The days of receiving a paper questionnaire from the Census Bureau are officially numbered. By 2020, the bureau plans to cut back on the number of paper responses sent out by 45 percent in favor of digital ones in an effort to save an estimated $5.2 billion.
While 2020 remains a tentative date as testing is still underway, if all goes according to plan, that year will mark the first time that any Americans will ever file their responses online, Pew Research Center reports. The bureau still plans to send a piece of paper to households, but, instead of the usual forms, the letter will only include a security code for people to enter to respond online on computers, mobile phones, or other devices. Households that are in neighborhoods with low internet usage or that are predominantly populated by older adults will continue to receive paper forms.
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