Just 13% Say It's Illegal Not To Answer Census Questions

Rasmussen Reports
Mar. 17, 2010

...And they would be correct. The only constitutionally authorized question is how many people are in the household. That said, our government operates as a criminal enterprise and doesn't give two licks about the constitution.As 120 million U.S. Census forms begin to arrive in mailboxes around the country, only 13% of Americans realize that it is illegal not to answer all of the Census questions.

A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 57% of adults think - incorrectly - that it is not against the law to not answer all the questions on the Census. Another 30% are not sure.

Fifty-three percent (53%) of adults say the Census simply counts the number of people in the United States along with gathering some basic information. However, 22% believe the Census asks detailed personal questions. One-in-four Americans (25%) are not sure which it does.

Seventy-six percent (76%) say they have received notices in the mail about participating in the Census. Twenty-two percent (22%) have not.

Seventy-four percent (74%) say they have seen TV commercials about participating in the Census, and only 20% say they have not seen any such ads. The Census Bureau spent $2.5 million on ads that ran during the Super Bowl. Before the kickoff, 62% expected to watch that game.

Men are slightly more likely than women to know it is illegal not to answer Census questions. Adults 18 to 29 are more inclined to think that than those who are older.

Republicans are twice as likely as Democrats to say it is illegal not to answer the entire Census. Adults not affiliated with either major party are the least likely to think that.

Twenty-one percent (21%) of government employees say it is illegal not to answer all the Census questions, compared to 10% of those who work in the private sector.

Men think the Census seeks more detailed private information than women do. Higher-income Americans also tend to believe the Census is looking for more than just a headcount of the American population and some basic information.

Sixty-one percent (61%) of adults say they have followed recent news stories about the Census at least somewhat closely. Thirty-four percent (34%) aren't following news about the Census closely, if at all.

Some of the suspicion about the Census is likely being fed by the high level of unhappiness with the government's actions these days.

Seventy-one percent (71%) of voters nationwide say they're at least somewhat angry about the current policies of the federal government. That figure includes 46% who are Very Angry.

Just 21% of voters believe that the federal government enjoys the consent of the governed.