Center for Rural Affairs

Global Gazette | By NIEL RITCHIE, Executive Director, League of Rural Voters | March 11, 2010

Ten questions that can be completed in 10 minutes — the U.S. Census doesn’t sound like much but its importance can’t be overstated.

In 2008, the last year for which data is available, Iowa received more than $3.8 billion based on the decennial headcount, accounting for a fifth of the state’s annual revenue.

According to a report out this week by the Brookings Institution, more than $400 billion in federal funds for 215 programs will be tied to data collected in the 2010 Census.

When stimulus package dollars are added in, the overall tally tops a half trillion dollars.

Health care represents the largest allotment by far, but also on that list are such things as economic development grants, energy assistance, transportation projects and education and job-training programs.

And every person counts. As the report’s authors note: “To illustrate the fiscal impact of decennial census accuracy, each additional person included in the Census 2000 resulted in an annual additional Medicaid reimbursement to most states of between several hundred and several thousand dollars.”

A complete count of people living in the United States is constitutionally mandated every decade and participation is required by law, yet thousands of Iowans nonetheless are missed. In 2000 more than 14,000 residents went uncounted, amounting to a loss of millions over the 10-year-life of each census. For some that likely was a choice: Citing fear of government and disinterest overall among their reasons why, as many as one in five nationwide plan not to fill out the form this year.

Rural residents are among those at greatest risk for going uncounted, a fearsome reality for states like Iowa already struck hard by tough economic times.

“The importance of participation in the U.S. Census should not be underestimated,” said U.S. Sen. Harkin, D-Iowa. “People in rural areas often go uncounted, and since federal funding depends upon census data vital community needs can be affected. It is absolutely essential that our rural communities take part in this year’s census.”

But more than just federal funds are at stake.

Census data determine how many seats each state receives in the U.S. House of Representatives and are used by a wide range of agencies, businesses and nonprofits to promote jobs growth and better serve their communities.

“The census is about fairness and equality,” said Dennis Johnson, regional director with the Census Bureau. “And the further we get from an accurate count the less equality we will have.”

Census questionnaires will begin arriving next week and are due back by April 1. Whether Iowa gets its fair share of federal funds is up to us.

— The League of Rural Voters is a Minnesota-based nonprofit working to strengthen rural communities nationwide. Online: www.leagueofruralvoters.org.

About the Census:

• The U.S. Census is designed to count every resident in the United States and is required by the Constitution to take place every 10 years.
   
• The 2010 Census will help communities receive more than $400 billion in federal funds each year for things like hospitals, job training centers, schools, senior citizens, public works projects and emergency services.
   
• Data collected by the census also helps determine the number of seats your state has in the U.S. House of Representatives.

To complete its mission, the Census Bureau:

• Delivers a 10-question form to every household in America.
   
• Requires that you fill in the form to account for everyone living at your address as of April 1.
   
• Includes a prepaid envelope with the form so you can mail it back as soon as possible.

— More information is available at http://2010.census.gov.

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