LYNN — With the city potentially losing $2,400 for every person who goes uncounted, community organization and municipal officials geared up Thursday to get the word out about the 2020 federal census.
Mandated by the U.S. Constitution and undertaken every 10 years, the census generates population counts that help determine how $675 billion in federal money, including transportation and school spending, gets allocated.
It also determines the number of seats each state has in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Lynn Economic Opportunity (LEO) chief program officer Lilian V. Romero was among 50 people who met in the City Council Chamber to discuss the high stakes involved in ensuring an accurate Lynn census count.
LEO provides services such as education help and fuel assistance to 8100 clients, including families with children, and Romero said it is crucial for families with children 5 years old and younger to get counted.
“Our focus is especially on the immigrant population and educating them about how they are impacted,” she said.
Romero and other speakers stressed census privacy requirements, including federal law prohibiting information identifying an individual and addresses from being released.
“I can’t stress enough the confidentiality of the census. We constantly get questions about it,” said Massachusetts Secretary of State’s office census project manager John Barr.
A citywide push has already started to inform residents about the census and make them aware of different ways to fill out census forms. For the first time, the census can be filled out over the telephone or online.
Some of the more than 50,000 census workers hired by the federal government to count Massachusetts’ population will begin knocking on local doors in early August.
But notifications and reminders about the census and explanations detailing its importance will be sent out during the winter and spring.
School Superintendent Dr. Patrick Tutwiler said administrators have started discussing ways to inform parents and guardians of 16,700 public school students’ about the census’ importance.
School officials plan to use an “all call” telephone system to reach out to families and provide census information. Census information forms will be sent home with report cards,Tutwiler said. He said the census will also be turned into classroom teachable moments.
School officials will also place added census education emphasis on 11 schools located in census tracts that posted low census responses in 2010.
Almost one-in-three residents living in 12 census tracts each representing several Lynn neighborhoods did not respond to the 2010 census. Another 10 census tracts reported 10 percent to 20 percent non-participation rates in 2010.
The tracts included parts of the Highlands; streets located off of Fayette and Essex streets, and neighborhoods located between Western Avenue and Lynn Common.
“With cuts in federal funding year after year, we need to get to every single person,” said state Rep. Peter Capano.
Census partnership specialist Drew Menter said census response rates will be monitored to determine if additional outreach needs to be made in specific census tracts.
Community organizer Michelle Guzman said Thursday’s meeting sets the stage for municipal leaders and community group representatives to devise strategies to inform residents about the census’ importance, including reaching out to Lynn worship places.
