The U.S. Census Complete Count Committees of Hays County and the City of San Marcos will introduce awareness of a census hotline during a Tuesday event at the Hays County Courthouse.

The committees will discuss the 2-1-1 hotline — a 24-hour, multilingual hotline established to help residents learn about the U.S. Census. Tuesday’s event will provide an opportunity for Hays County residents and business owners to learn more about this year’s census. Information materials will be provided to attendees on the 2020 Census.

The 2-1-1 hotline is a partnership between the Texas Health and Human Services Commission and the United Way For Greater Austin. Hays County received an $8,000 grant from the United Way For Greater Austin for its census-outreach. Additionally, Mano Amiga — a San Marcos based immigrant-rights organization, was granted $10,000 from the United Way For Greater Austin.

The county and city complete count committees have been working to ensure all residents in Hays County are recorded in the 2020 Census.

The San Marcos Complete Count Committee has outlined two goals: 1. The accurate identification of hard-to-count and underrepresented populations in the City of San Marcos. 2. The effective promotion of the Census and increase in self-response amount residents. The committee has identified these populations as its target: renters, Hispanic/Latino, young and mobile households, the most vulnerable and traditionally hard-to-count, children under 5, immigrants, elderly, those of disability and those experiencing homelessness or housing instability.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, approximately 25-30% of Hays County’s estimated population of 222,000 live in hard-to-count neighborhoods, including rural areas, student housing, areas populated by renters and non-English speaking residents, as well as the homeless population.

Texas, with a population of nearly 29 million, receives more than $43 billion in federal funds every year based on census data, according to Hays County. An undercount of just 1% could cost the state at least $300 million annually for a decade.

Hays County residents will begin to see Census invitations arrive and will have a choice of answering the Census by mail, phone, or online in March.

The county relies on a census date to help programs such as Medicaid, CHIP, SNAP, Highway Planning & Construction, Federal Pell Grant, Head Start, National School Lunch, Section 8 Housing Vouchers, WIC, Low Income Home Energy Assistance, Unemployment Insurance, CDBG Disaster Recover Grants, Historic Preservation Fund, Small Business Development

Tuesday's event begins at 11 a.m. at the Hays County Courthouse, 111 E. San Antonio St.