[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 66 (Wednesday, April 5, 2000)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 17985-17986]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-8571]


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  Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 66 / Wednesday, April 5, 2000 / 
Presidential Documents  

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[[Page 17985]]


                Proclamation 7286 of April 1, 2000

                
Census Day, 2000

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                Every 10 years, as mandated by our Constitution, all 
                persons living in the United States are called upon to 
                participate in the census. As the foremost method of 
                gathering information about our Nation, the census 
                plays a crucial role in helping us to maintain our 
                democratic form of government.

                An accurate census helps to ensure that the rights and 
                needs of every person are recorded and recognized as we 
                shape public policies, programs, and services. Too 
                often in the past, children, minorities, and low-income 
                individuals have not been counted and, as a result, 
                have not been fully and fairly served. Census data are 
                also used to determine the number of seats each State 
                is allocated in the U.S. House of Representatives, and 
                State and local governments depend upon these data to 
                draw legislative districts that accurately represent 
                their residents.

                The census also serves as the basis for many public 
                funding and private investment decisions. Census 
                results play a part in determining the portion each 
                State receives of more than $185 billion in funds 
                distributed by the Federal Government each year. State 
                and local public officials use census data to decide 
                where to build public facilities such as schools, 
                roads, hospitals, and libraries. Census data also are a 
                valuable resource for businesses that are trying to 
                identify where to build stores, office buildings, or 
                shopping centers.

                The census is unique. It reaches every population 
                group, from America's long-time residents to its most 
                recent immigrants, and every age group from newborns to 
                centenarians. The census touches every social class and 
                every racial and ethnic group. The census is truly a 
                democratic process in which we all can participate.

                Census 2000 offers each of us an important opportunity 
                to shape the future of our Nation. By taking part, we 
                help ensure the well-being of our families and our 
                communities, and we fulfill one of our fundamental 
                civic duties. The U.S. Census Bureau has taken 
                unprecedented steps to ensure full participation in 
                this first census of the new millennium. At the same 
                time, the Bureau will continue its long tradition of 
                protecting the personal information of America's 
                citizens, and no other Government agency will be able 
                to see any individual or family census form. I strongly 
                urge every man and woman living in the United States to 
                fill out and return his or her census form or to 
                cooperate with census takers who will help them do so.

                NOW, THEREFORE, I, WILLIAM J. CLINTON, President of the 
                United States of America, by virtue of the authority 
                vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United 
                States, do hereby proclaim April 1, 2000, as Census 
                Day. I call upon all the people of the United States to 
                observe this day with ceremonies, activities, and 
                programs that raise awareness of the importance of 
                participating in Census 2000.

[[Page 17986]]

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                first day of April, in the year of our Lord two 
                thousand, and of the Independence of the United States 
                of America the two hundred and twenty-fourth.

                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 00-8571
Filed 4-4-00; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3195-01-P