Every 10 years, roughly half of Haines residents jeopardize thousands of dollars in state and federal funding by ignoring U.S Census Bureau mailings, according to Census Bureau data.
The census, mandated by the Constitution, is a population count for every U.S. citizen that is used to determine congressional representation, redistricting and how federal and state funds are distributed.
Last month, the Haines Borough Assembly unanimously supported partnership with the 2020 Census by establishing a Complete Count Committee (CCC), a volunteer outreach program directed by Haines Economic Development Corporation.
The committee won’t form until fall, and is intended to educate the community and increase response rates, said Margaret Friedenauer, HEDC director.
Historically, Alaska has had the lowest participation rate in the country at 64 percent, according to Census Bureau data.
In Haines, 46 percent of the population did not respond to census 2010 slips, down from 62 percent in 2000. That means 1,450 people didn’t fill out their census form when they got it in the mail.
“The census is about power and money. Most people don’t realize that the census is something that’s important to them personally,” U.S Census Bureau specialist Barb Miranda said. Nationally, $675 billion of federal money is distributed annually for transportation, food and educational programs. More than $2.1 billion is granted to the state of Alaska, almost $3,000 per person counted.
In Haines, an undercount of just 1 percent of the population would result in a loss of $744,000 over 10 years, according to Census Bureau statistics.
Miranda is careful to note the distinction between participation rates and under counts. Despite low participation in the 2010 census, it’s expected those 1,350 people were eventually counted, she said. High participation means response to the census in the mail or online, before enumerators are sent to their doors.
Traditionally hard-to-count populations include Alaska Natives, children under five, low-income and non-English speakers.
Census questions will include: name, sex, age, ethnicity and race, state residency, number of household members, if you own or rent and phone number. A question asking a person’s citizenship is still under Supreme Court review.
Locally, it will be up to Friedenauer to ensure the entire community understands the importance of participating in the census.
“It’s an awareness campaign, and it’s up to the committee to blanket the community as well as we can to get the word out of the importance of the census,” Friedenauer said. “Even if our CCC doesn’t have a representative from a specific segment of the population, the committee’s goal will be to get information out to as many segments of the community as possible including clinics, schools, (including the pre-school and Headstart), churches, social services like Salvation Army, educators and tribal representatives.”
State demographer Eddie Hunsinger said that census data also provides a critical snapshot of a community.
“You might be surprised at how often census data is used,” he said. It affects unemployment, housing and health statistics.
Borough planner Holly Smith says census data affects local, as well as statewide decisions.
“A lot of the decisions that we make in the borough have to do with projections on population growth and other demographics surrounding that,” Smith said. “If our count is off, it could impact our ability to make wise choices for our community.”
The U.S Census Bureau has broken down operations into three phases: education, awareness and response. The education phase will end in January 2020, Miranda said.
The Complete Count Committee will work from September 2019 until the census is distributed in May, when paid government employees will take over.
The 2020 census day is April 1, 2020, but internet response will open in late March.
The Census Bureau is hiring local enumerators since familiar people have been proven more effective, Miranda said. She encourages local folks to apply online at http://www.2020census.gov/jobs. Pay is $28 an hour.