The 2020 Census. We all count

SHAPE YOUR FUTURE THE CENSUS. WE ALL COUNT.

BY LISA HOLDER

Responding to the census count is a civic duty, occurring every 10 years, as described in Article 1, Section 2 of the Constitution of the United States, mandated since 1790. Accurate population responses to the census equates to the allocation of increased potential federal and state funding for programs and services, such as housing assistance, education, public safety, transportation, and public health programming, which could impact the Sanford community in a significant way.

In addition to determining the allocation of federal funds, the census also determines representation in the U.S. House of Representatives and is used for redistricting. This is important locally, as census counts will determine the boundaries of voting districts, including county and city commission districts as well as school board districts. Florida added two additional seats in the House of Representatives in 2010 and is projected to add two or more seats with the 2020 census.

In order to increase response rates, the Seminole County Board of County Commissioners on May 14, 2019 created the U.S. 2020 Decennial Census Seminole County Complete Count Committee comprised of 25 appointed community leaders that includes a representative from each of the seven Seminole County cities.

A major responsibility of the committee is to create, adopt and implement an action plan that identifies the roles and responsibilities of the committee, including a methodical approach to increase census awareness by educating residents. The committee is establishing community partnerships, attending community events throughout the county, brainstorming different approaches to reach the traditionally undercounted and non-responders to the census, as well as debunking common myths due to the lack of understanding about the census. The committee includes several subcommittees covering a wide array of topics purposely chosen to cover diverse community outreach. The subcommittee topics include education, faith-based, media, business, community-based, and government. The Action Plan can be found on the Seminole County website, www.seminolecountyfl.gov.

“The census is also important as local governments are required by the Florida Legislature to develop goals, objectives and policies to manage growth and development within our communities, driven in direct proportion to population counts”, said Michelle Smith, Media and Business Subcommittee Chair.

Phil Kaprow, Chair of the Seminole County Complete Count Committee

Working in partnership with the U.S. Census Bureau, the volunteer work of the committee is to create census awareness within our community and to achieve an accurate and complete population count by maximizing the resident response rate to the census within Seminole County and, in our case, residents of Sanford. The Census Bureau defines

The U.S. 2020 Decennial Census Seminole County Complete Count Committee

“response rate” as the percentage of residents responding to the census based on the number of households contacted. Most importantly, for the first time, residents will be able to respond to the census online or by cell phone as well as through the traditional method of regular mail. The Census Bureau is encouraging residents to respond online. Residents should also be aware that census takers will visit each household that does not respond to the census to complete the census in person.

Technology and social media play a central role in the 2020 census due to the ease of sharing census messaging across different platforms, promoting awareness through helpful videos and information created by the U.S. Census Bureau. Social media is an effective tool for posting brief census related announcements on websites, Facebook, Twitter, Nextdoor, and Instagram. The Nextdoor application helps communicate directly with residents. Sharing information with these online communities simply increases awareness and can have far reaching results.

The fact, is for every Sanford resident that does not respond to the census, the city may potentially risk a significant loss of federal and state funding over a ten-year period following the census. The final 2020 population response count for Sanford will be the population number used until the 2030 census. To put this timeframe into perspective, the children of our community who are 10 years old will be young adults by 2030.

Responding to the census will potentially increase the quality of life for all. Residents of Sanford can look for continued census awareness information through social media channels, the Sanford Says Podcast, census messaging in city facilities, on the city website, lobby displays at City Hall, utility bill inserts, information tables at local Sanford events, outdoor digital advertising, and through the support of the My Sanford Magazine, a great community partner.

census. It’s easy to complete and vitally important to every resident of Sanford for now and in the future. The motto of the U.S. Census Bureau is to count everyone once, and only once, and in the right place. Additional information about the 2020 census is available on the web at 2020Census.gov.

Additional information about the 2020 Census is available on the web at 2020Census.gov.

Lisa Holder is the Communications Officer for the City of Sanford. She holds a Master of Public Administration and is a Navy Veteran. Lisa hails from Miami, FL via New York, and was drawn to Sanford because of the beautiful waterfront and the city's endless possibilites. "If you dream it, you can do it."