Census Day, 2000

Proclamation 7286 of April 1, 2000

Census Day, 2000

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

Every 10 years, as mandated by our Constitution, all
persons living in the United States are called upon to
participate in the census. As the foremost method of
gathering information about our Nation, the census
plays a crucial role in helping us to maintain our
democratic form of government.

An accurate census helps to ensure that the rights and
needs of every person are recorded and recognized as we
shape public policies, programs, and services. Too
often in the past, children, minorities, and low-income
individuals have not been counted and, as a result,
have not been fully and fairly served. Census data are
also used to determine the number of seats each State
is allocated in the U.S. House of Representatives, and
State and local governments depend upon these data to
draw legislative districts that accurately represent
their residents.

The census also serves as the basis for many public
funding and private investment decisions. Census
results play a part in determining the portion each
State receives of more than $185 billion in funds
distributed by the Federal Government each year. State
and local public officials use census data to decide
where to build public facilities such as schools,
roads, hospitals, and libraries. Census data also are a
valuable resource for businesses that are trying to
identify where to build stores, office buildings, or
shopping centers.

The census is unique. It reaches every population
group, from America's long-time residents to its most
recent immigrants, and every age group from newborns to
centenarians. The census touches every social class and
every racial and ethnic group. The census is truly a
democratic process in which we all can participate.

Census 2000 offers each of us an important opportunity
to shape the future of our Nation. By taking part, we
help ensure the well-being of our families and our
communities, and we fulfill one of our fundamental
civic duties. The U.S. Census Bureau has taken
unprecedented steps to ensure full participation in
this first census of the new millennium. At the same
time, the Bureau will continue its long tradition of
protecting the personal information of America's
citizens, and no other Government agency will be able
to see any individual or family census form. I strongly
urge every man and woman living in the United States to
fill out and return his or her census form or to
cooperate with census takers who will help them do so.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, WILLIAM J. CLINTON, President of the
United States of America, by virtue of the authority
vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United
States, do hereby proclaim April 1, 2000, as Census
Day. I call upon all the people of the United States to
observe this day with ceremonies, activities, and
programs that raise awareness of the importance of
participating in Census 2000.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
first day of April, in the year of our Lord two
thousand, and of the Independence of the United States
of America the two hundred and twenty-fourth.