Local group urges residents to complete census
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FLATHEAD RESERVATION – Once every ten years, the federal government counts residents of the United States, and a local group is working to ensure that residents of the Flathead Reservation are included in the 2020 count.
The census is available for completion at mycensus2020.org. It takes less than ten minutes to fill out form, which must be completed in one session. Residents can use a computer, tablet, or smartphone to fill out the census. Those who did not receive an invitation to fill out the census by mail should still complete it online. The last day to fill out the census is Oct. 31.
The local community will benefit if everyone is counted. Census data is used to allocate government resources and determine representation in government. Census data is private and cannot be used by law enforcement or any government entity except for the census bureau. So far, participation on the Flathead Reservation has been lower than in other areas in the country.
Mary Stranahan, member of the Flathead Reservation’s Complete Count Committee, said the most important reason to complete the census is that if more people are counted, their communities could qualify for more financial support. “Number one is that our state, county, and city grants are all based on the census,” she said.
The census count also determines each state’s representation in government. According to population estimates by the Census Bureau, Montana could be in the running for a second representative in the federal House of Representatives if the census reflects population growth in the state. Today, the state has only one representative in the house. Another representative would mean Montana would have a greater influence on politics in Washington.
State census workers and volunteers from the Complete Count Committee will attend each of the COVID-19 testing events across the reservation next week. They will be distributing water bottles along with information on how to fill out the census to those who attend the testing events.
The mass testing events will be held at the Arlee Powwow grounds on June 17, the SKC gym parking lot on June 18, Polson High School on June 19, and the Elmo Powwow grounds on June 20. All events will run from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
According to the Census Bureau, Montana has the eighth lowest response rate to the census in the country. Reservations have among the lowest response rates in Montana. Residents of the Flathead Reservation have the chance to improve representation of Native Americans in the census, if they complete the paperwork. More information about the census can be found at my2020census.gov.
