Ohio Farmer

April 1 has been designated the nationwide U.S. Census Day.

January 30, 2020

2 Min Read
2020 Census mailer
CENSUS BEGINS: Starting in mid-March, information on completing the 2020 census will be mailed to every address in America. WildandFree/Getty Images

This year is a census year. Taking a count of every person in the country is mandated by the U.S. Constitution every decade, and next year it will be easier than ever to be counted. 

Results of the census impact federal community funding, as well as representation in Congress. 

Starting in mid-March, information on completing the census will be mailed to every address in America, with detailed instructions on how to complete the form.

The U.S. Census Bureau has designated April 1 as the nationwide “Census Day” —the day that the “snapshot” of the country will take place. Everyone is encouraged to count themselves wherever they are on that day. The census will be able to be completed online for the first time, as well as through the mail and via telephone. Door-to-door census takers will visit households in May and June in an attempt to record anyone who has not already been counted.

“The goal is to count everyone just one time,” says Gwen Wolford, a U.S. Census Bureau partnership specialist in central Ohio. And by everyone, she means everyone. “Children under 5 years old are the most undercounted group in the country,” she says. “Imagine what that might do to child or school resources in a community [if they aren’t counted).”

Census data shared with no one

It also includes any workers — migrant or H-2A — who might be living on a farm in Ohio. The data collection serves no other purpose than to allocate $675 billion across the country for local programs, services and representation, Wolford stresses.

“The U.S. Census doesn’t share data with anyone,” she says. “Not law enforcement or ICE [U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement]. No one.”

Wolford is working with county complete-count committees in central Ohio to spread the word about participating in the census at a local level.

Ohio Farm Bureau volunteers will be serving on those county census committees throughout the state to make sure everyone living in a rural area completes the census.

John Grafton, Jefferson County Farm Bureau vice president, is serving on Gov. Mike DeWine’s Census 2020 Complete Count Commission to help communicate the importance of the 2020 census in rural areas.

He says making sure every individual is counted is critical.

“It’s amazing who uses those numbers,” he says. “Religious organizations, government grants … it’s good that we have these counts from time to time. The population may be a little thin in our rural areas, and if you want those dollars and those representatives in Congress, you have to be counted.”

Visit the Ohio 2020 Census website for more information, or the U.S. Census 2020 website.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, which is solely responsible for the information provided and is wholly owned by the source. Informa Business Media and all its subsidiaries are not responsible for any of the content contained in this information asset.

 

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