INLAND EMPIRE – (INT) – As the nation struggles to extricate itself from the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 Census is in the final stages.

Respondents are lagging and census officials are pushing to get an accurate head count which will determine future federal government monetary allocations.

The Inland Empire falls behind both the state and federal response rate which is nearing the two-thirds mark.

Riverside County is just past 59 percent and San Bernardino County is approaching 57 percent.

Desert residents are showing the lowest percentages with Indio at 47 percent and Palm Springs just over 49 percent. Congressional District 8 which covers desert areas from San Bernardino County into the Eastern Sierra has not reached 45 percent, according to the latest stats from the Census Bureau.

The highest number of responses are in Yucaipa at 69 percent and Rancho Cucamonga at just over 68 percent.

Among the largest local cities, San Bernardino comes in at 57%, Riverside 59% and Ontario 62%.

The response rate to the 2010 Census, nationwide, was 68 percent.

Story Date: June 3, 2020