Under Massachusetts General Law, Chapter 51 Section 4 mandates an annual street listing (town census) of residents as of January 1st of each year.
All residents are mailed a pre-filled form in January of each year, the form can be returned one of four ways:
Why is it so important to return the census?
- Assist public safety and emergency responders
- Apply for grants
- Assist the Town and State in calculating State and Federal aid
- Project future school enrollment and school registration outreach
- Update the voter list - if you are a voter and DO NOT respond, you could be made inactive
- Serves as proof of residency - which residents need to qualify for veteran's benefits, in-state tuition at state schools and other programs
ALL RESIDENTS, not just voters need to return the form each year.