UPDATE: Starting today, 16.2M paper #2020Census forms are set to arrive in the mail at households that have not been counted yet in the more than 71,000 census tracts that had a self‑response rate of 65% or lower on July 28, the Census Bureau tells NPR.
npr.org/2020/08/20/902…
npr.org/2020/08/20/902…
2. Earlier this week, I confirmed that the Census Bureau -- under pressure from the Trump administration to deliver #2020Census results by the end of this year -- has set Oct. 7 as the cutoff date for receiving paper forms that are postmarked by Sept. 30.
3. "Based on historical experience & the very long self-response period in 2020, we expect very few mail returns that late in the process," the bureau said in an email Friday while noting that it hasn't experienced delays in receiving completed census forms this month or in July.
4. While much of the country's attention has been on the potential impact on November's election, some #2020Census watchers are worried any USPS delivery delays over next few weeks could jeopardize the accuracy of census data collected from rural areas that rely on paper forms.
5. I’ve asked @USPS if it will guarantee that #2020Census forms postmarked by Sept. 30 will be delivered to a Census Bureau processing center by Oct. 7. (Sen. @KamalaHarris sent same question to Postmaster General Louis DeJoy in response to my reporting for @NPR.)
No reply yet.
No reply yet.
@USPS @KamalaHarris @NPR 6. UPDATE: @USPS spokesperson David Partenheimer has provided a statement that does not directly answer whether the Postal Service will guarantee that paper #2020Census forms postmarked by Sept. 30 will be delivered to a Census Bureau processing center by Oct. 7. 
