RALEIGH — The week leading up to the Fourth of July holiday weekend slowed Scotland County’s response to the U.S. 2020 Census to barely a crawl, as the rate of response saw only a 0.1% uptick.

That number nearly mirrors that of the statewide response rate for last week, which saw a rise of just 0.4% across North Carolina.

Scotland County, as of Sunday, was at a 52.5% response rate since March 12. That’s nearly 6% less than the state rate of 58.1%. The county has fallen from No. 54 among the state’s 100 counties to a ranking of No. 60.

Across the county, 28.8% of households responded to the census online, as compared to 45.4% statewide; and 23.7% Scotland County households responded by mail or telephone, as compared with 12.7% statewide.

The top five counties in the state for response rate are: Wake County at 67%; Guilford County at 64%; and the trio of Mecklenburg, Forsyth and Craven counties at 61%.

For North Carolina, it’s 58.1% response rate ranks the state at No. 34 among the nation’s 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Response rates in other states in the southeast include:

Over half of households have responded in 68 NC counties. This leaves 32 remaining counties that have yet to meet the 50% self-response benchmark. The majority of these are located in rural western and northeastern North Carolina.

For those who haven’t yet responded to the census, there are still options available — they can go to www.my2020census.gov and fill out the required information. Also, the U.S. Census Bureau still plans to send date collectors door to door in the near future.

W. Curt Vincent can be reached at 910-506-3023 or [email protected].