2010 Census - Anyone home?

It's almost Census time! What is the purpose of Census, you ask? It's pretty important stuff! Take a look at just a few things that are in our hands by participating in the 2010 Census:

• Every year, more than $300 billion in federal funds is awarded to states and communities based on census data;
• Census data guide local decision-makers in important community planning efforts, including where to build new roads, hospitals and schools;
• Census data affect your voice in Congress by determining how many seats each state will have in the U.S. House of Representative.

Florence County GIS and E-911 Addressing departments have been hands on for a couple of years now verifying and updating information needed by the Census Bureau. Their first task involved reviewing a master address list for Florence County from the bureau to add new homes that had been built or correct mistakes such as misspelled street names. Every address in Florence County was physically visited and designated on a map. This information was then sent back to the bureau.

In late spring and early summer of this year, the Census Bureau sent workers into communities to walk through neighborhoods and verify the updated address lists. Then the bureau told local governments whether it agreed with the original list. For many communities, the bureau returned a list of thousands of addresses they could not verify, with a short deadline to appeal. With between $50-$250 per person, in services for citizens available to the local community, this is entirely too much federal money for a community to give up.

Florence Counties' list totalled approximately 17,000 records to re-check. Florence County GIS department jumped on the task along with volunteers from other departments at the Planning and Building Inspections offices. 35 mind blowing days later, over 4,000 rebuttals with verification documentation was sent back to the bureau for Florence County. Thank You, GIS Department!

Now it's your turn to help! Look for a Census questionnaire to be mailed or delivered to you February-March 2010. It'll only be 10 questions, about 10 minutes of your time. Fill it out and send it back!

You didn't receive one? Never fear! Questionnaires will be available at select public sites March-April 2010.

You still have not sent one in? Beware! Census takers will visit households that did not return a questionnaire by mail.

So come on! Help your community! Jump on the 2010 Census BanWagon and make sure they have a questionnaire from you.