Dwellers’ Gates Are Blocking Census

For people in Orange County’s walled communities, the sliding metal barriers separating their neighborhoods from the rest of the world are the gates of home.

For some census takers, though, they’ve become the gates of hell.

“It’s a tough nut to crack,” said Stan Godbey, a census crew leader covering gate-heavy Anaheim Hills.

As census enumerators in Orange County reach the home stretch of the decennial nose count, some are finding themselves knocking on unexpected doors--those of the wealthy--as workers in poorer areas say they’ll probably be finished well ahead of the July 7 deadline.

That reverses the trend from the 1990 count, when the census was criticized by local government officials across the nation for undercounts in neighborhoods peopled by the homeless and government-leery immigrants.

Another difference from a decade ago is the pace of the count. Census officials announced in Washington, D.C., last week that they have counted 97% of the nation’s households. There are 3.1 million homes to go--a higher success rate than 10 years ago. In Southern California, 99% of the known households have been counted, a spokeswoman said.

Nationwide, seven states--Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nevada, Utah, Montana and Nebraska--have completed their counts, census officials said.

Most of those still to be counted live in big cities--including historically undercounted minority neighborhoods--and in high-rise condominiums and gated communities, officials said.

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Some of the wealthy just don’t seem to want to be counted.

Census data show that residents of wealthier cities mailed in their census forms at a lower rate than people living in poorer areas, which were targeted by local advertising campaigns and links with local social service agencies.

In Orange County, the lowest return rates were in Laguna Beach, Villa Park and Irvine. The highest were in Laguna Woods, Lake Forest and Santa Ana.

“It is a sad commentary that the more upscale and affluent did not respond,” said Lynne Choy Uyeda, spokeswoman for the Los Angeles Regional Census Center, which oversees Southern California and Hawaii. “It’s not that they’re not educated about why it’s done and the benefits for their communities. Maybe they’re not looking forward to getting any government aid for their communities.”

Adding to the difficulties, census officials said, is resistance among some of the wealthy to what they consider government prying. That suspicion has been fueled by public criticism from conservative political figures--including U.S. Sen. Majority Leader Trent Lott (R-Miss.)--over some of the detailed questions in the census long form.

The 53 questions in the long form cover things such as education, ancestry, number of bathrooms, occupation, income and whether grandparents are raising their grandchildren. Although there were fewer such long-form questions than in previous censuses, members of Congress said their offices received complaints from constituents upset by what they considered intrusive questions.

Republican leaders in the House vowed to get rid of the long form before the 2010 census even as enumerators for the 2000 census are tracking down the laggards where they live. And that’s often in gated neighborhoods, where census workers say they sometimes need the persistence of a process server to gain entry.

Many gate systems don’t list names or addresses of occupants, said Godbey, the census crew leader. Visitors must know a resident’s assigned code or call box number.

Having the address isn’t enough.

“You have to go through the process of getting that right number, then introducing yourself and being able to get in. It’s hard,” Godbey said. “The biggest problem is the long forms. Usually people are willing to give you the short form info, but a lot don’t want to give you any more than that.”

Cathleen Henn of Orange was more than happy to answer the questions on the long form her family received in the mail. She just didn’t get around to it before the deadline.

Next thing she knew, a census enumerator was at the door of her house in a gated community in north Orange.

“This guy came to the door and said that when they follow up they just do the short form,” said Henn, 53. “He just asked me the questions and I answered them. I don’t how he got in, but he was a nice guy. I figured he got in because somebody else OKd him.”

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Census workers make at least six attempts to find residents who didn’t return forms. Then workers turn to neighbors for information.

That in itself carries certain risks, particularly for the vain, Uyeda said.

“Instead of [neighbors] saying you’re 30 years old,” she said, “they might say you’re 40.”