Last year, Chester County established the Complete Count Committee (CCC) to conduct public outreach aimed at hard-to-count residents. These may include temporary residents (e.g. college students or farm workers) the elderly, or recent immigrants who are less likely to fill out forms due to a lack of familiarity or general distrust of government.
From now through February, the CCC is seeking organizations that wish to promote the 2020 Census by becoming a Census Champion. A Census Champion is a civic group, business, government entity, social service organization, educational facility, or other organization that voluntarily agrees to promote the 2020 Census to individuals with whom they interact. You can learn more about the Census Champion Program at www.chesco.org/planning/cccc.
The primary goal of a Census Champion is to conduct outreach aimed at communities most likely to be undercounted during the 2020 Census. Current Census Champions include the United Way of Chester County, the Phoenixville Senior Center, and the Maternal and Child Health Consortium of Chester County.
The CCC recently developed brochures, posters, and other outreach materials for Census Champions to help them promote the census to their clients and communities. All of these materials can be download from the CCC website: www.chesco.org/planning/cccc.
According to the Pennsylvania State Data Center, the investment made per person by the federal government every year in our state is $2,093. Therefore, if just 0.5% of Chester County’s 2018 estimated population (522,046) are not counted in the 2020 census, there would be an under count of 2,610 residents and a potential loss of $5.5 million in federal funding to Chester County each year. A 1% under count could result in an annual loss of 10.9 million, while a 2% under count could mean a loss of $21.9 million.
If you have any questions please contact me at chescocensus@chesco.org or 610-344-6285.
