Census forms began arriving at Denton households Monday, and U.S. Census Bureau officials stress that filling out the forms and mailing them back could save taxpayers’ money.

“If everyone works together and mails the forms back, it will save taxpayers $1.5 billion,” said Joy Donovan Brandon, a Dallas Regional Census Center spokeswoman.

The Census Bureau is placing more focus this year on increasing the response rate because the data determines how many congressional seats are allocated to states and how more than $400 billion in federal funds is distributed annually to state and local governments.

During the 2000 census, 64 percent of Denton households responded, Brandon said. Nationwide, 72 percent of households mailed the forms back.

Denton resident Debbra Dunning Brouillette said she would fill out the form just like she did in 2000.

“We just got our census in the mail today,” she said Monday. “We are those good little people that do what we need to do.”

Officials sent out a letter March 5 to announce that the form would be on its way.

Brandon said the advance letters, which cost more than $80 million to mail, are important because it is a way to get families to talk about the census form before the official questionnaire arrives.

In a press release Monday, census officials said the advance letters could improve the response enough to save the bureau more than $500 million.

In Denton, the Mayor’s Complete Count Committee has been hard at work since last year to ensure the message reaches every sector of the community.

“I think we have done as much as we could,” said Rudy Rodriguez, chairman of the committee. “We have been disseminating information to faith-based groups, community colleges and universities and civic organizations, to get the message out.”

To avoid confusion and stress, census officials have tried to reiterate the importance of people counting themselves in the places where they live.

For example, Denton college students need to count themselves where they live, not where their parents live.

Also, parents of newborns need to remember to count them.

“If their child was born on April 1, they should be counted,” Brandon said.

Denton residents who have not received a form by Wednesday should call 1-866-872-6868 to request one. Spanish speakers should call 1-866-928-2010.

Census takers will visit households that do not return a questionnaire. That effort begins in May, and will require an estimated 650,000 temporary workers.

Officials said it costs an average of $57 to send a census taker to one household to follow up.

This year, an estimated 39,039 households in the city of Denton and as many as 219,553 in Denton County will receive the form. The numbers are based on the most recent American Community Survey, which replaced the 2000 census long form and provided a statistical sampling of the population.

KARINA RAMÍREZ can be reached at 940-566-6878. Her e-mail address is kramirez@dentonrc.com .