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Door-knockers start in county today Bob Pennell photo Census taker-in-training Gigi Michaels talks with Gwen Johnson of Medford. Johnson was working Friday on an unoccupied rental she owns when Michaels stopped to check up on the address. By JESSICA SMITH Want money for schools? Better day care centers? More job training opportunities? The federal government says your community's chance of getting that money increases with every person who gets counted by the U.S. Census Bureau. About two in three Jackson County households have returned the Census forms that were mailed out this spring. That's pretty good -- the county's 66 percent return rate matches the state's and is 1 percent higher than the nation's. But Census officials want to give every resident a chance to participate in the once-a-decade national roll call. Beginning today, Census "enumerators" will knock on doors everywhere to try to find those residents who failed to return their Census forms and those who never received them. Without diligent responses and follow-up, Census officials say, area communities could miss out on their share of $100 billion-plus in federal funding. "I'm asking everyone to cooperate and fill out the forms to get the money that will help solve some of the problems in our communities," said Anita Kalbfleisch of Rogue River, the local field operation supervisor. In Jackson County, about 250 enumerators will hunt for those people missing from the Census. They'll walk the streets of Medford, hike dirt roads in Prospect and four-wheel all over rural Jackson County. Residents likely will see them in the evenings on weekdays, in the mornings and afternoons on Saturday, and in the afternoons and early evenings on Sundays. All enumerators wear badges that identify them as representatives of the Census Bureau. They all carry rectangular black notebooks with address listings. They all have official black canvas bags. Don't talk to anyone who comes to your door claims to be a Census taker who doesn't carry all three items, officials. Enumerators -- earning $9.75 an hour for 20 to 40 hours of work weekly -- began training this week with three eight-hour classes. They learned how the Census affects congressional districts and federal funding for social services. How to fill out questionnaires. And how to turn a "no" into a "yes." "We have a lot of people in the county who are not cooperative," said Kalbfleisch, referring to the number of people who refuse to take part in the Census. "They're afraid of the government. They're afraid the government is going to give out their personal information." Enumerators try to ease those fears by handing out forms that explain the bureau's confidentiality policy. Census information can't be shared with the IRS, the FBI or any other government agency. Enumerators who breach the oath of confidentiality are subject to a $5,000 fine and five years in prison. Census information eventually becomes public -- after 72 years. Mike Steenhout, who is coordinating the census effort in Southern Oregon from Eugene, said the information is made available at what is considered the end of a lifetime. "Anybody who would be reporting their income on the Census will be long gone by then -- or in the Guinness book of records," he said. Old Census information is generally used for genealogy purposes. Steenhout said there are few flat-out refusals when Census workers make home visits. In those rare cases where a resident declines to provide any information, the Census prepares a statistical estimate for the household based on its neighborhood. Residents who consent to being questioned by an enumerator may skip some questions, including those about household income and citizenship status. That's especially important for local migrant workers and their families who fear deportation, said Martha Koch, an assistant enumerator crew leader. "We don't ask if they're legal. Even if they tell us, we couldn't reveal it to anyone," she said. An enumerator's job is not an easy one, Kalbfleisch and others said. It often requires returning to a home several times to find a resident. And some people can be plain nasty. "The enumerators are out there doing this work and they know there's dogs and guns and dangerous (anti-government) compounds out there," Kalbfleisch said. "People need to understand these are local citizens out there trying to get money for our communities. "So please don't scare our employees. Be nice." Today's Edition : News | Sports | Business | Weather | Tempo | Classifieds Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA