The 2010 census is practically upon us. The government is already advertising it on the radio, TV, etc. Soon, you will be getting either a long or short form, or perhaps, you will be visited by one of the massive army of head counters that the federal government will employ to collect data. Actually, for the 2010 census there won't officially be any long forms because they have been decoupled from the actual census taking. They are now sent out every year to about 3 million of the population. Completion of the surveys are mandatory, but it appears that prosecution for not complying is rare.

If you do get one of those long forms, you will be asked to give all sorts of personal information, so that the federal government can use that information to allocate funds for various welfare, school, spending, etc programs. State and local officials will be highly interested in the information because they may benefit from certain information obtained, such as the count itself and certain demographics. After all, their allocations of your money are dependent upon all this.

But, does the Constitution provide for the federal government to collect all this information? And, are we obligated to provide it?

In Article 1, Section 2 of our constitution it states:

Representatives and direct taxes shall be apportioned among the several states which may be included within this union, according to their respective numbers, which shall be determined by adding to the whole number of free persons, including those bound to service for a term of years; and excluding Indians not taxed, three fifths of all other Persons.(The previous sentence was modified by the 14th Amendment, section 2.) The actual enumeration shall be made within three years of the first meeting of the Congress of the United States, and within every subsequent term of ten years, in such manner as they shall by law direct. The number of representatives shall not exceed one for every thirty thousand, but each state shall have at least one Representative.

In Article 1, Section 9 it states:

No capitation, or other direct, Tax shall be laid, unless in Proportion to the Census or Enumeration herein before directed to be taken. (This has been clarified by the 16th Amendment.)

Amendment 16 states:

The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes on incomes, from whatever source derived, without apportionment among the several States, and without regard to anycensus or enumeration.

The above excerpts from the Constitution are provide to illustrate that this is the extent of what the Constitution states with respect to the census and its purpose. (Also, the 16th amendment is provided to illustrate that the federal government has essentially unlimited power to tax income, which is one of the main sources of fuel for the ever expanding federal powers. But, that's a digression, so back to the census...)

So, after reading the actual Constitutional references to the census, we can see that it only authorizes a count of people every ten years. And, that the reason is to determine the proper ratio between the number of representatives and people to determine the proper apportionment of 'direct taxes among the several states'. The question arises: Does the Constitution provide for the current implementationof the census data gathering and use?

Before we tackle that, let's head off in a different direction and see what tools the federal government is using to 'encourage' compliance and gather census information. And, what the government does with all this information after it is collected.

The government has formed a Complete Count Committee (CCC). The census website states that the CCC program consists of communityand government leaders dedicated to building awareness of the 2010 Census. CCCmembers can:

• Organize a team of local people who can provide the cultural and community insights necessary to build 2010 Census awareness efforts.
• Promote the value of accurate and complete census data.
• Have a positive impact on the questionnaire response rate.

CCC(s) are 'charged with influencing members of their community to complete the 2010 Census questionnaire in a timely and accurate manner'.

They will identify and set up strategic partnerships with counties, schools, state agencies, and community organizations and set up non-response follow-up. They will exhaustively promote the census count with brochures, posters, advertisements, newsletters, etc all using your tax dollars. And, they will even use your children, as evident by the '2010 Census in Schools' program (and here).

Wait a second! The CCC is even working through public schools to get the word out. It's difficult enough to teach what students need to know to be successful without teachers having to continuously be used as a conduit for disseminating non-school related information. And, that's putting it nicely. You can make the case that schools are being used by the federal government to create foot soldiers.

The Census in Schools program states that "As the only national civic event that demands universal participation, the census is of monumental significance. It provides a demographic portrait of our nation, and is the basis of local and national planning of all kinds." Get that - the census is the basis for local and national planning.

(Ed. - This is important to note because the top down approach to government is in direct contrast to the founders. Even most of the original federalist did not subscribe to complete domination by the national government (though a couple of them did). And at the time of the ratification of the Constitution, even Madison (who originally wanted a federal veto over state laws, which was stripped prior to the signing) realized that there never would have been a ratification if the state and local governments did not retain their sovereignty.)

And, that is exactly (national planning) what the government uses the census data for. You can go to the government's website for the CCC and find in Appendix A of theCCC guide that census information is used for all sorts of things, such as (but not limited to):

• Directing funds for services for people in poverty
• Analyzing local trends
• Planning investments and evaluating financial risk
• Planning outreach strategies
• Providing genealogical research
• Determining areas eligible for housing assistance and rehabilitation loans
• Planning for congregations
• Planning and researching for media as backup for news stories

Reading this guide is very informative because it illustrates exactly what the intent of the census is in addition to how the CCC plans to gather all that information. The government through the CCC and these programs informs us of all the federal benefits that our localities will receive.

But, the census is not being used simply to count the population. It is being used to encourage the expansion of the state. Job information is used to construct affirmative action quotas for different industries. Place of birth is used by the Civil Rights Commission to help determine discrimination by national origin. Home value and rental levels are used by agencies to establish subsidy programs. To put it simply, census information is being used by politicians to manipulate our lives. The more information they collect, the more control they exert.

Additionally, there have also been times in the past where the data used from the census has been put to other questionable uses. According to the New York Times in 1941 the census bureau produced a report on the Japanese population in select cities across the country, which played a prominent role in the relocation of 120,000 residents of Japanese ancestry to detention camps.

Yet, according to the Constitution, the census is supposed to count people for the purpose of determining the proper ratio between the number of representatives and people to determinethe proper apportionment of 'direct taxes among the several states'.

And, in addition to the questions of whether or not the Constitution allows for such census information gathering and its use, programs like the Census in Schools also create an environment where children grow up thinking that it's OK to provide such information and to conform to whatever the government asks (as do numerous other federal education programs, but that's another digression).

Back to the question of whether or not all this is constitutional. While we don't claim to be constitutional scholars, it would appear that citizens should not be required to answer any questions except for the number of residents at a particular address. After all, the Constitution states that an enumeration of the people is the only information required. And, if that is not enough, it also appears that the constitutionally questionable collection of data through the census is used to make decisions on constitutionally questionable government programs!