Since 1790, the United States Census has been counting generations of Americans every 10 years, and this year it's our generation that will be counted.
This month, a Census questionnaire will be sent to every household in the U.S. to count population.
The initial mailing for the Census forms is mid March for everywhere served by the United States Postal Service and before April 30 for everywhere else.
This year, National Census Day is April 1.
"Census Day is our point in time where we want to identify where our population lives," said Beryl Angelus, office manager of the Montgomery Census Office.
This year's Census will decide where $4 trillion in federal government money will be spent over the next 10 years.
Census questionnaires consist of 10 questions pertaining to who is living and staying at the residence and whether anyone at the residence stays elsewhere, including college housing.
The forms also contain questions on the name, age, sex and race of all the people living in the residence.
Additionally, the Census provides job opportunities.
Census takers must visit homes that have not mailed back their forms to the government on time and gather the census information themselves.
Pay varies depending on the regional office.
The Montgomery region pays $12.25 an hour, according to the Census Bureau Web site.
A test is required for the job.
A practice test and downloadable application are available online at 2010.census.gov.
Census data is used in a myriad of different ways, including the distribution of federal funds to communities where those funds are needed.
Information gathered can help determine where the government invests for roads, schools and essential community infrastructure, Angelus said.
"Census data is used by all kinds of businesses and local governments to examine what the demographics of a certain area are and determine their needs," Angelus said.
The data collected is a needs assessment as well as a population and demographics count.
"How you distribute revenue is very, very vital in order to serve your citizens well," said Anthony Gadzey, associate professor of political science.
The questions on the form ask about the population in the residence as of April 1.
Information gathered via the Census can be cited as accurate on that date.
"It's important," said Jordan Gandy, junior in civil engineering. "I mean, the government obviously uses this information."
The information gathered in the Census is required to be delivered to the president by Dec. 31, 2010.
Certain data will be delivered to each state no later than April 11, 2011.
After the information is compiled, the government will release its data at www.census.gov.
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