Census Get Out the Count Toolkit for State Legislators
The 2020 Census officially kicks off March 12th, when households across the country have started receiving mailed invitations with instructions to respond to the census.
State legislators have a uniquely strong platform and a responsibility to get out the count in communities all across the country. And SiX is here to help.
Offers sample digital content for legislators/staff to directly pull, adapt, and schedule (e.g. social media, graphics, website blurbs); and
Lists an extensive set of resources to help you tailor your outreach to different hard-to-count communities.
Feel free to email the SiX Democracy Team with any questions or for support.
Quick action step! Post SiX's census graphic and use this link to update your Facebook profile frame showing your support for the census!
How to Support a Fair and Accurate Census
Why Does the 2020 Census Matter?
Census data determine the allocation of more than $800 billion in annual federal funding and are often used in state and local policy making, decision making, and research. An inaccurate census in 2020 would jeopardize state funds for over 300 federal programs and compromise crucial supports for marginalized communities. Census data are also used for the reapportionment and redistricting processes and therefore vital to advancing a fair and representative democracy. Ensuring that all residents in your state are counted will require funding, coordination, and commitment from policymakers but will provide your constituents the resources and representation they deserve.
It’s critical for states to prepare now. Under SiX’s new Democracy Project, we’re working with legislators nationwide to support the census and to raise awareness of the count in local communities.
You can support the Census through legislation: If you're a legislator and want to support the Census in your state, review this 2020 Census Legislator Brief (email info@stateinnovation.org if you need the password). Created by SiX, Common Cause, and The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, the brief offers concrete policy and outreach guidance for legislators working to ensure the 2020 Census is fair and accurate. You can also email democracy@stateinnovation.org to learn about additional, innovative census bills and initiatives.
You can also use your platform as an elected official to highlight the importance of the 2020 Census and drive participation in your community:
Hold a town hall, telephone town hall, or Facebook Live session with representatives from local Complete Count Committees or organizations serving hard-to-count communities.
Submit an op-ed or Letter to the Editor highlighting the importance of the census for your community and the need for full funding and preparation.
Highlight the census in your newsletter. Outline what’s at stake for your community and let folks know about census jobs coming to your area.
Post on social media using the hashtags #CountMeIn and #2020Census and share content from census experts and advocates.
Record a video that highlights how you’re supporting the 2020 Census as a state legislator. Share it on social media using #CountMeIn, tag @StateInnovation and send to democracy@stateinnovation.org for SiX to include an upcoming video project!
SiX is launching the Democracy Project, a new program to ensure progressive state legislators across the country have the resources and support they need in order to champion democracy issues in their states. Email democracy@stateinnovation.org to join.
The Census Is a Year Away: How State Legislators are Ensuring a Fair & Accurate Count
DENVER, Colo. – Advocates across the nation are recognizing April 1, 2019, as Census Day of Action, marking a year until the 2020 Census begins. Every ten years, the federal government conducts a census to track changes in population and demography, and this data is used for important determinations related to how federal, state, and local actors allocate their resources, essential public research, and the determination of future political representation. State legislators play a crucial role in ensuring that all people count.
Census data determine the allocation of more than $800 billion in annual federal funding and are often used in state and local policy making, decision making, and research. An inaccurate census in 2020 would jeopardize funding for a range of programs and services like fire departments, highways, hospitals, and the national school lunch program. It would also compromise crucial supports for all communities – white, black, and brown alike. Census data are also used for the processes to draw local, state and federal political maps – known as reapportionment and redistricting – and therefore are vital to advancing a fair and representative democracy.
“Progressive lawmakers across the country are using their voices and their positions to ensure every single resident in their state is counted, fairly, accurately and without fear in 2020,” said SiX Executive Director Jessie Ulibarri. “State legislators recognize that critical resources and electoral representation are at stake for their communities. We recognize that all people must count and applaud legislators who are dedicating resources to reach hard-to-count groups such as communities of color, low-income communities, immigrants, and young children.”
Below is an overview of various state legislation to support a fair and accurate census. So far this year, at least 59 bills from 25 states have been introduced to support 2020 Census preparation and participation. Most bills aim to do one or more of the following:
Authorize state Complete Count Committees
Fund Census outreach programs with an emphasis on hard-to-count communities
Condemn the inclusion of the citizenship question
End prison gerrymandering
State Complete Count Committees (CCCs): CCCs are encouraged to reflect each state’s diversity and will work to raise awareness of the Census, develop messaging plans tailored to their constituents, identify and engage hard-to-count communities, and motivate full participation in 2020.
There are currently at least 14 bills from eight states that would establish state CCCs (Connecticut, Florida, Indiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Nebraska, Nevada, Oklahoma, Texas, and West Virginia). These are in addition to the nearly 20 states that have successfully established CCCs through legislation, executive order, or a combination of the two over the last two years.
A notable bill in Massachusetts would create a Massachusetts Census Equity Commission with a particular focus on undercounted communities. The bill proposes a diverse and distinctive set of membership requirements, including appointees from the Senate Black and Latino Caucus and House Asian Legislative Caucus; representatives from agencies and organizations serving refugees and homeless persons; a representative from the Wampanoag tribe; and youth, elderly, and renter representatives.
Citizenship Question: Perhaps the most visible and controversial aspect of 2020 Census preparation has been the Trump administration’s last-minute attempt to add an untested citizenship question—a move that would depress participation by noncitizens and mixed-immigration-status households and reduce census accuracy.
Legislators in Georgia, New Mexico, Nevada, and Pennsylvania have introduced resolutions this year that declare strong opposition to the citizenship question and urge the federal government not to include it on the 2020 questionnaire.
Fund the Census and Reach Hard-to-Count Communities: Legislators across the country are proposing substantial appropriations for census education and outreach efforts that target hard-to-count communities. By funding robust outreach and preparation today, states can secure millions—or possibly billions—of federal dollars in the future.
A bill recently introduced in Colorado (CO HB19-1239) would establish a 2020 Census outreach grant program with a budget of $12 million to fund local governments and community organizations “to conduct 2020 census outreach, promotion, and education to focus on hard-to-count communities in the state and to increase the self-response rate and accuracy of the 2020 census.”
Illinois lawmakers have proposed at least six bills that would appropriate substantial funding for census outreach and education efforts. Proposed appropriations range from $17 million to $33 million.
Over the last two years, the California legislature has appropriated over $100 million dollars for census activities through several bills.
Minnesota legislators (2019 MN HF 1644) are working to ensure that Census Bureau employees have access to apartment buildings and other residential facilities. Renters and individuals living in multi-unit buildings are often hard-to-count, and are therefore undercounted, in the census
Ending Prison Gerrymandering: The practice of counting incarcerated Americans as residents of the town where they are imprisoned rather than in their home community distorts local and state representation and leads to a hidden transfer of political power from urban to rural areas.
At least 15 bills from 11 states have been introduced that would end prison gerrymandering and count incarcerated individuals at their last known home address. These bills have been proposed in Arizona, Connecticut, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Texas, and have already passed one legislative chamber in New Jersey (2019 NJ S 758) and Washington (2019 WA SB 5287).