Just 16 percent of Point Roberts households have responded to the census

As of April 8, a small majority of Whatcom County households had completed the 2020 census questionnaires, which so far can only be done online, by mail or by phone. But Point Roberts, Birch Bay and a few other areas in the county have a long way to go on the once-a-decade count, according to response rates published on the U.S. Census Bureau's website. 

So far, 51.7 percent of households in the state and 53.2 percent in Whatcom County have responded to the census – that's above the national average of 46.7 percent.

Though the county rate is above average, just 16 percent of households in Point Roberts have responded to the survey. Birch Bay households are also neglecting the survey – two census tracts that make up the majority of Birch Bay have response rates in the 30s.

In Blaine, 51.2 percent of households have responded. For the 2010 census, 62.1 percent of Blaine households and 67.6 percent of Whatcom County households responded.

Households are required by law to respond to the census, and the U.S. Census Bureau is asking people to respond as soon as possible. Beginning May 27, census employees will interview households that haven't responded yet. Households should have received a census notice in the mail by March 20 with information on how to respond. 

The census provides data that lawmakers, teachers, business owners and many others use to provide services and make decisions about communities. Results inform decisions on hundreds of billions in federal funding every year for programs including Medicaid, Head Start, food assistance programs and grants for community mental health services.

The results also determines how many seats each state gets in the U.S. House of Representatives and are used to draw congressional and state legislative districts.