By Megan Alley
Sun Reporter

The United States Census 2020 is April 1, and Clermont County leaders have organized their own Complete Count Committee to help increase awareness and encourage residents to participate in the count.

The census provides essential data that lawmakers, business owners, teachers, and many others use to provide daily services, products, and support for residents and the local community.

Every year, billions of dollars in federal funding go to hospitals, fire departments, schools, roads, and other resources based on census data, according to literature circulated by the Clermont Chamber of Commerce, a leader within the committee.

Complete Count Committees are volunteer committees established by tribal, state, and local governments and community leaders or organizations to increase awareness and motivate residents to respond to the 2020 Census, this from the U.S. Census Bureau.

Clermont County’s Complete Count Committee is comprised of representatives from Ohio Means Jobs, Clermont County Township and Mayors Associations, UC Clermont, Clermont County Safety Net Alliance, Duke Energy, and more.

The Clermont Sun is also a committee member, and is helping to disseminate information related to the census count effort.

The committee began as a policy committee, started by then Department of Community and Economic Development Director Andy Kuchta, Clermont Chamber of Commerce President/CEO Matt Van Sant, and a representative from Connect Clermont.

The group then connected with the U.S. Census Bureau, and in February, went through a prerequisite training to form a Complete Count Committee; the group is taking steps to try to make sure that Clermont County gets its share of the pie.

Financial allocations for offerings such as new schools and Head Start, Medicaid, new health care clinics, road infrastructure and senior services programs are all determined by data collected by the census.

Census data is also used to determine the number of seats each state will have in the U.S. House of Representatives, and it’s also used to shape congressional and state legislative districts.

Van Sant said of the committee’s purpose, “At the end of the day, our job is to create awareness, because every 10 years of counting is very important for a lot of reasons, including federal funding for important projects and programs in our community.”

By the middle of March, households will start receiving official Census Bureau mail with detailed information on how to respond to the census.

“If you are filling out the census for your home, you should count everyone who is living there as of April 1, 2020. This includes any friends or family members who are living and sleeping there most of the time,” reads the census flyer. It adds, “The U.S. Census Bureau is bound by law to protect your answers and keep them strictly confidential. Every employee takes an oath to protect your personal information for life. Your answers cannot be used against you by any government agency or court. The U.S. Census Bureau cannot release any personal information to law enforcement agencies.”

There are three ways to here are three ways to respond to the 2020 Census: online, by phone, or by mail.

To learn more about the 2020 Census or to apply for a position with the 2020 Census, visit www.USCensus.gov.