"Stand and be Counted!"

It's time to Break It Down!

Tomorrow is Election Day…in a manner of speaking. Oh it will not require going to your polling place, or completing an Absentee Ballot, or figuring out where Early Voting will take place. But make no mistake about it; elections will be influenced by the outcome of actions taken Thursday.

The United States Constitution mandates what is known as a decennial census. In other words, every 10 years, the U.S. Government conducts an initiative to count the population. The results of which are used to apportion Congressional seats (congressional apportionment), allocate electoral votes, and determine levels of federal funding.

The census is conducted by the United States Census Bureau, an agency of the United States Department of Commerce. The first American Census was performed in 1790 under Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson. The current census is our 23rd. The next is scheduled for the year 2020. However, the U.S. constantly revises population estimates between one Census and the next. This is accomplished by using surveys and statistical models.

There are a number of key terms and principals associated with the census. These terms include:

• Citizens

• Non-citizen legal residents

• Non-citizen long-term visitors

• Illegal immigrants

The guiding principle used to sift through the maze of residential status is known as “Usual Residence,” defined as:

• The place a person lives and sleeps most of the time

As might be imagined, the practice of incorporating non-citizens in official data is controversial. That is, at least in part, because as was noted earlier, the census is used to determine apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives, which directly affects the calculus for electors for the Electoral College. And as if that were not enough fuzzy policy, the census also uses a concept known as hot deck imputation to extrapolate data from housing units where occupation status is unknown. This practice is actually supported by case law, and was ruled constitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court in Utah v. Evans.

There are other controversial practices utilized by the census, which regularly draw criticism, including:

• Counting prisoners as residents of prisons instead of their erstwhile home address

• Excluding from the count some Americans who live overseas

• Counting only Federal employees and their dependents living overseas

Based on the aforementioned information, it is understandable that some citizens, while understanding the basic purpose of the census, Congressional Apportionment, may find the idea of participating in the collection of census data, both intrusive, and counter intuitive to their reasoned personal beliefs, tenets, and philosophies. That is one of the key reasons that for many years now, the Census includes a massive public information campaign. Such an effort is necessary to break down natural barriers to participation.

Ultimately, a precept born and nurtured during the original Tea Party era, “No taxation without representation,” is the compelling underlying motivation that should instruct each of us to read, complete, and return our individual household Census data. "We can't move forward until you mail it back." To do otherwise is to forgo our right and abdicate our responsibility to “Stand and be counted!” Remember, it will be a decade before we can revisit this opportunity; so in the event you have not done so, take 10 minutes and complete your 2010 Census Form.

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com/.  A new post is published each Wednesday. For more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post, consult the links below:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Census

http://www.commerce.gov/

http://www.census.gov/

http://www.docstoc.com/docs/11082573/2010-CENSUS-US-DEPARTMENT-OF-COMMERCE-US-Census-Bureau

http://www.nbc29.com/global/story.asp?s=12165149

http://americanaffairs.suite101.com/article.cfm/united-states-census-2010--2010censusgov

http://americanaffairs.suite101.com/article.cfm/census-2010-overview

http://laist.com/2010/03/29/angelenos_slow_in_returning_2010_ce.php

http://2010.census.gov/partners/pdf/SandL_ConstituentFAQ.pdf

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20100323014122AA72uaG

http://2010.census.gov/2010census/

http://2010.census.gov/2010census/how/index.php

http://2010.census.gov/2010census/why/index.php

http://2010.census.gov/2010census/privacy/index.php

http://2010.census.gov/2010census/involved/index.php

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_congressional_apportionment