Census Dates Extended

 A federal district judge just ordered the US Census Bureau to extend the ending date of the count to October 30. Apparently too many violations of preliminary injunction orders and a tweet saying the counts would end on OCtober 5.

Census Numbers

Carbondale self-reported census numbers are running just above 50% of the city's projected population numbers. This would be numbers reported through the census' website or mail response. This does not included number collected by census canvassers or the various booths and  information collection tables set up around town.

Census

 I do know the Census Bureau stops counting at the end of next month. What I do not know if whether tit still accepts submissions until the end of the year. From everything I see, Carbondale residents have not done a very good job of getting their numbers in. Whether it is apathy on the part of residents or that a goodly chunk of the population is students, we are still running way behind on getting our numbers in.

Only 46%

 Jiminy. Only 46% response rate to the Census in Carbondale. Unless numbers start to pick up , the city will hurt a lot when competing for federal dollars as well as maintaining home rule status.

Census

 While Illinois is running about a 68% response rate, Carbondale has had less than 50% of residents respond yet. If you have not responded to the census yet, you can do so here. The amount of tax dollars sent to distributed to the city is based, in part, on its official population and dropping below 25,000 population could cause the city to lose automatic Home Rule status

Census 2

 Why is Carbondale pushing responding to the census so much. Primarily because, if the city's population of record drops below 25,000 it will lose its Home Rule status. Communities get home rule status by either exceeding 25,000 in population or passing a referendum designating it as such. The population requirement is automatic, getting the referendum passed would prove more difficult.

Why does the city want home rule status? Cities with home rule status can perform any function they want as long as it does not conflict with state law, thus giving the city council a lot more freedom in taking actions. Cities without home rule status can only take actions authorized by state law, limiting the city government's power significantly.

Census

 Looks as if the city and civic organizations are really getting concerned about Carbondale's census population. There are a number of signs around town reminding people to fill out their census forms but this afternoon I saw a tent in the Town Square parking lot with a table manned to get people to fill out their forms.

Census Kick Off

Carbondale City Government really wants to make sure the city tops 25,000 residents in this year's census, otherwise it likely loses home rule status, hence the census kick off event on March 25 at Carbondale Middle School.

Census Invitation

You should expect to receive your invitation in the mail  to respond to the US Census between March 12 and 20th. About 112 million of the invitations will have a phone number or web address to which to respond . About 31 million of the letters will include a paper form to fill out instead.

Census

Carbondale is really pushing for an accurate census count since the city fears a low one will push our officially recognized population below 25,000. If the city gets below that level, home rule status is in danger. If Carbondale loses home rule status, a lot of the city's autonomy from the state gets lost.

We're Number One...

in terms of people moving out. More people moved out of Jackson County over the past ten years than any other county in southern Illinois. Anderson County was number two with a full quarter of the county's population decamping. In fact, Williamson County was the only one to add  any population and that a measly 700 people. Of course, Jackson and Anderson are in (good) company as 93 out of 102 of the counties in the state lost population. Even mighty Chicago lost 1.2% of its population

Census Count Committee

Apparently we are worried that we will not get a complete count of the Carbondale population in the 2020 census. It is important in that, not only does the census determine how many representatives in the House the state will get, and based on population trends, Illinois will lose a couple and downstate will probably get redistricted resulting in more counties under one representative, but it also helps determine how much federal funding the region will get. The apportioning of funds gets determined, in many cases, by the population size. Ergo, even with the decline in the number of students at SIUC, if the census shows a growth in Carbondale residents, it will be easier for the city to make a solid case for more grants and funding

Census Complete Count Committee AGENDA
February 13, 2019,
 1:00 p.m. Room 103- Carbondale Civic Center
1. Introductions
2. Recap of the first meeting
3. Goals of the Committee
 4. Future Meetings
5. General Discussion
 6. Adjourn