Senate blocks GOP proposal to require that census ask about citizenship status in 2010 count

Senate blocks census citizenship question

WASHINGTON — Senate Democrats Thursday blocked a GOP attempt to require next year’s census forms to ask people whether they are U.S. citizens.

Census bureau reps say 2020 survey could include boxes for gay and transgender individuals

SAN FRANCISCO — The U.S. Census Bureau is making an unprecedented effort to include same-sex couples in next year’s national population count, but legally married gay couples won’t show up as such in the official once-a-decade tally, bureau representatives said Thursday.

Census reps say future surveys could include gays and transgender individuals in count

SAN FRANCISCO — The U.S. Census Bureau is making an unprecedented effort to include same-sex couples in next year’s national population count, but counting the number of individuals who identify as gay, lesbian or transgender could be next.

Minority lawmakers oppose effort to ask about citizenship status in 2010 census

WASHINGTON — A coalition of black, Latino and Asian lawmakers on Thursday expressed opposition to a proposal that would require next year’s census forms to ask about the status of a person’s citizenship.

Census director expresses concern about ballooning costs in plans for 2010 head count

WASHINGTON — The head of the Census Bureau on Wednesday expressed concern about cost overruns in preparations for next year’s high-stakes count, saying he was taking steps to help prevent the expenses from ballooning further.

To accurately count immigrants, Census 2010 will include outreach in more languages

SAN FRANCISCO — With the launch of the 2010 census less than six months away, the U.S. Census Bureau is preparing its most targeted and far-reaching language outreach yet to more accurately count the country’s immigrants.

Census director: Foreclosures will add challenges, costs to next year’s decennial census

LOS ANGELES — Foreclosures will make it tougher and more expensive to get an accurate census count next year as families move in with relatives or are left homeless, the Census Bureau’s director said Tuesday.

Study: City funds and manpower to promote 2010 head count lag levels in previous census

WASHINGTON — With the 2010 census looming, major U.S. cities whose residents are at high risk of being missed are struggling with a shortage of money and manpower to prepare for an accurate count.

Commerce Department rules out seeking a halt to immigration raids to improve census count

WASHINGTON — With the 2010 census six months away, the Commerce Department said Thursday it won’t seek a halt to immigration raids as it did in the previous census in hopes of improving participation in hard-to-count communities.

Latinos hope the use of bilingual census forms will aid the 2010 count despite obstacles

LONG BEACH, Calif. — When Teresa Ocampo opens her census questionnaire, she won’t have to worry about navigating another document in English.

Census taker turned up dead in region where government workers should tread cautiously

BIG CREEK, Ky. — A census worker found hanged from a tree with the word “fed” scrawled on his chest met his end in a corner of Appalachia with an abundance of meth labs and marijuana fields — and a reputation for mistrusting government that dates back to the days of moonshiners and “revenuers.”

Police: US Census worker found dead in Ky. forest died of asphyxiation; had rope around neck

MANCHESTER, Ky. — Kentucky State Police say a U.S. Census worker found dead near an eastern Kentucky cemetery died of asphyxiation.

FBI checks whether US Census worker hanging in Ky. tied to his door-to-door data collection

MANCHESTER, Ky. — When Bill Sparkman told retired trooper Gilbert Acciardo that he was going door-to-door collecting census data in rural Kentucky, the former police officer drew on years of experience for a warning: “Be careful.”

AP source: Census worker found hanged near Kentucky cemetery had word ‘fed’ scrawled on chest

MANCHESTER, Ky. — A U.S. Census worker found hanged from a tree near a Kentucky cemetery had the word “fed” scrawled on his chest, a law enforcement official said Wednesday, and the FBI is investigating whether he was a victim of anti-government sentiment.

FBI probes hanging of census worker in Ky.; AP source: ‘Fed’ scrawled on dead man’s chest

WASHINGTON — A U.S. Census worker found hanged from a tree near a Kentucky cemetery had the word “fed” scrawled on his chest, a law enforcement official said Wednesday, and the FBI is investigating whether he was a victim of anti-government sentiment.

