As a furor erupted over privacy issues related to the 2000 decennial census, Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., circulated a "Dear Colleague" Monday arguing it is in an individual's best interest to fully respond to census questionnaires.
"The questions asked by the census represent a balance between the needs of our nation's communities and the need to keep the time and effort required to complete the form to a minimum," Maloney wrote.
Days earlier, Sen. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., suggested his constituents refuse to answer personally sensitive questions on census forms.
The controversy over the census long form has developed just days before the official census day on Saturday. As the Census Bureau distributes its forms, Congress has begun to hear privacy complaints, and a federal judge Monday issued a federal restraining order barring federal prosecution of those who do not fill out their forms.
Maloney, ranking member of the House Government Reform Census Subcommittee, did not specifically mention Hagel by name, but her letter follows a Thursday telephone conference call-reported by the Omaha World-Herald-in which Hagel urged those who received the census long form to provide just the information they want to provide.
"I don't know why the government needs all that information . . . It's none of their damn business," Hagel said.
After the interview, Hagel issued a statement saying many Nebraskans are concerned about their privacy. "I am going to look into this situation, and may introduce legislation to change the current law and protect our citizens from such an intrusion into their personal lives from the federal government," Hagel said in a statement.
Most households will receive the eight-question short form, but one in six will receive the 53-question long form, which asks detailed questions on topics ranging from marital status to household plumbing.
The Census Bureau collects the information to satisfy various federal laws. In her letter, Maloney stressed the confidentiality of the census and noted the information is used to administer federal programs and allocate funding.
In Houston, attorney Mark Brewer-who earlier this month unsuccessfully ran in the GOP primary to replace retiring House Ways and Means Chairman Bill Archer, R-Texas-won a restraining order Monday from a federal judge, barring the federal government from prosecuting five of his clients if they fail to fill out their census forms.
"Many Americans do not want their privacy invaded in the census," Brewer said, adding that his clients do want to be counted in the census but are concerned the government is asking for too much information.
Brewer last Thursday filed a federal lawsuit questioning the constitutionality of a $100 federal fine for not filling out a questionnaire. "It does sound a little wacky-a little like being prosecuted for ripping the tags off your mattress-but it does happen," Brewer said.
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