Why completing the 2020 Census is so important

Why completing the 2020 Census is so important

Out our website at wdef dot com for the full list.

The 2020 census might be one of the most important things you can do for your community.

It happens every 10 years and it's going on now.

We explain why it's important and how one county is working to get a more accurate number of its residents.

If you have not filled out the census, now is the time to do it.

Doing so ensures communities get their fair cut of billions of dollars of federal funding.

U.s. census bureau representative june iljana: "education, health care, roads.

All of the components that the government, the services that the government provides to our communities are in some way based on our census count.

Other things like grants for parks or for fire departments, community improvements those things also rely on getting an accurate count of everyone in the community."

Response is required by law by everyone.

You won't be asked for a social security number, citizenship status or financial information.

U.s. census bureau representative june iljana: "the risk of not responding to the census is that your community will not receive the resources that it desperately needs over the next decade to support the health and development and growth of the community."

Having an accurate number is important and completing the census on your own can help in getting a more accurate number.

In 2010, only 35 percent of households completed the census on their own in grundy county.

And after a report was conducted, the mayor says they found that thousands may have not been counted resulting in the loss of millions of dollars of funding for the county and its rural communities.

Grundy county michael brady: "close to 3000 addresses that were unaccounted for so if you do that number roughly 1500 dollars a head you know you're close to 10.5 million dollars in a distressed...challenged community that is significant.

So that's why the census is so vitally important."

The mayor says that for this census they've been reaching out to people through a committee.

People can do the census online this year which could be helping.

While the county's current self-response rate is at 45 percent.

Grundy county michael brady: "one of the things that we're getting ready to do is some of the local hot spots have folks there that can aid folks to put their census information online."

The census is completely confidential.

In addition to online, you can also do the census over the phone and by-mail.

In hamilton county, the self-response rate is 63 percent.

Folks have until the end of october to