Some residents in Borderland may be receiving the American Community Survey, conducted by the United States Census Bureau.

The survey is an ongoing statistical survey that samples a small percentage of the population every year — giving communities the information they need to plan investments and services.

According to the ACS website, information from the survey generates data that help determine how more than $400 billion in federal and state funds are distributed each year.

Answers to the American Community Survey help federal, state and local leaders make decisions about: schools, job training centers, hospitals, location of new businesses, care for children, veterans, and seniors, roads, bridges, and transportation projects, emergency services, housing value.

To help communities, state governments, and federal programs, the survey asks about: age, sex, race, family and relationships, income and benefits, health insurance, education, veteran status, disabilities, where you work and how you get there, where you live and how much you pay for some essentials.

All this detail is combined into statistics that are used to help decide everything from school lunch programs to new hospitals.

Participating in the American Community Survey is safe, according to the bureau’s website. All Census Bureau employees take an oath of nondisclosure and are sworn for life to protect the confidentiality of the data. Violating the oath is a serious crime. The penalty for unlawful disclosure is a fine of up to $250,000 or imprisonment of up to 5 years, or both.

Unlike the every-10-year census, the ACS continues all year, every year. The ACS staff randomly sample addresses in every state, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.

Answers are collected to form up-to-date statistics used by many federal, state, tribal, and local leaders. Some American Community Survey questions have been asked by the census since it first began in 1790.

For concerns about whether the American Community Survey is legitimate, call 1-800-354-7271 for additional confirmation.

People who receive the survey are, by law, required to complete and return it in the postage paid envelope. Title 13 of the U.S. Code imposes a penalty for not responding.