INS Limits Enforcement Activities During Census 2000
Posted Mar 25, 2000

The Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) has issued a directive with instructions to its regional district offices across the country, limiting INS activities that could discourage full participation by both legal and undocumented immigrants in Census 2000.

Although the INS stopped short of a moratorium on enforcement activity, it directed that enforcement operations be planned carefully during peak Census 2000 activity, from now through August 2000. This is the period in which census forms are returned, census enumerators visit households who do not respond, and other census activities take place.

The INS will seek to minimize its visibility during this time period, especially in residential areas (including migrant worker camps and shelters), where they will only conduct criminal investigations that have previously been under way. INS Regional Directors must authorize in advance any operations that might draw public attention, and Deputy District Directors must review and authorize all other enforcement activity that might hamper census participation. 

The guidance explicitly states that INS agents are to avoid activities that would suggest even the appearance of a connection between the census and INS enforcement activity, and that agents are not to interfere with census workers and community-based census outreach sites.  Further, the directive stated that census-related activities may not be used as a source of leads or information to conduct INS enforcement activity in any way.

The Census Bureau's website, <www.2000.census.gov>, offers specific information for your area. The site also provides the Regional Census Bureau office telephone numbers. Here are some helpful toll-free numbers:

QUESTIONS ON THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE FORMS: 1-800-471-9424

QUESTIONS ON THE ASIAN LANGUAGE CENSUS FORMS: