US census: Illinois officials remind residents Thursday is 1st day to complete census online

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Thursday, March 12, 2020
This photo provided by the U.S. Census 2020, shows the homepage of the United States' Census 2020 website on Tuesday, March 10, 2020.
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CHICAGO (WLS) -- Thursday is the first day to complete the 2020 Census online.

Illinois officials are reminding everyone of the importance of completing the census since it determines things like federal funding and seats in the U.S. House of Representatives.

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"It is extremely important that everyone knows the implications of the census and gets counted in Illinois," said Illinois Department of Human Services Secretary Grace B. Hou. "Completing the census online will ensure that Illinoisans get both the representation and federal funding for the critical services that they deserve."

Illinois received $19,738,866,367, or approximately $1,535 per capita, in federal assistance for sixteen programs in 2015, officials said.

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You can complete the online questionnaire at my2020census.gov or you can answer the questionnaire by telephone or by mailing back a paper form.