EDITORIAL: Accurate census count is crucial for Valley funding

FRESNOBEE.COM
February 21, 2010

--Results will lock in funding formulas for next 10 years.--

The 2010 census is especially important to residents of the San Joaquin Valley because too many of them have not been tabulated in past decennial counts. Fresno County, for example, has been labeled one of the most difficult to count regions in the country because of its demographics.

This census isn't just an academic exercise. An "undercount" costs money because most government funding is handed on the basis of population. The census numbers will lock in funding formulas for 10 years until the next census. This is money for schools, hospitals, roads and other programs.

The Census Bureau reports that each person counted is worth at least $1,400 annually in federal funds. That isn't even counting state funding, which also is apportioned by population.

That's why Valley leaders are doing everything they can to make sure every resident is counted. If we have an undercount, funding that should come here will go to an area that does a better job of tabulating its residents.

Last week, Fresno Mayor Ashley Swearengin and Fresno County Board of Supervisors Chair Judy Case launched a campaign urging residents to participate in the census. The campaign will include public service announcements that will run on local television and radio stations. Fresno County also will distribute an informational flyer published in four languages -- English, Spanish, Lao and Hmong. It will be mailed to more than 130,000 households, and assuring residents that their legal status and public assistance will not be changed as a result of their answers to the census questions.

The California Endowment, a private health foundation, says it will offer $4 million in grants as part of a statewide campaign that will promote the importance of participating in the census. Part of that money will be spent locally.

"If 10% of California's population of 37 million is not counted, the state stands to lose $42.4 billion in federal funding over the next decade," said Robert K. Ross, president and CEO of the California Endowment.

The census also affects political representation because congressional seats and state legislative seats are determined on the basis of population.

Local officials report that the mail-back response rate in Fresno County for the 2000 census was just 69% -- meaning that nearly one-third of our population did not return a census form. That costs all of us.

The census questionnaires will be delivered to households in March 2010. The 2010 census form has only 10 questions, and is one of the shortest ever. Census workers will visit households that do not return questionnaires.

We urge every resident to stand up and be counted.