SHARE:
Six things to know about the U.S. Census and Florida
5 The Census Is Confidential
By law, the federal government must keep responses to the Census survey confidential and use them only for statistical purposes — published Census statistics can’t reveal any information about particular individuals, households or businesses. Census Bureau employees also take a lifetime oath to protect the privacy and confidentiality of respondents’ data. They can face fines and jail time if they violate it.
It wasn’t always that way, though. From 1709 through 1879, Census records were unprotected, and U.S. marshals posted them in public places for anyone to inspect. The Census Act of 1879 put an end to that, and Congress codified the rules in 1954.
6 What’s at Stake
House seats and federal funding aren’t the only prizes at stake in the 2020 Census. Census data is used for redrawing election districts for Congress and the state Legislature, as well as the boundaries for school boards, city councils and other local government entities.
Non-profits also rely on the data for their grant-making decisions. Companies use Census data to make business decisions. “If Walmart wants to put in a store, they’re going to base it on population clusters in neighborhoods, and if some areas are undercounted, they’re not going to have the weight that they should,” Santos explains. “It’s the same for elementary schools or high schools or fire stations.”
Missing Kids
By analyzing birth records, death certificates and immigration data, the Census Bureau estimates it missed about 1 million children under age 5 nationwide — including about 90,000 kids in Florida — in the 2010 Census. And although undercounts of some groups have decreased in recent years, the undercounting of children has actually gone up. To get at the problem, the Census Bureau has updated wording on its 2020 forms. For instance, instead of asking about “everyone living or staying at this address,” the bureau asks about “… all adults, children, and babies living or staying at this address.”
Read more in Florida Trend's October issue.
Select from the following options:
* offer valid for new subscribers only
