opinion

Kmetz: The U.S. Census shapes our quality of life, Mid-Michigan must have accurate count

As the country’s attention has been fixated on coronavirus for the past few weeks, the 2020 Census quietly kicked off the every decade task of counting every person in the country.

Mid-Michigan’s ability to get an accurate count in this year’s Census will shape our region and quality of life for the next decade.

The U.S. Constitution (Article I, Section 2) mandates that a headcount of every person residing in the country happens every ten years. The very first Census happened in 1790 and has continued every ten years since then.

The Census dictates the number of seats Michigan has in Congress and how much federal money will be distributed to Michigan.

In 2016, Michigan received nearly $30 billion that ending up funding our local hospitals, Medicaid and Medicare programs, neighborhood schools, affordable housing and fixing the roads in our local communities.

The Capital Area United Way for the past year has partnered with local nonprofits and local governments to ensure that everyone is counted in the tri-county area. As trusted community partners, local nonprofits are working to ensure traditionally hard to count populations – such as homeless, low-income families, immigrants and students – don’t miss out on the Census this year.

For each person not counted, Michigan stands to lose at least $1,800 in federal funding a year or over $18,000 for the decade. Filling out our Census forms will ensure that the taxes we already pay, come back to our local communities instead of going to another state.

The Census is more convenient than ever before: It can be completed on-line at mycensus2020.com, by phone toll free at 844-330-2020, or by U.S. mail.

It should take the average person ten minutes to fill out.

There are only nine questions on this year’s form. They ask very basic demographic questions: Who lives in the household; how they are related; their age, sex, and race; whether they own or rent their house; and their phone number. We often share more personal information on social media than will be asked by the Census.

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The U.S. Census is confidential. Federal law does not allow Census information to be used for any purpose other than the Census. The information on the Census form cannot be shared with any government agency, private company, law enforcement agency, the courts or any individual.

For those that don’t complete their forms by April 30, a Census enumerator will be dispatched to your homes to try to get the information in person.

Take a few minutes during the “stay at home” order to fill out the Census. It will save you from having someone knock on your door later in the spring.

As we navigate through these unprecedented times, the Census has taken on more importance than ever before. Let’s make sure we have the resources we need in the Mid-Michigan area. Let’s make sure everyone is counted!

Teresa Kmetz is president and CEO of the Capital Area United Way.