From: Whipple, Deb (GOV)
Sent: Thursday, April 01, 2010
4:57 PM
Subject: What the Governor is talking about today
What the Governor’s Talking about
Today
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Governor Urges Michigan Citizens to
Complete and Return Their Census Forms
The governor today participated in a 2010 Census
event at the State Capitol to urge Michigan citizens to complete and mail back
their census forms.
“I am counting on every Michigan citizen to fill
out their census form and mail it back,” the governor said. “Census data helps
determine how more than $400 billion in federal funds each year are allocated to
states and local communities for critical services like health care,
job-training, education and infrastructure projects. During these tough
economic times, Michigan can’t afford to be shortchanged.”
Key
messages:
• April 1 is National Census Day. We
need everyone who lives in Michigan to fill out their census form and return
it.
• Completing the census form this year is
easier than ever — it’s only 10 questions, and takes most people no more than 10
minutes.
• Information collected in the census is
strictly confidential and by law it cannot be shared with anyone — not the IRS,
not child support agencies, not credit agencies, not anyone. It has always
been kept confidential, and will be again this year.
• Mailing back your form is important.
If you don’t, a census worker will visit your home to collect the data.
Mailing back your form also saves tax dollars. The federal government
saves $85 million for every 1 percent increase in mail
participation.
• The census is important because an accurate
count ensures that we’ll have fair representation in Congress, and that we’ll
get back our fair share of funding from the federal government.
• The general rule of thumb is that for every
person not counted, Michigan communities miss out on $1,000 in federal funding
per year for a decade — that’s a total of $10,000 per person lost in federal
funding over the next 10 years. That’s money we send to Washington by
paying taxes, and if we don’t get it, other states will. Michigan cannot
afford to be shortchanged.
• It’s estimated, based on the U.S. Census
Bureau’s American Community Survey, that more than 178,000 Michigan residents
were missed in the 2000 Census, causing Michigan to lose out on about $2 billion
in federal funding in the last 10 years.
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