Do you believe that answering and submitting your census form could harm YOUR COMMUNITY?
Yes
No

The following questions are about your opinions on privacy.
8

In general, how concerned would you say you are about your personal privacy?
Extremely concerned
Very concerned
Somewhat concerned
A little concerned
Not at all concerned

9

Do you agree or disagree with the following statements?
Strongly
agree

Somewhat
agree

Neither
agree nor
disagree

Somewhat
disagree

Strongly
disagree

a. People’s rights to privacy are well protected.
b. People have lost all control over how personal information
about them is used.
c. I already do enough to protect the privacy of my personal
information online.
d. The government knows more about me than it needs to.
e. Business and private industry have too much information
about me.
10 Which poses a greater risk to your privacy—businesses and private industry, or the government?
Businesses and private industry
The government

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3

11 Have you done any of these things to protect your data and avoid intrusion into your privacy?
Yes

No

a. Signed up for the Do Not Call Registry, which removes your number from marketing call lists
b. Blocked a smartphone app or stopped an app from accessing other details on your phone,
such as GPS location or your contacts
c. Changed the default settings on your computer or browser to increase your privacy
d. Stopped or avoided using a social media service so that you can protect your privacy
e. Changed the privacy settings on your social media accounts
f. Started using more secure methods of communication, such as encrypted emails
g. Asked a government department, public service, or private company to delete any
information they hold about you
12 Because of privacy concerns, how often do you refuse to answer surveys?
Very often
Sometimes
Rarely
Never
13 Because of privacy concerns, have you ever skipped a survey question or given a wrong answer to a survey
question?
Yes
No
14 Thinking now about your use of the internet, overall, how often do you use the internet?
Several times a day
Once a day
At least once a week
Less often
15 In general, how concerned are you about your privacy while you are using the internet?
Extremely concerned
Very concerned
Somewhat concerned
A little concerned
Not at all concerned

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16 Thinking now about the 2020 Census, were you aware that you could answer the census online?
Yes
No
17 Did the option of responding online to the 2020 Census raise any concerns for you?
Yes
No

Ú GO TO Q19

18
A3 What concerns did you have about responding to the 2020 Census online?

Ú 19

Do you think the Census Bureau does a good job of PROVIDING INFORMATION to the public about how
census responses are used?
Yes
No

20 Next, a question about the government as a whole. Do you think federal government agencies share a single
central database of the name, address, and date of birth of U.S. residents?
Yes
No
21 How concerned are you, if at all, that other government agencies could obtain your individual answers to the
2020 Census?
Extremely concerned
Very concerned
Somewhat concerned
A little concerned
Not at all concerned
22 How concerned are you, if at all, that an unauthorized person or hacker might gain access to 2020 Census
responses?
Extremely concerned
Very concerned
Somewhat concerned
A little concerned
Not at all concerned

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5

23 For the next census in 2030, one proposal is to do away with census forms entirely. No one would be asked
to fill out a form. Instead, the Census Bureau would count the entire population by getting information
from other government agencies. Would you be in favor of this or against it?
Strongly in favor of it
Somewhat in favor of it
Neither in favor nor against it
Somewhat against it
Strongly against it
24 Would you be in favor of or against the Census Bureau getting the following types of information from other
government agencies?
Your contact information, like phone numbers and email addresses

24a

Strongly in favor of it
Somewhat in favor of it
Neither in favor nor against it
Somewhat against it
Strongly against it
24b

Whether your address was occupied or vacant on a particular date
Strongly in favor of it
Somewhat in favor of it
Neither in favor nor against it
Somewhat against it
Strongly against it

24c

Whether your home is owned or rented
Strongly in favor of it
Somewhat in favor of it
Neither in favor nor against it
Somewhat against it
Strongly against it

25 If you have to choose, for the next census in 2030, would you prefer that the Census Bureau gets your
household’s information from other government agencies or that the Census Bureau send an interviewer to
your home to ask for it?
Get information from other government agencies
Get information from interviewer at home

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6

26 For you PERSONALLY, if you did not respond to the next census in 2030, would you rather the Census
Bureau get your information from your neighbors or the Census Bureau get your information from other
government agencies?
Get information from neighbors
Get information from other government agencies
27 The population count, the crime rate, and the unemployment rate are examples of statistics produced by the
federal government. Have you ever used federal statistics for study or work?
Yes
No
28 Personally, how much trust do you have in federal statistics in the United States? Would you say that you tend
to trust federal statistics or you tend not to trust them?
Tend to trust
Tend not to trust
29 Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Policy makers need federal statistics to make good
decisions about things like federal funding.
Strongly agree
Somewhat agree
Neither agree nor disagree
Somewhat disagree
Strongly disagree
30 How confident are you in each of these institutions in American society?
Extremely
confident

Very
confident

Somewhat
confident

A little
confident

Not at all
confident

a. Newspapers
b. The military
c. The Census Bureau
d. Congress
e. Universities

31 Are you male or female?
Male
Female

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32 Which of the following best represents how you think of yourself?
Lesbian or gay
Straight, that is not lesbian or gay
Bisexual
Something else, please specify:

33 What is your age?
34 Are you of Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish origin?
Yes
No
35 What is your race? Mark (X) one or more boxes.
White
Black or African American
American Indian or Alaska Native
Asian
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
Some other race
36 What is the highest level of school you have completed or the highest degree you have received?
Less than high school
Completed high school
Some college, no degree
Associate's degree (AA/AS)
Bachelor's degree (BA/BS)
Post-Bachelor's Degree
37 What is your marital status?
Single
Married
Widowed
Divorced
Separated
38 What is your total ANNUAL household income, before taxes? Please include income from wages and salaries,
self-employment, retirement income, interest and dividends, unemployment benefits, and any other sources
of income received regularly.

$

,

,

.00

Thank you very much for your time today.
Your answers will help us plan8for the next census in 2030.

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