Since 1939, Congress has placed wording in appropriations bills to prevent using taxpayer money to pay the wages of anyone but U.S. citizens, although there were exceptions. Owing to various historical circumstances, Cubans, Poles, people from countries that were part of the former Soviet Union and the Baltic states, as well as immigrants from the former South Vietnam, have been deemed exceptions. Cuban immigrants were approved because their country signed the Rio Treaty with the U.S. in 1947 before that island's communist revolution. Treaties with nearly 50 other countries meant immigrants from those places, including Australia, Colombia, Haiti, Mexico, South Korea and Turkey, were also exempt. Critics said the restrictions are especially misguided when it comes to the census because certain immigrants can help in canvassing related communities.
Enumerators are people who go door to door duringthe head count.
Recent immigrants who speak little or no English would most trust census takers who are immigrants and Arab-speaking, he said. It's also unique in that it has to reach virtually every type of community, both culturally and ethnically. It must try and hire a pool of workers to reflect the vast diversity of the population and of our community. The Census Bureau says it understands those concerns and has a plan to address them. Under the law, the bureau can hire immigrants from normally excluded countries if it shows that they have a critical skill, such as speaking their native tongue to fellow immigrants.