As we’ve spoken with people during the last couple of months about census outreach, one theme has become clear: many people still have hesitations about completing their 2020 Census questionnaires. Reasons include not realizing that the census brings funding to their community, feeling doubtful that funding would be distributed, or reluctance to provide personal information to the federal government.
Read MoreA lot is going on in our lives right now, but we hope you will take 5 minutes to join us to support a fair and accurate census count. Like you, we at CTData care about an accurate count in Census 2020. There is funding, representation, and data at stake. We are concerned that the U.S. Census Bureau has recently shortened the timeline for the decennial count and that Congress isn’t funding census operations at a level that meets the needs in Connecticut and other states.
Turn on any news outlet and data privacy and accuracy sit at the forefront of the conversation. No organization is too small or too large to outwit potential privacy breaches, not even the federal government.
Read MoreHealth care, the economy, major events, our day-to-day lives—Covid-19 has spared nothing on its path of disruption. Even the census had to adjust its 230-year-old process to prioritize the health and safety of census takers (workers) and respondents.
Read MoreAs the response rate in Connecticut nears 65%, our recent analysis shows that there are still many tracts that are struggling to increase their self-response rates. While we don’t typically think about the world around us as census tracts, they allow us to really focus our efforts on encouraging people to be counted in very specific areas.
There are two tools you will learn about in this post. First is the U.S. Census Bureau’s own Response Rates map. The second is the Census 2020 Hard to Count Map. I use both for different purposes, and by the end of this post, you will be using them, too.
Read MoreOur analysis of Census 2020 self-response rates in Connecticut by tract with demographic characteristics found that many tracts in Connecticut are struggling with their self-response rate. These include rates lower than Connecticut’s average among our major cities, tracts with over 50% Hispanic or black residents, tracts with fewer home-owners and more multi-family homes, tracts that received bilingual census mailings, and tracts with less Internet access. Learn more about the details and resources you can access to support these tracts.
Read MoreConnecticut remained in 15th place among the 50 states this week. As of May 12 the self-response rate was 62.6%, getting us closer to our 2010 final self-response rate of 69.5%. Each of the municipalities that have the highest self-response rates were within 4 percentage points of their final 2010 rate as of May 12, 2020. However, seven towns in Connecticut that have surpassed their 2010 self-response rate as of May 12, 2020 get to celebrate. Sprague reached their 2010 rate (43.8%) earliest on April 15. This town also saw the large surge from their 2010 rate, at 57.4% as of May 12, over thirteen percentage points above their 2010 rate. Colebrook met their 2010 rate and joined the club as of May 9.
Read MoreWhat you need to know: Changes to the 2020 Census timeline will likely leave state legislators with little time to redraw Connecticut’s congressional and legislative districts if needed. Clarification to the state constitution is urgently needed to ensure that the legislature—not the court—can determine Connecticut’s districts.
Read MoreAs of Monday, May 4, 2020, Connecticut’s self-response rate hit 60% and moved the state up to 15th place among the 50 states. Last week 91, or 54% of Connecticut’s towns, had self-response rates at or above 60%. This week, 119, or 70%, of our towns are above 60% self-response rates. Tolland claimed the top spot again with a self-response rate of 76.5%. Other towns with a high self-response rate included Marlborough (75.9%), Burlington (75.1%), Orange and Granby (74.4%), and Cheshire (74.3%).
Read MoreAs of Monday, April 27, 2020, 54% of Connecticut’s towns had self-response rates at or above 60%. While last week, 28 towns had self-response rates at or above 60%, this week, 91, or 54% of Connecticut’s towns, had self-response rates at or above 60%. Tolland claimed the top spot again with a self-response rate of 72.4%. Other towns with a high self-response rate included Marlborough (71.4%), Burlington (70.7%), Cheshire (69.9%), and Simsbury (69.6%).
Read MoreAs of Monday, April 20, 2020, six of Connecticut’s towns saw a week-over-week increase of more than 12%. A week ago on April 13, Windham County had the lowest self-response rate at 45.7%, putting it in last place among Connecticut’s counties. However, as of April 20 it came in second-to-last with a 50.4% self-response rate, with Litchfield County slightly lower (49.6%).
Read MoreAs of Monday, April 13, 2020, 50.3% of Connecticut residents had responded to the 2020 Census. That puts Connecticut 17th among the 50 states. Connecticut dropped 3 spots from last week and ranked 17th among the 50 states. Minnesota led the way with a rate of 58.1%, and Alaska lagged with a rate of 32.4%.
Read MoreAs of Tuesday, April 7, 2020, 47.6% of Connecticut residents had responded to the 2020 Census. That puts us 14th among the 50 states. This is up from 23rd on March 23. Minnesota leads the way with a rate of 55.2%, and Alaska lags with a rate of 29.4%.
Read MoreAs of Tuesday, March 31, 2020, 37.6% of Connecticut residents had responded to 2020 Census. That puts us 19th among the 50 states. This is up from 23rd on March 23. Wisconsin leads the way with a rate of 44.3%, and Alaska is last with a rate of 22%. Connecticut performs better than two of its neighbors, Rhode Island (35.1%) and New York (31.1%), but lags behind Massachusetts (38.3%).
Read MoreIn the United States, women must work an average of 3 extra months each year to earn the same as men. Equal Pay Day, March 31, 2020, commemorates this wage gap by marking “how far into the year women must additionally work to earn what men earned in the previous year.” In other words, women, on average, must work 15 months to earn the income men earn in 12 months.
Read MoreEveryone’s lives have been upended due to the novel coronavirus. You may be reading this from your home “office” (dining table, kitchen counter, your child’s fort…). You and others in your community also may have college students staying with you since classes have moved online. The coronavirus has also affected census operations, but one thing hasn’t changed—college students should be counted where they would have been residing on April 1.
Read MoreBetween Thursday, March 12 and Friday, March 20, Connecticut residents can expect to receive a Census notification in the mail. The official Census Bureau invitation, to be delivered by the U.S. Postal Service, will include detailed information on how to respond to the 2020 Census. Individuals responding submit one Census form listing everyone who lives in their household.
Read MoreYou are probably already aware that there are certain groups that are at higher risk of being undercounted in any census. And you may be aware of some of the groups in your own community.
But what can you do to help each person in your community be counted?
Read MoreDid you know that Connecticut receives $10.7 billion from the federal government each year based on the decennial census count? Yet the U.S. Census bureau projects a 55% self-response rate in 2020, compared to a 74% self-response rate in 2010. Which is why the recruitment and hiring of Census Enumerators is so important.
Read MoreWith the 2020 decennial Census happening this Spring, it is important for communities to work together to make sure that everyone is counted. We rely on these dollars to support services and infrastructure within our communities. In fact, for every person not counted, Connecticut loses approximately $2,900 in funding to other states, as well as funding for important community services and infrastructure.
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