It’s that time again. Every 10 years, the U.S. Census comes around to count how many people are living here. (It’s in the Constitution. Did you know that?)
Sadly, children have been undercounted in every U.S. Census since the first one took place in 1790. In fact, the 2000 census undercounted children under the age of 10 by more than 1 million kids! When the census comes to you, make sure you report all of your children, including infants and toddlers. I honestly don’t know why anyone would not report all of their children to the census, so the fact that this is a big enough issue to be a nationwide campaign was an eye-opener for me! All members of your household - regardless of age, gender, race, nationality, or citizenship status – should be counted.
Why is census data important?
The numbers collected by the census are used for some very important things on a national level. Census data determines how many elected representatives each state gets in the House of Representatives. Locally, census data determines how many representatives your area gets in your state legislature, as well. Over $400 million in federal funding gets distributed based on census data. If you don’t report everyone in your household – including babies and toddlers – your community may be losing out on critical funding for schools, hospitals, roads, and senior services. With the economy the way it is, and many states tightening their budget belts – every last dime of federal funding is important. Federal dollars support a variety of child-related programs including: Head Start, special education grants, State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), Foster Care Title IV-E, and Improving Teacher Quality State Grants.
There are only 10 questions on the census form. It will take you about 10 minutes to fill out. Only 10 minutes of your time will help ensure that your community gets what it deserves! Please do your part.
Learn more about the 2010 Census today!
Global Influence is helping spread the word about this public service campaign.
{ 1 trackback }