Action Line: Trash cans can be out on curb for 24 hours

Question -- Does Greeley have an ordinance about removing trash cans from the curb after the trash has been picked up? If so, how long can they be at the curb and who should be contacted to enforce this ordinance?

Answer -- Becky Safarik, Greeley community development director, said residents can have their trash cans on the curb for up to 24 hours while they are waiting for their trash collector to come pick up their refuse.

If residents fail to remove their trash cans in a timely manner, they can face a administrative citation from Greeley like they can for any code violation such as weeds, trash or other violations that code enforcement officers notice.

Code enforcement typically relies on neighbors to point out if someone is in violation of city code, and officers will usually give the person a phone call telling them to take their trash receptacles off the curb. Residents are cited only if they do not respond.

The same rule applies for large trash roll-offs that sit on curbs for extended periods of time, Safarik said.

If you would like to contact Greeley code enforcement, call (970) 350-9833.

Question -- I received a 20-page American Community Survey from the U.S. Census Bureau recently and I don't know if I should fill it out or not because it has questions about my salary, property value and work address. It says I could face a $100-$5,000 fine.

<strong>HAVE A QUESTION?</strong> Call Andrew Villegas at 970-392-4423 or e-mail him at avillegas@greeleytribune.com

What should I do with it?

Answer -- Stacy Gimbel, spokeswoman for the U.S. Census Bureau, said you could indeed face a fine if you don't fill the form out and send it in; participation in the American Community Survey is mandatory under Title 13 of United States Code.

Every month, 250,000 random residents get these surveys all across America to keep an accurate sample of the population's economic, social and other figures up to date.

Gimbel said she didn't know if anyone had ever been prosecuted for not filling one of these surveys out, and added that your personal information is kept strictly confidential. The government gives data -- not personal -- to local authorities who use the information to make decisions for the community.

For more information on the American Community Survey, go to www.census.gov/acs.

Question -- I'm actually calling on behalf of my friend because she is too embarrassed because she had to ask for help. We, or she, requested a basket from Salvation Army this past Christmas. When she went to get the basket, she got no food whatsoever, and I was with her, and they gave her bag that was supposed to have presents for her 7-year-old daughter. What was in the bag? A $2 headband, so that is all the help she received from Salvation Army.

Answer -- Captain Robert Sproule with the Salvation Army said the baskets go through a quality control process, and that he is certain you received more than just a headband.

Sproule said people who wish to receive baskets fill out a form with ideas they'd like to get so they can give their children a Christmas present, but that there's no way the Salvation Army can get everybody everything they ask for. He added that the Salvation Army gave baskets to more than 350 children and served dinners to many more.

"We fill bags the best we can to the best of our abilities," Sproule said.