Time to Be Counted

by Nancy Hogland

 

Although reports from the U.S. Census Bureau show that Camden County has the lowest percentage of mail-back responses to questionnaire, officials said it may not be as bad as it seems.

Both Assistant Regional Census Manager Rich Gerdes and Jerry Taylor, who heads up the Columbia, Mo. Census office, said the 39-percent response rate was based on the number of homes counted in the area rather than the number of residents.
“And that can be a problem because many, many homes in that area are second homes and not occupied on a year-round basis. Its kind-of a quirk in the system,” Taylor said.

He said that last year canvassers equipped with GPS systems traveled down every gravel road and dirt path they could find in order to pinpoint the location of all existing houses. All of the Camden County homes and a large portion of the homes in Miller and Morgan counties will be visited this spring by Census employees who will be hand-delivering the forms, leaving them where they’ll be easily found by homeowners but not be conspicuous to potential burglars.

“We’re asking that everyone mail them back – even second home owners who don’t live at the Lake. We would just like them to enter ‘Zero’ as the number of occupants or jot down a note that they don’t live in the area and that they already filled a Census form out in their home town,” said Gerdes, adding that to be considered a full-time resident, the person must reside in the home more than six months of the year. “So college students who live at the Lake nine months out of the year and then go home in the summer need to list their Lake address as their home – not their parents’ address, as do snowbirds who winter in Arizona or Florida.”

He said they are asking for the forms to be returned by April 1. Those that aren’t returned will result in a follow-up home visit by a Census worker.

“And we won’t give up until we know we’ve reached everyone,” Gerdes promised. “The Census takers will be working day time, evening and weekends in an attempt to catch every person. If all else fails, we’ll even attempt to talk to a neighbor to see if the house is occupied on a full-time basis. It’s too important to skip people.”

He said not only is the political power of a state determined by the number of its residents, some $400 billion in funding is based on the final tally.

“This count will decide if Missouri should add or subtract from the House of Representatives. It will also determine the amount of money that’s made available for free lunches at the schools, roads, funding for daycare centers – you name it. We want to make sure we count every single person so Missouri gets every bit of money it’s qualified to receive,” Gerdes said.

For those who need help filling out the Census form, Gerdes said more than a dozen “Be Counted” sites will be established around the area. The locations of those sites will be advertised as soon as they are finalized, Taylor said.

To ensure quick but thorough coverage of the area, approximately 1,000 people will be hired to cover a 14-county area in mid-Missouri, with many of those working in Camden, Miller and Morgan counties. Another 1,000 will be hired for the Springfield coverage area. To be considered, job seekers should call 866-861-2010.

“Callers will be asked to enter their zip codes and then they’ll be asked to take a short test over the phone to judge their abilities and knowledge of the area. If they qualify for a position, they’ll then have to undergo a background check and FBI fingerprinting check to make sure they’re not detrimental to the community,” he said. “We don’t care if someone has had a parking ticket but we sure don’t want registered sex offenders out visiting houses.”

He said while the jobs are temporary, many will last until fall. The rate of pay ranges from $9 to $15 per hour plus mileage.

From the Census Bureau:

The official U.S. Census, described in Article I, Section 2 of the Constitution, calls for an actual enumeration of the people every 10 years to be used for apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives. The first official Census was conducted in 1790 under Thomas Jefferson, who was the Secretary of State. That census, taken by U.S. marshals on horseback, counted 3.9 million inhabitants.

∙In 2000, the U.S. population was set at 281,424,602.

∙In 2008 the estimated population of Camden County was 40,664 (a 9.8 percent growth over 2000). The same year, Missouri’s population was at 5,911,605 (a 5.6 percent growth over 2000).

∙Persons 18 and younger make up 19.9 percent of the Camden County population; 24.2 percent statewide

∙Persons 65 and older account for 19.7 percent of the county as opposed to 13.4 percent statewide

∙The total number of Camden County housing units in 2007 was 35,577 – a 6.3 percent growth over 2000

∙The homeownership rate has remained steady over the past several years at 82.2 percent.