On March 4th, Regan Stolarski, GP Chamber of Commerce Director of Admiration and Liz Vogel, Clinton Township Deputy Supervisor gave an educational presentation on The 2020 census.
The census is important for three reasons: (1) it determines the number of seats the State has in Congress; (2) it determines the allocation of government money; and (3) it is mandated by the U.S. Constitution.
Ms. Stolarski noted that the 2010 census brought in $1,800 annually per person in the State of Michigan over the past 10 years. The Grosse Pointes, surprisingly, didn’t have a near 100% participation rate, which means not all of the available government funds were allocated to our area. These funds are used for services such as Hospice care and to provide federal student loans and Pell Grants.
For this year’s census, a postcard will be mailed out to each household explaining how to complete the form online. If not completed in a reasonable amount of time, reminder postcards will follow. After that, the actual form will be mailed out and, finally, a census taker will knock on each individual’s door.
Liz is trying to use every available dollar to promote the census. In addition to determining how government funds are allocated, the data gathered is used by businesses when deciding whether to open a location in a particular city.
Both of our speakers’ roles are to reach out to the public to eliminate some of the hurdles, such as distrust in the government, by explaining what it means to their community, and possibly their family, to accurately fill out the form. They are also reaching out to stakeholders - business owners and civic leaders - to promote the importance of completing the census.