News

Friday, March 5, 2010

Census 2010

Excerpt from a message from Congresswoman Lois Capps

Conducted every 10 years, the U.S. Census provides a clear picture of the state of our American family. It counts all of us, to be sure, but it also guides critical decision making and helps improve the efficiency of government on all levels. Census data guide local officials on where to build new roads, hospitals, childcare and senior citizen centers, and schools. And census data is also used for everything from improving disaster response to making disease prevention efforts more effective. So the Census needs to be accurate.

In addition, Census data determine how more than $400 billion in federal funding is distributed to state and local governments, which means a complete and accurate count is critical to ensuring California gets its fair share of federal dollars. And the Census determines the number of Congressional Representatives each state is allowed. If all residents of California are not counted, then our state’s voice in Washington will be diminished for the next decade.

Here are some important upcoming dates for the 2010 Census, including:

• March 2010: Census questionnaires are mailed or delivered to households.
• April 1, 2010: Census Day
• May – July 2010: Census takers visit households that did not return a questionnaire by mail.

As your Representative in Congress, I am committed to helping achieve a complete and accurate count of our growing and changing population in 2010. For more information, please visit californiacompletecount.org or 2010.census.gov.