Bob Barr claims Census workers can enter your home when you’re not around.
This appears to be idiotic, plain and simple. Yet this Bob Barr fellow who is a former Congressman and now writes for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution seems to believe what he’s writing, and he’s got a lot of comments in his comments section. However, it doesn’t make sense that someone looking to enumerate would want to visit an EMPTY household:
Census workers can enter your apartment in your absence
6:00 am May 26, 2010, by Bob Barr
Thousands of census workers, including many temporary employees, are fanning out across America to gather information on the citizenry. This is a process that takes place not only every decade in order to complete the constitutionally-mandated census; but also as part of the continuing “American Community Survey” conducted by the Census Bureau on a regular basis year in and year out.
What many Americans don’t realize, is that census workers — from the head of the Bureau and the Secretary of Commerce (its parent agency) down to the lowliest and newest Census employee — are empowered under federal law to actually demand access to any apartment or any other type of home or room that is rented out, in order to count persons in the abode and for “the collection of statistics.” If the landlord of such apartment or other leased premises refuses to grant the government worker access to your living quarters, whether you are present or not, the landlord can be fined $500.00.
That’s right — not only can citizens be fined if they fail to answer the increasingly intrusive questions asked of them by the federal government under the guise of simply counting the number of people in the country; but a landlord must give them access to your apartment whether you’re there or not, in order to gather whatever “statistics” the law permits.
In fact, some census workers apparently are going even further and demanding — and receiving — private cell phone numbers from landlords in order to call tenants and obtain information from them. Isn’t it great to live in a “free” country?
Tags: Atlanta, Atlanta Journal-Constiution, Bob Barr, crime, door to door, home
May 28th, 2010 at 7:45 am
Having access TO a Housing unit does NOT mean having access INTO a housing unit.
Bob Barr is a provocateer & a moron.
May 28th, 2010 at 9:44 am
What a moran. We are instructed NOT to do that…we are not LEOs, FFS! This guy is an embarrassment to us Libertarians.
May 28th, 2010 at 10:02 am
I agree with both responses before mine. However, I believe there are a few census workers (and fraudulent) who would behave in this manner.
May 28th, 2010 at 12:29 pm
Bob Barr is an idiot. We were told it is forbidden to even look in windows.
May 28th, 2010 at 5:18 pm
Bob Barr is a fool.
The issue comes up with large apartment buildings with locked or guarded central access. When a concierge or a doorman will not allow a credentialed enumerator in, he/she is breaking the law. We have had many such cases. Most resolve with a managerial call to the concierge or their controlling management company.
A few management companies have had to have the fine amount read out to them, but tha tis rare.
May 28th, 2010 at 7:25 pm
He doesn’t know what he’s talking about. We were instructed to NEVER, not even in the rain nor even if invited, enter a home. Common areas of apartment buildings or driveways, sure. But going inside someone’s home is a liability and a safety issue for both enumerators and respondents.
May 28th, 2010 at 8:47 pm
Yeah I got a ton of folks inviting me in
May 28th, 2010 at 8:54 pm
I have gone into a small number of homes: elderly with walkers, stay-at-home parents holding babies, individuals in apt. with shared hallways who did not want others to hear their personal info., etc. I stood near the doorway – all were very decent, kind-hearted. They also said the same of me.
May 29th, 2010 at 11:56 am
http://www.factcheck.org/2010/05/more-census-nonsense/
May 29th, 2010 at 1:49 pm
Chicken Little, be careful. One of my enumerators entered the home of what she thought was a “decent, kind-hearted” individual until he locked the door behind her and proceeded to attempt to sexually assault her. I tell my enumerators not to go inside homes unless it’s someone they already know from their life outside the Census. (Since they are enumerating their own neighborhoods, they run across quite a few of their own friends, relatives and neighbors in the course of their duties.)
May 29th, 2010 at 4:34 pm
California FOS, thank you for reminding everyone!
June 18th, 2010 at 12:50 pm
What say you to a Census worker entering property with dogs that they have a)previously visited, questions anwered but not all, just the ones required by the consitution; b) were told not to come back and especially not to enter the yard because of the dogs present (CW personally saw the type of dogs & knew of their presence); c)told homeowner they could come back as many times as they wanted and could enter the property at any time they wanted irregardless of what the homeowner requested.
If the CW have this unlimited power, do they not have to assume the risks involved with it?