The Census & Your Community

Why an Accurate Count is Critical to NC's Future

 

Every ten years (in all years ending with a "0"), the federal government conducts a national census in order to count the population of the United States. This task is mandated by the U.S. Constitution, and the Census Bureau is charged with the responsibility of conducting the census. This means that, beginning on April 1, 2010, employees of the Census Bureau — working in conjunction with local governments and other organizations — will attempt to count all residents of the United States, including citizens, non-citizen legal residents, non-citizen long-term visitors, illegal immigrants, homeless people, prisoners residing in jails and penitentiaries and other people living in non-conventional housing.

 

The census has been performed since 1790, when Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson oversaw its implementation. There have been 21 national counts taken since. In between census time, the Census Bureau uses surveys and statistical models to estimate populations.

Democracy North Carolina is working with the Census Bureau to ensure that everyone in North Carolina is counted. Here's why:

• Census results are used to re-calculate the number of seats North Carolina will receive in the U.S. House of Representatives, a chamber which allocates seats based on the size of a state's population (as opposed to the U.S. Senate, which grants every state two seats, regardless of population).
• Census data will be used to allocate the number of electoral votes North Carolina gets in the Electoral College, which decides who wins the Presidency.
• Census data is used to calculate the amount of funding North Carolina receives for most federal programs.
• The local recults of the census will be used by the state of North Carolina to allocate school and other program funds, and by many local governments for their own allotment and planning programs.

Communities can literally lose millions in funding if their census fails to count all residents.
Contact us for information on how you can help ensure your community is fully counted!

Confidentiality Rules

The only purpose of the census is to compile general statistical information on the population of the united States. It is not used to locate individuals, nor to identify those here in the country with proper status or for any other purpose. In fact, by law, no one — not census takers, other employees of the Census Bureau or anyone else — may reveal identifiable information about any person, household, or business replying to the census, not even to other government agencies. It violates the law to do so. In addition, there is a 72-year privacy law in place that means specific data about individuals obtained during this census will not be available for public inspection until April 1, 2082. Don't be misled by rumors or your community could lose millions in potential funding. The truith is:

There is no reason for anyone to avoid being counted in the census and millions of reasons why they should!

 

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