State officials are already working to ensure everyone in Frederick is counted in the 2010 U.S. Census next April. Gov. Martin O'Malley kicked off his 2010 Census outreach campaign Wednesday with business and community leaders from around the state, explaining that full participation in the Census is the only way to help the state get its share of federal funds.
O'Malley asked the leaders to focus their efforts on the areas that are considered "hard to count," based partly on their low mail-back rates in the 2000 Census and partly on socioeconomic factors.
Several neighborhoods in Frederick fell into this category.
O'Malley said having pockets of low participation is problematic because more than $435 billion in federal funds is distributed to state and local governments based on the data. Maryland received an average of $1,000 per person in fiscal 2007 that officials used to fund health and education programs, road construction and more, though where specifically those funds go depends on more localized figures.
Officials judged Emmitsburg to have a score of six, with 10 being the hardest to accurately count in the Census and one being the easiest. Most of the City of Frederick scored a five or above, and a large area that includes the neighborhoods near Frederick Municipal Airport and the Frederick Fairgrounds scored a nine.
That area is bounded by U.S. 40 to the south, Md. 355 to the west, Gas House Pike to the west and north, and the river to the east. Two neighborhoods scored a 10: The first is bounded by West Patrick Street, Madison Street, Md. 355 and Carroll Creek; the second is bounded by Fourth Street, Seventh Street, East Street and Frederick Memorial Hospital.
In addition to having low response rates during the 2000 Census, those areas of Frederick are also more likely to not respond to the survey because they have a high percentage of adults who never completed high school, a high percentage of female-headed households, a high poverty rate, a high percentage of rental units and a high vacancy rate, said Jane Traynham, manager of the Maryland State Data Center.
As a whole, however, Frederick County had fewer areas of concern than almost all other counties in the state.
"Every person counts. Every person is needed," O'Malley said, urging community leaders to reach out to the areas that are less likely to respond to the survey.
Several speakers stressed that information in the data is confidential and cannot be legally released for 72 years. So residents who are not in the country legally, for example, could complete the survey to help their community receive more money without the fear of immigration officials coming after them.
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