Statistics Institute says only 25% of Puerto Ricans have completed Census
As of July 13, only 25% of homes in Puerto Rico had filled out the 2020 Census, the Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics confirmed.
This percentage places Puerto Rico in the lowest response position in relation to other jurisdictions, the agency said. In addition, it indicates that Puerto Rico is 29 percentage points below its own-account response to the previous Census in 2010, which was 54%.
During the months of April and June, the U.S. Census Office field staff delivered the questionnaire and an invitation to complete it at home.
“The information that residents must provide is of utmost importance for the immediate future of Puerto Rico and its municipalities,” the Statistics Institute said.
Completing the 2020 Census, among many other aspects of social and economic planning, allows: knowing Puerto Rico’s accurate population; for children to have the necessary services for their development; our elderly population get proper care; a correct and adequate distribution of funds for the island’s population.
Response level at the municipalities currently the ranges from 14% to 31%. Among the lowest levels are Culebra, Vieques, Rincón, Guánica and Luquillo. Meanwhile, the highest percentages are in the towns of Hormigueros, Guaynabo, Bayamón, Sabana Grande and Caguas.
“By just dedicating 10 to 15 minutes to complete it, residents of each household can considerably improve the response to Census 2020. They can do it either en línea, on paper or by phone,” said Alberto L. Velázquez-Estrada, the Institute’s statistical projects manager.
Answering the Census is a constitutional mandate.
