Detroit Pushing for More Accurate 2010 Census Count

Census workers in metropolitan Detroit say they are aware of the challenges they face in 2010. According to the U.S. Census Monitoring Board, some 6.4 million people nationwide in 2000 went uncounted. Asian-Americans were nearly twice as likely as European-Americans to be missed, African-Americans three times as likely, Latinos four times and Native Americans and Pacific Islanders six times.

Citizens who received U.S. Census Bureau forms in March should consider the big picture and fill out the paperwork, urges Brian H. White, a partnership specialist with the Detroit Regional Census Center. Census forms must be postmarked by April 1.

"If you understand what the census is really about, from a political aspect, then you will see the importance," White says. "We're talking about more than $400 billion per year that is dispensed (nationally) for police and fire, schools and hospitals, roads and job creation. Those are dollars that Detroit cannot afford to lose for the upcoming 10-year period."

Michael K. Price, a Census Center media outreach specialist who works alongside White, prefers to narrow things down to the individual level. He notes that each person properly counted will bring in about $1,300 per year in government aid, or $13,000 for the full decade, from federal and state sources. As a result, Price constantly visits churches and colleges, and maintains a full calendar of community events.

"The public will get the same message from many sources they encounter in their daily lives. We will build on this knowledge and use nontraditional means to reach people," Price says.

Intense Outreach to Minorities

White and Price, both African-American, say they are focusing on "hard-to-count" populations, which translates to ethnic minorities.

The Census Monitoring Board reports that in 2000, undercount percentages were 0.67 percent for whites, 0.96 percent for Asian-Americans, 2.17 percent for African-Americans, 2.85 percent for Latinos and 4.74 percent for American Indians and Pacific Islanders.

Census figures indicate the 2000 national mail response rate was 72 percent, White notes, but the count dropped to near 60 percent in major urban areas. For households that don't respond, census workers will make follow-up home visits from late April through July.

White and Price point to several reasons for the disparity. The low-income population is more transient than people who live in more fortunate economic circumstances, and renters are less likely to receive and return their census forms, even with the advance outreach that is taking place. Some residents also are fearful that cooperating with the census may cause law enforcement to collect unpaid bills or carry out arrest bench warrants.

"The reality is that your personal information is guarded," White says, emphasizing that the intent of the census is strictly to gather population counts and overall statistics. "Our daily job is to educate the citizens and to counter the misinformation that is out there."

Various national groups, ranging from the NAACP to the National Council of La Raza, are pushing for a full census count. Marc Morial, National Urban League president, heads the Census Bureau's 2010 Advisory Committee.

State and local governing units also are getting involved. For example, Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm has asked Lt. Gov. John Cherry to head the state's Complete Count Committee.

Nonprofit agencies also have funds at stake, notes Sam Singh, census consultant for the Michigan Nonprofit Association.

"The nonprofit community is uniquely positioned to dramatically strengthen and improve this year's census participation because you often directly serve these hard-to-count populations," Singh says. "Michigan's historically undercounted residents - immigrants, people of color, low-income families and those who are highly mobile and live in complex households - are the people who, every day, walk in and out of the doors of nonprofits."

Price says charisma also has a place in encouraging census participation. He is well-known in Detroit as Mike "Tiger" Price, with the nickname a result of wearing the hometown baseball team's cap during youth games in the 1960s. He has worked as a newspaper reporter, a disc jockey, a television talk show host, a musical entertainment agent and an advertising account executive.

Price provides just one example of how many modern-day U.S. Census Bureau employees, not just in metro Detroit, but nationwide, do not fit the stereotype of bookish bean counters.

Landmark Census Changes

Kim D. Hunter, census media specialist team leader in Detroit, points to a pair of major changes in society during the final half of the 20th century.

First, the 1960s were "a decade that saw social, political and cultural upheaval across the land," Hunter says. Groups such as ethnic minorities, women and people with disabilities called for equal representation. One key was to push for full counts in the census.

Second, Hunter points out that society became more fragmented starting in the 1980s. Cable television arrived, followed by the Internet and other new forms of communications.

"In response to the changing social and media landscape, the Census Bureau (in 1990) seriously ramped up its outreach effort," Hunter explains.

Outreach was even more intensive in 2000.

"We increased the percentage of households that mailed back the questionnaire, reversed decades of decline in public engagement and saved taxpayers millions," Hunter says. "Twitter, Facebook and countless other social media outlets have increased the challenge in reaching the American public. What has not changed is our commitment to get the most accurate count possible, and the benefits that come from completing and mailing the census questionnaire in March 2010."

The standard census form will require about 10 minutes for a typical family to complete, Hunter says. A small fraction of households will receive the longer American Community Survey. An important point is to make sure that all children are listed, especially those younger than 10 years who were not born in time for the 2000 census.

Census Count Paybacks

Kenneth J. Darga, Michigan's state demographer, doesn't work for the U.S. Census Bureau, but serves as one of the prime advocates for a maximum full count.

"Census counts are important for several reasons, and the financial reasons are the most prominent in the current economic climate," Darga says. "When some of a community's residents are missed by the census, that community does not receive its fair share of state and federal spending.

"Census data is also used by planners, businesses, researchers, journalists and just about everyone else to understand what is happening in our communities," Darga adds. "Knowledge is better than ignorance, and accurate knowledge is better than false knowledge. For example, an undercount in the census can lead to fewer businesses deciding to locate in an area. An undercount also reduces the accuracy of economic statistics, health statistics and other social indicators that are based on calculations involving census figures."

Furthermore, census counts determine each state's number of elected officials in the U.S. House of Representatives. Michigan lost a representative in Congress in 2000 and is in danger of losing another in 2010.

"Voting and being counted are two ways to make sure that you are represented, two cornerstones of being a good citizen," says Dennis C. Caver, a Detroit Regional Census Center partnership specialist. "There's no cost to being counted and it's good for the community."

Michigan's Snowbirds Also Undercounted

Another census count obstacle involves middle- and upper-income families. Darga says that a decade ago Michigan had about 200,000 "snowbirds;" that is, those who were on extended winter vacations and filed their papers from the warmer climes, rather than using their Michigan home addresses. Census workers are trying to build public awareness among vacationers and others who may find themselves away from home, anyone ranging from college students to truck drivers to frequent business travelers. Such snowbirds should list the address where they live for more than six months of the year, Darga says.

"The Census Bureau receives a lot of criticism from people who do not understand how hard it is to conduct a census," Darga says. "Counting people sounds easy, but a nation as large as ours has a huge variety of different living situations that pose problems for census workers.

"The instructions on the census form have to be simple enough to understand, yet they are relied upon to cover a huge array of complex situations. The Census Bureau does a very good job at a very difficult and very important task, and it is probably one of the best bargains in the federal budget."

Sources:

http://2010.census.gov/2010census/

nfo.library.unt.edu/cmb/cmbp/reports/final_report/fin_sec1_milestones.pdf

http://www.kpl.gov/ONEplace/blog/Default.aspx?id=25365&blogid=2276

http://www.blackamericaweb.com/?q=articles/news/moving_america_news/15039&page=5

http://www.aarpsegundajuventud.org/english/issues/2009-SPR/census_money.html

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20091130/NEWS06/911300361/1319/Michigan-census-needs-snowbirds&template=fullarticle