So why is the Census telling undocumented immigrants and others they should bother to participate in the Census?

"It is a privilege to be counted as a resident of the United States," Martinez said. "This brings pieces of $300 billion every year from the federal government into their communities. This translates into better roads, better recreation centers, better schools, better teachers — bilingual teachers, better facilities to handle problems with the language."

Another good reason to participate is that Utah just missed obtaining a fourth U.S. House District in 2000. A final audit showed that if it had just 80 more people counted that year, Utah would have received the last-available House district that instead went to North Carolina.

Hansen said more than 900 Census workers are beginning now to check all addresses where people might live in Utah to ensure Census forms are delivered to them next year.

"We're having teams go out to every possible place where people live or could live, every house, apartment, trailer house, mountain cabin, sheep camp … particular bridge underpasses, abandoned houses where we known the homeless live," he said.

He said the workers are carrying small hand-held computers that geocode each residence, and they wear identity badges and carry cases identifying them as Census workers. Despite efforts to publicize that their work is confidential, he said at least one team has already been chased away from a house by a man wielding a gun.

Hansen adds that the long form of previous censuses has been eliminated, and the form next year will include only 10 questions and take about 10 minutes to answer.

Ten years ago, only 68 percent of Utahns responded initially to the Census without requiring follow-up visits. The Census this year hopes for at least a 78 percent initial response in Utah.

"If you're concerned about your tax dollars being misspent, you should cooperate with the Census. The more people we can get to do this the easy way, the less it is going to cost in time and resources to back and go back and go back," Hansen said.

E-MAIL: lee@desnews.com