In order to participate in the GunBroker Member forums, you must be logged in with your GunBroker.com account. Click the sign-in button at the top right of the forums page to get connected.
Options
Where did the $5,000 census fine come from?
JamesRK
Member Posts: 25,670 ✭✭✭
I've seen it mentioned in this forum once, and on TV twice (once by Neal Cavuto) that the fine for refusing to tell the Census Bureau whether your toilet flushes or not is five thousand dollars ($5,000.00).
The only thing I've been able to find says the fine for refusing to answer is $100 and the fine for lying is $500. The $5,000 version had to come from somewhere. Does anybody have a source for the new threat?
The only thing I've been able to find says the fine for refusing to answer is $100 and the fine for lying is $500. The $5,000 version had to come from somewhere. Does anybody have a source for the new threat?
The road to hell is paved with COMPROMISE.
Comments
I was wondering about the $5,000. If it's on TV and the internet it has to be true.
If you can't feel the music; it's only pink noise!
This is all I could find.
You should read my last post on the thread that was locked also.
Have to cut grass, so I can't research the above statement right now.
"The American Community Survey is conducted under the authority of Title 13, United States Code, Sections 141 and 193, and response is mandatory. According to Section 221, persons who do not respond shall be fined not more than $100. Title 18 U.S.C. Section 3571 and Section 3559, in effect amends Title 13 U.S.C. Section 221 by changing the fine for anyone over 18 years old who refuses or willfully neglects to complete the questionnaire or answer questions posed by census takers from a fine of not more than $100 to not more than $5,000. The U.S. Census Bureau may use this information only for statistical purposes. We can assure you that your confidentiality is protected. Title 13 requires the Census Bureau to keep all information about you and all other respondents strictly confidential. Any Census Bureau employee who violates these provisions is subject to a fine of up to $250,000 or a prison sentence of up to five years, or both."
Looks like it applies to the ACS.
Now I really have to get cutting grass![:D]
"The US Census Bureau website itself notes that, under Title 18 of the United States Code Sections 3571 and 3559, it is legally authorized to impose a fine up to 5,000 USD to those over 18 years who refuse or willfully neglect to complete the survey."
This is all I could find.
[/You should read my last post on the thread that was locked also.
Have to cut grass, so I can't research the above statement right now.
Oh great, now this thread will be locked too. [8D]
quote:Originally posted by Marc1301
"The US Census Bureau website itself notes that, under Title 18 of the United States Code Sections 3571 and 3559, it is legally authorized to impose a fine up to 5,000 USD to those over 18 years who refuse or willfully neglect to complete the survey."
This is all I could find.
[/You should read my last post on the thread that was locked also.
Have to cut grass, so I can't research the above statement right now.
Oh great, now this thread will be locked too. [8D]
I didn't do anything that I could see to have it locked,......oh well. It can still be read at least.
If you can't feel the music; it's only pink noise!
Marc, aren't you supposed to be out mowing!!! [}:)][:D]
Yea really! Sometimes he's like gum on your shoe. No matter how hard you try you just can't get rid of it. [:D]
Did ya make it to the range yet NH? get my 686 e-mail?
Next time I can't sleep I'll have to do some more research on this. According to Title 18, the $5,000 fines apply to a class B or class C misdemeanor. I can't find where refusing to answer the questions qualifies.
Nor could I James,.......it is nothing but a bluff to get as many "sheep" as possible to answer their questions IMHO.
As I have stated before, nobody has been fined under ANY title of law since 1960 concerning the census. My small amount of understanding in that situation is it was a person that refused the "enumeration" clause which is quite clearly Constitutional, and further chose to make a big issue of it.
They are on a phishing mission,.....and many folks don't seem to care about it at all.
They have learned from the ACS, and that is why 2010 will be short-form.
The entire point of the ACS is to "gauge" how far they can push citizens with empty threats, and to see what they WILL answer.
It is a huge statistical experiment, as well as an abuse of power that we as taxpayers have the luxury of funding.
The Census is mandated by the Constitution, Article 1, Section 2, paragraph 3 (easy as 1-2-3). You are required by law to give a population count. The population count is used to decide how many members of the U.S. House of Representatives each state gets, and how the congressional districts are drawn up. So please, at least give a population count on your census form. The rest of the info, that's up to you.
I gues they're going to have to fine me $100.
Don't worry, they'll track you down and make you verbally answer the questions. They hounded me and finally caught me. [B)]
The census woman was a stalker for a little while there.
The last time I was interested enough to actually check out how they do business was the 1970 census. I hope they have changed their method of operation since then, but I doubt it.
Their claim was they would never include your name with any of the census data which they sell to the public. That statement was true. They didn't include your name, but you could get the data broken down by geographical area. The geographical area could be broken down as far as a house or apartment number. It reminds me of the builder in Lumberton, NC who advertised that none of his buildings were damaged in hurricane Katrena. What he didn't mention was that Katrena didn't come within eight hundred miles of any of his buildings.
Most people who object to the unreasonable questions on the "long form" do so based on privacy. My reasons are a little different. I object to a government agency overreaching their Constitutional authority. I don't really object very much to anybody knowing how many flush toilets I have. I would probably tell most people who ask. Some of the other questions, not so much.
It appears that once you get the long form, you will always get the long form. The first time I got the long form was the 1970 census. I gave them my name, where I lived, number of people in my household and my telephone number. That is the only information I have ever given them, but I get the "long form" in every census.
They have been to my home and asked only my name? [:0]
You may be contacted at least one more time in this phase alone by a spot checker. (That was my job in 2000.) By the end of the second phase I was running into some very upset people. There is a third phase of some kind but I didn't want any part of that.
What is going on now is only phase one, the mapping phase.
The data about you does include your name & will be available but only after many years have passed. I seem to recall that they are now releasing the data from 1930.
By the way that "hounding" is expensive. We got paid mileage & for our time while driving. Our small group covered all of Riverside & San Bernadino counties. We could try to get the information by telephone but that was usually useless. Between answering machines & wrong numbers it was rare to do it on the phone.
quote:TITLE 18 > PART II > CHAPTER 227 > SUBCHAPTER C > ? 3571
(a) In General.- A defendant who has been found guilty of an offense may be sentenced to pay a fine.
(b) Fines for Individuals.- Except as provided in subsection (e) of this section, an individual who has been found guilty of an offense may be fined not more than the greatest of-
____(1) the amount specified in the law setting forth the offense;
____(7) for an infraction, not more than $5,000.
The "amount specified in the law setting forth the offense" is $100, but the "greatest of" is $5,000.