By: Molly Rosenthal, Healthy Mendocino Coast Coordinator
It has never been easier and safer to respond to the census. The 2020 nation-wide survey marks the first time residents will be able to self-report online-- a process that suits our current lifestyle of social distancing and sheltering at home.
On March 12th, the first round of invites was mailed out to households across the country that included instructions for responding online, by phone, or mail by July 31st. Higher self-response rates mean fewer people are likely to be missed or counted inaccurately and our community has a better chance at receiving our fair share of services and political representation. It also means fewer households will have a census enumerator knocking on their doors this summer.
The census data collected every decade guides more than $675 billion to our communities each year for roads, housing, emergency preparations, schools and hospitals. In addition, the count determines how much representation our state receives in Congress.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Mendocino County has some of the highest hard-to-count-tracts in the country, potentially costing the county millions in funding. The Bureau’s Hard to Count Map shows that in 2010, Mendocino County had a self-response rate of 53.6% and an overall average response rate of 73%, with north county reporting in at just 40%. As a result, more than a quarter of Mendocino County’s potential funding was diverted elsewhere.
The County of Mendocino aims to generate a 75% count this census. To reach that goal, they partnered with The Community Foundation of Mendocino County to form the Mendocino Counts! 2020 Census project and the Mendocino County Complete Count Committee (MCCCC). MCCCC, spearheaded by Community Foundation board member Paula Cohen, is a county-wide collaboration that provides education and outreach to maximize census response, particularly among the hard-to-count populations. Representatives from city, county and state government, family resource centers, education, healthcare, tribes and outlying communities have a seat at the table.
“As is so often the case, these kinds of things end up being dependent on champions within communities,” said Miranda Ramos, Co-Project Manager of the Mendocino Counts project. “We continue to work to identify and build productive and trusting relationships with those champions and provide them with the resources they need to champion within their own community.”
Challenges Generating an Accurate Count
The geographic isolation and lack of infrastructure in our rural county provides unique barriers to obtaining an accurate count. While the new approach to self-responding online is intended to increase numbers, the lack of broadband service and phone access particularly in outlying communities raises concerns.
The Mendocino Counts project set out to tackle this challenge by installing census kiosks in public locations throughout the county but the county-wide shelter-in-place mandate to slow the spread of coronavirus has somewhat thwarted these plans. The kiosks that are already set up will remain in place for use after the health order is lifted. In the meantime, MCCCC members and Mendocino Counts have shifted their focus to encouraging people to take the census at home, or with a friend’s internet or on neighbor’s phone if they do not have access to such utilities.
Ramos says asking people to go online to self-report also produces an additional layer of anxiety. In a world where data breaches are commonplace, people may feel apprehensive about entering their personal information online. For the MCCC, it’s a matter of making sure the public, especially vulnerable populations such as the elderly, are aware the census will never ask for a social security number, a credit card number or other sensitive information.
“A lot of us have fears or concerns about sharing our personal information,” said Ramos. “But if you’ve registered children for school, gone to a doctor’s appointment or have a utility bill, you’re already providing more info than what you’re being asked to provide in the census.”
Another challenge is the pervasive distrust of government. Our residents are private people, some of which have undocumented immigration status. Ramos says in order to allay fears, MCCC is working to engage with people where they already are and where they feel safe.
Spreading the Word
On the coast, MCCCC partnered with the English as Second Language (ESL) instructor at the Fort Bragg Coastal Adult School to hold important pláticas, or conversations, with Spanish-speaking residents. This was an open and safe forum for the Latinx community to gain information and ask questions about the census.
Anderson Valley has embraced their own regional collaborative to get the word out about the census, convening a committee representing healthcare, fire department, education and the Anderson Valley Winegrowers Association. The annual Anderson Valley Variety Show held in early March included a skit about the importance of taking the census. With support from MCCC and Community Foundation in the form of pencils and pens, Anderson Valley Elementary asked their students to fill out the census with their parents as a homework assignment.
Late last year, Mendocino County Office of Education (MCOE) trained a small group on the Census Count Me In Curriculum. Created by the Los Angeles County Office of Education, this curriculum takes students grade 5 and up through a historical study of the Census and asks them to create a campaign to educate their families and communities for a complete count. MCOE continues to promote this curriculum and make it available for anyone that wishes to use it. School districts have also been introduced to Statistics in Schools, curriculum for all grade levels developed by the US Census Bureau to bring school subjects to life using real-world Census Bureau statistics.
“Particularly with middle and high school kids, a lot of them 10 years from now will be filling out the next census,” said Ramos. “If that’s something that can be part of the curriculum on an on-going basis in schools, we can start fostering the understanding and motivation to complete the census as we go forward.”
North Coast Opportunities (NCO) is looking at unique methods to reach residents including mailings, text, and phone banking. In addition, the county-wide non-profit is encouraging their staff to talk about the census with their clients. NCO’s New Digs program staff are including a plug about the census as they conduct a needs assessment with 300 of their clients that have touched the program in the last few years.
Coronavirus and the Census
In response to the coronavirus concerns, the U.S. Census Bureau is adjusting census taker and survey operations as necessary and suspending all field operations in order to follow the guidance of federal, state and local health authorities.
The Bureau announced adjustments to their census operations last month to protect the health and safety of staff and the public while still delivering the 2020 census by December 31st of this year. All in-person early nonresponse follow-up will be postponed until mid-April. However, that timeframe is subject to change given the rapidly evolving coronavirus landscape. In addition, The Bureau is encouraging group quarters operations, responsible for counting dorms, hospitals, skilled nursing facilities and individuals experiencing homelessness, to improvise creative ways to generate an accurate count while reducing in-person contact. Some suggested solutions include encouraging more widespread e-response or supporting facilities to conduct self-enumeration.
With the in-person count efforts pushed back, The Community Foundation, the Mendocino Counts 20202 Census project and MCCCC continue to focus on social media, radio print and other channels to ensure the community is fully aware that the census can be taken online and over the phone in the comfort of home.
“This is an opportunity to say ‘I’m here. I count. I contribute to the financial well-being of this country. Those federal dollars should come back to my community to make my community a better place. I’m saying I’m here, so send them here,” said Ramos.
Apply to become a census enumerator
How’re we doing? Check out our county response rate
Mendocino Counts 2020 Census project and the Mendocino County Complete Count Committee
The Community Foundation of Mendocino County
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Molly Rosenthal is the North Coast Action Team Coordinator for Healthy Mendocino. She has a BA in Journalism from San Francisco State University and has worked in legal services, volunteer management and non-profit development.
Author:
Molly Rosenthal
Resource Date:
March 31, 2020
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