The importance of an accurate count for Census 2020 is the goal behind a Maysville-Mason County Area Chamber of Commerce membership meeting in January.
The meeting is among the first of events organized by a local Census 2020 committee which includes Mason County Judge-Executive Joe Pfeffer, Committee Chair Robert Roe and members Judy Birt, Kevin Wells, Rick Ross, George Larger, Allison Adams, Macy Fawns, Gerry Schumacher, Melissa Greenwell, Rev. Bob Hudson, Brady Schultz, Vickie Steigleder, Karen Coburn, Tonya Wenz and Owen McNeill.
The committee is charged with developing and implementing a 2020 Census awareness campaign and to assist in the promotion of Mason County residents to complete their Census forms, according to information from Pfeffer’s office. Community leaders’ participation is vital in ensuring accurate census data is obtained, which is critical for government programs, policies, and decision making.
The Jan. 16 meeting will get underway at 11:30 a.m., at Caproni’s Restaurant, according to Steigleder, who is director of the Chamber.
“It’s important that we inform the community of the importance of completing the Census,” she said. “It’s important because so much federal funding is dependant on the numbers we get.”
That funding helps underwrite programs like Head Start, Steigleder said. Without accurate numbers, funding for those programs could fall short, she said.
Speaker for the meeting will be Erin Peabody with the 2020 Census, a partnership specialist for Northern Kentucky.
Steigleder said the Chamber’s role in the Census is to encourage employers to stress to employees the important of completing the Census 2020 survey.
In 2020, the U. S Census will implement new technology to make it easier than ever to respond to the survey. For the first time, residents will be able to respond online, by phone, as well as by mail, according to information at 2020census.gov.
Steigleder said residents will get a card in the mail in March containing a unique code for their address. They will go online, enter their code and answer about nine questions.
Residents who do not complete the online or phone survey will receive a home visit from a Census taker, probably in May.
Those who plan to attend the meeting but have not received an invitation should contact the Chamber at 606-564-5534.
