Census drive begins in Los Angeles
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Census drive begins in Los Angeles
By Rick Orlov, Staff Writer
Updated: 01/04/2010 07:36:15 PM PST
Calling it the civil rights issue of the new decade, Los Angeles officials on Monday helped kick off the 2010 U.S. Census - a $300 million effort to count every single resident of the U.S.
The U.S. Census Bureau started its effort in Los Angeles and 12 other major cities with a Portrait of America road tour - a traveling van that features stories about Americans and explains how important an accurate census is to receive federal money in local communities and appropriate representation at the state and federal levels.
"We're engaged in an effort to make sure every Angeleno is counted," Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said, adding it was an issue that would determine the region's political power in the future.
"Make sure you are counted."
Standing in front of the Census 2010 van parked outside City Hall, Villaraigosa told reporters that more than 70,000 Los Angeles residents went uncounted in the 2000 census.
"What that has meant is the loss of $200 million for roads, schools and social programs," he said.
Los Angeles began a campaign to educate residents about the census last October, reaching out to the Latino community in particular. The campaign hoped to dispel fears that the information gathered by census workers could be used to deport residents who are here illegally.
Thomas Saenz, head of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund offices in Los Angeles, said it was important for all to be counted.
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"As we begin 2010, there is no more important civil rights issue," Saenz said. "There are those from outside this region who look at our power and want us discounted. If you look at schools or housing, or transportation or parks or senior centers, if you care about any of those things, you should be counted."
There has been a particular problem in poor and minority areas of the city to get participation in the census.
The Census count ultimately determines how much federal subsidies communities receive and how much representation they have at the state and federal level.
This year, the Census Bureau's questionnaire has only 10 questions, asking the person's name, age, gender, date of birth, their race, if they own or rent and the names of all those living in a house. It does not ask if someone is in the country legally.
Jamey Christy, head of the Los Angeles office for the Census Bureau, said one of the messages they are sending out is that all information received is confidential.
"We take this very seriously, and anyone who violates the confidentiality faces five years in prison and a fine of $250,000," Christy said.
Census forms will be mailed out in March with a due date of April 1.
After that, the Census Bureau will send out workers to follow up with those who have not mailed back their form.
Census Bureau officials said 67 percent of homes mailed back the forms in 2000. Bureau officials estimate it costs $85 million for every percentage point of non-participation in responding.
Villaraigosa said the city is working with neighborhood councils and grass-roots organizations to encourage participation. A Web site has been set up at www.lacounts2010.org to provide information on the census.
The count is required in the U.S. Constitution because of the need to draw congressional districts and determine the votes in the Electoral College among states.
The data also is used by private industry and businesses to locate concentrations of skilled workers.
http://www.dailynews.com/ci_14122162