New census director says he’s worried economy, tensions over immigration will hurt head count

WASHINGTON — The head of the Census Bureau says he’s worried the poor economy and tensions over immigration will deter people from participating in next year’s high-stakes count.

Census: 150,000 same-sex couples say they’re in marriage relationships _ more than legal count

WASHINGTON — Nearly 150,000 same-sex couples reported being in marriage relationships last year, many more than the number of actual weddings and civil unions, according to the first U.S. census figures released on same-sex marriages.

Recession’s impact: Census data show longer commutes, delayed marriage, fewer immigrants

WASHINGTON — A broad survey of Americans has provided striking measures of the recession’s effect on life at home and at work: People are now stuck in traffic longer, less apt to move away and more inclined to put off marriage and buying a house.

Obama: ACORN video ‘inappropriate,” favors investigation into community group’s activities

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama says there should be an investigation into the hidden-camera video involving employees at the activist group ACORN and a couple posing as a prostitute and her pimp. The two ACORN workers are seen apparently advising the couple to lie about her profession and launder her earnings to get housing aid.

House votes to deny all federal funds for ACORN in GOP-led strike on embattled group

WASHINGTON — The House voted Thursday to deny all federal funds for ACORN in a GOP-led strike against the scandal-tainted community organizing group that comes just three days after the Senate took similar action. “ACORN has violated serious federal laws, and today the House voted to ensure that taxpayer dollars would no longer be used to fund this corrupt organization,” said second-ranked House Republican Eric Cantor of Virginia.

House votes to cut off all federal funds to ACORN

WASHINGTON — The House voted Thursday to deny all federal funds for ACORN in a GOP-led strike against the scandal-tainted community organizing group that comes just three days after the Senate took similar action.

Nebraska GOP Sen. Johanns calls for Justice probe of ACORN

WASHINGTON — A Republican lawmaker on Tuesday urged the Justice Department to investigate ACORN, a community organization under fire for several voter-registration fraud cases.

Citing negative publicity, Census Bureau severs partnership with ACORN in 2010 head count

WASHINGTON — The Census Bureau on Friday severed its ties with ACORN, a community organization that has been hit with Republican accusations of voter-registration fraud.

Timeline for the 2010 census

A timeline for the 2010 census:

Spring 2009: Census employees started going door-to-door to update address list nationwide.

With power and money on the line, states, civic groups already have push on for 2010 census

FALCON HEIGHTS, Minn. — State governments and civic groups are sinking scarce dollars into the phone banks, TV ads and door-knocking commonly seen in political campaigns to pump up numbers in the upcoming census.

Iraq Shiite leader reaches out to rivals; government pushes back census to Oct. 2010

BAGHDAD — The son of the late leader of Iraq’s largest Shiite political party acknowledged setbacks and reached out to political rivals Tuesday as he formally replaced his father at the party’s helm.

Iraq reschedules nationwide census for October 2010 to give time to settle ethnic tensions

BAGHDAD — The Iraqi government has rescheduled a nationwide census for Oct. 24, 2010 after postponing the survey to allow time for ethnic and political tensions to settle.

US Census Bureau tells Utah it can’t count overseas Mormon missionaries in 2010 head count

SALT LAKE CITY — The U.S. Census Bureau has told Utah’s elected leaders it won’t count Mormon missionaries serving overseas in the nation’s next head count.

New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin wants people who plan to return counted as residents in Census

NEW ORLEANS — Mayor Ray Nagin wants hurricane-displaced people who plan to return to New Orleans counted as residents in the upcoming U.S. Census even if they live elsewhere.

Senate confirms Obama’s nominee to lead the high-stakes 2010 census over GOP objections

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama’s nominee to be census director was approved Monday by the Senate, ending weeks of opposition from a pair of Republicans over his role in next year’s high-stakes count.