Introduction Of The Deceptive Census Look Alike Mailings Act

Floor Speech

* Mrs. MALONEY. Madam Speaker, as the 2010 Census begins, there are an increasing number of reports from around the country about mailings with bold lettering saying ``Do Not Destroy,'' ``Official Document,'' and ``Census Document Registered To:'' on the exterior envelope without any return address, when in fact, the mailing is not associated with the U.S. Census Bureau or the decennial census at all.

* These mailings, many sent by political organizations, appear to be designed to resemble official census documents. I believe that no political organization, whether Republican or Democratic, should use the census for fundraising in this type of manner.

* The constitutionally mandated decennial census has begun. It is a massive operation that includes a multi-million dollar taxpayer-funded advertising campaign to urge Americans to respond to the census and return it by mail. Return by mail is the cheapest and most accurate way to be counted.

* My concern is that mailings that are designed to look like census documents and come in envelopes marked ``Census,'' without clearly defining the sender, will confuse people and might affect the response rate. We must do everything we can to ensure an accurate, cost-effective census.

* That is why today I am introducing the Prevent Deceptive Census Look Alike Mailings Act. I am joined by original cosponsors EDOLPHUS TOWNS, Chair, Committee on Oversight and Government Reform and WM. LACY CLAY, Chair, Subcommittee on Information Policy, Census, and National Archives. The legislation would (1) require any mailing with an envelope marked ``Census'' to clearly indicate the sender and would (2) trigger an existing requirement in federal law to include a disclaimer that the mailing is not from or affiliated with the federal government. If organizations do not comply, then the U.S. Postal Service will take the appropriate action to stop them.

* We must protect the integrity of census mailings, and the Prevent Deceptive Census Look Alike Mailings Act will be an important tool in achieving that goal.

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