MARIETTA - Census forms are in the mail, and the survey seems rather simple. But one question the federal agency is not asking is whether the respondents are legal U.S. residents or citizens.

The national headcount will be used to allocate $400 billion in federal funds and services, as well as determine U.S. House seats - so does that mean immigrants who are here illegally will in effect have congressional representation?

"Yes, if you look at it that way. Yes, it does," said Pam Page-Bellis, an Atlanta-based spokeswoman for the Census Bureau.

However, the Census Bureau is not authorized to ask respondents if they are living here legally, she said.

"Every question on the census is determined by Congress," Page-Bellis said. "We have the authority to ask what Congress tells us to ask. We have never asked about legal status."

Currently, there are thousands of American citizens - living in Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands - who are represented in Congress only by non-voting delegates.

Of Cobb's representatives in Congress, only Republican Phil Gingrey, whose district includes parts of Marietta, clearly said he does not consider illegal immigrants as his constituents.

Rep. Tom Price, who is also a Republican and certainly no fan of illegal immigrants, did not specifically answer whether he considers those immigrants his constituents. Nor did Democrat David Scott.

Said Gingrey: "I represent residents of the 11th district that are living here legally. While it is appropriate for local communities - who have no ability to address the systemic failures in our immigration system - to be allocated resources based on true population, illegal immigrants should not be counted in apportionment."

Gingrey said he is a cosponsor to House Resolution 3797, which would ask respondents to the 2020 census about their legal status.

Price, whose district also includes Roswell, said the census is "a critical process" and "should not be a vehicle through which to dilute the representation of Americans nor funnel money to those who are here illegally."

The once-a-decade survey, Price said in a statement, "must be handled accurately and appropriately because it determines not only the nature of our representation in Congress, but the allocation of precious taxpayer dollars. ... We need a fair and accurate Census that respects our system of laws."

Scott, whose district includes Smyrna and other parts of south Cobb, said: "It's important that we get an accurate count of everyone living in the U.S., as the Constitution requires. I believe adding a question about citizenship status might provide valuable information, but it may also discourage some from completing the survey, which could lead to inaccurate counts, short-changing already overburdened local budgets."

"Since states aren't required to use Census data to draw Congressional districts, the onus is on the Georgia General Assembly to find an alternate set of data that would exclude illegal immigrants when redrawing district boundaries. But as a member of Congress, my goal was, is and always will be to work in Washington to better the lives of everyone living in the 13th District," Scott said.

Smyrna Mayor Max Bacon, whose city has seen an influx of illegal immigrants, agreed they should be counted, so his city and other areas get the federal funding they deserve.

"But if the Census asks, the illegals aren't going to cooperate. They'd probably be hesitant to answer, and we wouldn't get the numbers - and the money that goes with it," Bacon said. "If I'm going to be funded based on population, it's fair for us to be able to count those who are here. Somebody a whole lot smarter than me would have to figure out how to count someone who is illegal and then get funds for them."

D.A. King, the head of the anti-illegal immigration Dustin Inman Society, said the census offers a prime opportunity to determine exactly how many illegal immigrants are in the United States.

"This is a perfect time to count illegal immigrants to get an accurate count of their real numbers, and then we should enforce our laws and send them out," King said.

Through the mailed surveys and in-person address checks, the Census Bureau aims to count every single person in the United States, and expects to continue collecting that data through the end of July, Page-Bellis said.

By law, the total headcount must be on the president's desk by Dec. 31, 2010, she said.