The City of Sterling Heights has been recognized by the U.S. Census Bureau as the city with the top response rate throughout the nation based on March 31 data.
“Michigan has five cities in the country with top response rates,” said Vickie McClendon, Partnership Specialist for the Census Bureau’s Chicago Region. “Great job; Sterling Heights is currently number one.”
The City has been working tirelessly since January 1 on communicating the importance of the census and encouraging residents to complete their census on or before April 1. Sterling Heights had a self-response rate of 86% in the 2010 census, and City leadership challenged residents to achieve a 95% self-response rate for the 2020 census with incentives for meeting that goal.
Promotional efforts have included advertising-wrapped transit vehicles; print, cable and digital ads; community forums; banners; direct mail; an extensive social media campaign and even the addition of a mascot.
“It’s great news to see our efforts paying off,” said Mayor Michael Taylor. “And it’s even better news that our residents truly understand the importance of the census and the impact it has on important federal funding for programming our residents use every day. I couldn’t be prouder of our residents for taking the time to self-report, despite the current public health crisis.”
The Census Bureau considers April 1 a reference date, but not a deadline to respond. Today’s data collected by the Census Bureau includes only the first phase of census tracking, which is primarily online reporting. Future phases will continue throughout the summer and include sending paper questionnaires to all homes that have not already responded online or by phone as well as home visits by census enumerators. The U.S. Census Bureau will continue to report completion rates throughout this process.
City Ranking in All (Total) as of March 31, 2020
Sterling Heights, Michigan .......... 57.4%
Maple Grove, Minnesota .............. 56.9%
Livonia, Michigan ............................ 56.7%
Plymouth, Minnesota ..................... 55.5%
Eau Claire, Wisconsin .................... 55.2%
Rochester Hills, Michigan ............. 54.8%
Eden Prairie, Minnesota ................ 54.8%
Wheaton, Illinois .............................. 54.5%
Eagan, Minnesota ............................ 54.4%
Centennial, Colorado ...................... 54.3%
St. Peters, Missouri .......................... 54.2%
Blaine, Minnesota ............................. 54.2%
Royal Oak, Michigan ........................ 54.1%
O’Fallon, Missouri .............................. 54.0%
St. Claire Shores, Michigan ............ 53.7%
Woodbury, Minnesota ..................... 53.6%