This month, residents will be asked to fill out the 2020 Census in order to count the population in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and the five U.S. territories (Puerto Rico, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands)

Households will have the ability to fill out the 2020 Census online, over the phone or through a paper questionnaire.

From March 12 -20, each home will receive (via mail) an invitation to respond to the nine question questionnaire.

The online questionnaire is available at my2020census.gov. The person taking the questionnaire will need their 12-digit Census ID that can be found in the letter mailed to them.

The census will provide important data that will indicate how much federal funding your community will recieve for public services like hospitals, fire departments, schools, roads and other resources.

More than $675 billion in federal funding is distributed each year to communities.

The results will also determine how many seats each state will have in the U.S. House of Representatives.

The questionnaire asks simple questions including age, sex and the number of people living in your home, including children.

It is also important to note that the census will never ask for Social Security numbers, bank or credit card information, money or donations or anything related to political parties.

Participating in the census is required by law, even if you have recently completed another survey from the Census Bureau. — By Megan Kelley