With Census Day just a year away, Oregon is well positioned to gain another representative in the U.S. House and to continue receiving nearly $14 billion per year in federal funding. But that all depends on a successful effort to tally the number of residents in every county across the state.
On Thursday, April 4, the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners will announce the official start of the 2020 Census countdown with a resolution acknowledging collaborative efforts by the State of Oregon, Metro, Washington and Clackamas counties, and the cities of Portland and Gresham. The year-long awareness campaign leads up to Census Day on April 1, 2020 when the federal government conducts a complete count of all United States residents.
“A successful Census is absolutely critical for Multnomah County, which receives a significant portion of the federal dollars allocated to Oregon,” said Commissioner Lori Stegmann, who is leading Multnomah County’s Census effort. “Every single resident needs to be counted.”
Commissioner Stegmann has been appointed as Multnomah County’s representative on the Oregon Complete Count Committee, the 2020 Census advisory body to Oregon Governor Kate Brown. The committee is charged with promoting the 2020 Census to ensure a fair and accurate count for Oregon at a statewide level. At the local level, similar efforts will take place in Multnomah County through a Complete Count Committee which Commissioner Stegmann hopes will have representatives from each city and partners in education, advocacy, health, as well as community based organizations, and faith-based partners.
The Census, which takes place every 10 years, affects Congressional and state legislative boundaries and Electoral College votes. It also determines funding for Medicaid reimbursement, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Women Infants and Children (WIC), school lunches, highway planning, and foster care, just to name a few. Emergency services, fair market rent, and businesses are also affected by the Census.
In order to receive the federal resources the region is entitled to, County leaders have made it a high priority to make sure that everyone gets counted. That especially applies to historically harder to count communities, such as renters, homeless residents, and those who speak a language other than English.
“Our desire is to focus as many resources as we can on Multnomah County, so that we can best serve the communities who rely on our services,” Commissioner Stegmann said. “The impact of a complete count is especially important in East County, where many of our most vulnerable residents live.” There are several barriers for a complete count. While this year’s census will be conducted online for the first time, that is also a challenge for those with limited internet access. The U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments in April regarding the inclusion of a controversial citizenship question which many fear will be a deterrent to complete the survey.
“It’s important that we reach communities we haven’t historically counted well,” said Commissioner Stegmann, “The U.S. Census Bureau is hiring field staff and census takers right now, we want to make sure they represent all of our communities.”
Are you interested in working on the 2020 U.S. Census? To assist with gathering Census data, the Census Bureau is hiring hundreds of local workers. Applications are open on the Census Bureau job site. For information about Multnomah County’s Complete Count Committee efforts, please contact Commissioner Stegmann’s office at District4@multco.us.