State Senator Andy Manar has filed a bill in the General Assembly after the State Democratic Party discovered what they call a “deceptive” mailer to Illinois residents claiming to be about the 2020 Census. The mailer has been distributed in several districts around the state asking information ask about a person’s voting habits, their age, and where they gather their national news from. The paid campaign mailer is allegedly using the mock Census form as a conduit for soliciting donations for the Illinois GOP, according to the Democratic Party of Illinois.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, a real census questionnaire will never ask for a full social security number, bank or credit card numbers, or for any kind of monetary donations. Any return mail for the U.S. Census should be from Jeffersonville, Indiana only. If it does not, it’s not from the Census Bureau. Anyone coming to your home will also have an official, valid U.S. Census Bureau ID badge. If you feel that you have been the victim of a census scam, you can contact their office at 1-800-354-7271.
Manar’s Senate Bill 3738 would make the false impression of being a census worker or using false documentation or any means of communication as a representation of official Census Bureau documentation a Class 4 felony in the state. The bill is currently before the Senate Assignments committee. Manar told Capital Fax’s Rich Miller that he filed the bill after a 48th District resident complained about receiving one of the Republican mailers earlier this year. The 48th Illinois Senate District covers Macoupin, Sangamon, Christian, Montgomery and Macon counties.