Kokua Line: Is 2024 Census Survey for real?

Feb. 23—Question : I just got a letter from the U.S. Census Bureau to respond online to a survey to help prepare for the next census. It says I'm required by law to complete this 10-minute survey. I thought they do this every 10 years. The last one was in 2020.

Question : I just got a letter from the U.S. Census Bureau to respond online to a survey to help prepare for the next census. It says I'm required by law to complete this 10-minute survey. I thought they do this every 10 years. The last one was in 2020.

Answer : The 2024 Census Survey "is being conducted as part of a small-scale testing program aimed at gathering initial data about proposed enhancements for the 2030 Census design, " the U.S. Census Bureau says. It's not the same as a decennial census. It won't be used to produce census counts, but will help the agency plan for the decennial 2030 census, by providing insight into how people engage with the online questionnaire and how they react to the mailed notification to participate.

The letter you received should include a 12-digit Census ID, which you would input at the online portal mentioned in the letter. Responses are due by April 5. "If you do not want to respond to the survey online, a paper questionnaire will be mailed to you in early March if your address is selected to receive one, " according to the Census Bureau's website.

Other readers have received similar letters and asked whether they are genuine. "If the Census Bureau sent the letter, the return address will include Jeffersonville, IN, where the Census Bureau has a mail processing center. It will also include 'U.S. Census Bureau' or 'U.S. Department of Commerce, ' which is the Census Bureau's parent agency, " the website says.

Addresses, not people, were chosen as part of a randomly selected sample, it says.

The Census Bureau also is sending text messages to notify selected respondents, although we haven't heard from any readers who received texts.

For more information about this survey, and for links to instructions on how to verify that any apparent contact from the Census Bureau is legitimate and not a scam, go to. Or go to the Census Bureau's home page at and enter "2024 Census Survey " is the search field.

The Census Bureau says it is conducting the 2024 Census Survey under the authority of Title 13, U.S. Code, Sections 141, 193 and 221, and that the selected recipients are required to respond.

Q : Regarding Hawaii driver's license renewal, I thought they were going to start doing this online.

A : Yes, but the law approved in 2023 doesn't take effect until July 1, 2025, so online renewal won't be available until at least that date. Even after the service is available, some Hawaii drivers might prefer to continue to renew in person, as the online option will require them to submit more paperwork. Under the pending law, applicants who renew online or by mail will have to submit a doctor's letter affirming that they meet the state's physical requirements to drive ; a notarized self-attestation that they don't hold a valid license issued elsewhere ; and "any other information as may be required by the examiner of drivers that is reasonably necessary to confirm the identity of the applicant and the applicant's fitness to continue to operate a motor vehicle." Read the law, Act 243 of 2023, at.

Auwe Pretty soon we're going to look like big cities on the mainland, with business owners having to install those impenetrable security shutters to roll down and lock every night when they close up shop. Doesn't fit our self-image of "paradise, " but neither do smash-and-grab robberies.—A reader Mahalo On Sunday, in the late afternoon, I collapsed in the parking lot at Mililani Town Center, and a group of four to five young men quickly offered help and I'm really grateful. I did not get their names, but I want to recognize them and I hope they know how grateful I am for their assistance that day. Thank you.—S.N.------Write to Kokua Line at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Suite 7-500, Honolulu, HI 96813 ; call 808-529-4773 ; or email kokualine @staradvertiser.com.------