While many Canadians are refusing to fill out their census as an act of rebellion, a planner with the City of Saskatoon says those people might actually be contributing to making their community invisible.

Senior Planner Michael Kowalchuk says the census is used to collect data about communities in order to inform the federal government what their needs might be.

“A census usually shows different categories like population growth, age distribution, housing, and commuting patterns within a city.”

It also monitors how incomes are changing, which helps determine what a city’s infrastructure needs are, such as for healthcare and education. So, if a significant number of people toss their census to the wayside, he explains that the federal government won’t be able to get an accurate idea of the demand for certain resources such as grants.

“If we’re underestimating the growth in the community, then we’re underestimating the infrastructure needs of that community, as well.”

Several municipalities have even calculated the financial impact of one person refusing to fill out the census. For example, the Town of Rouleau figures that the impact would be $1605.90 per person, per census cycle, or every five years.

Kowalchuk says Saskatoon hasn’t done these calculations, but he acknowledged the city could see a potential loss of funding if certain application criteria aren’t met. In Saskatoon’s case, he explains that housing dollars are of utmost importance, and the City could be at risk of not being allocated as much as it would have, had everyone filled out the census and painted a fulsome picture of the situation.

Statistics Canada says 75 per cent of households are given a short, 20-question census, and the remaining households receive an in-depth, lengthy questionnaire with 70 questions.

Although the date given to fill out your census by was May 12th, Statistics Canada says it’s not a hard deadline, and it will still be accepted if you hand it in subsequent to that date.