Indianapolis launches campaign to get every resident counted on the 2020 census

Indianapolis leaders on Tuesday launched a campaign to encourage widespread participation in the once-every-decade census. 

The Count Me INdy program, co-lead by La Plaza President and CEO Miriam Acevedo Davis and Indianapolis Urban League President and CEO Tony Mason, has an aim of reaching city residents who have traditionally not been counted in the census.

"America gets just one chance each decade to count its population," U.S. Census Bureau Regional Director Marilyn Sanders said. "Our goal is to count everyone once, and only once, and in the right place."

Count Me INdy is part of the Complete Count Committee, a U.S. Census national marketing initiative designed to gain census participation.

How the national census count affects Indianapolis

A lot of federal and state funding for programming relies on census counts, such as housing, health care, education and infrastructure, Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett said at a news conference announcing the campaign kickoff Tuesday.

"So much is dependent on it," Hogsett said. "You name whatever federal program that we go to Washington to ask for support. We have to be accurate in our need.

"The more people that we are able to count appropriately and deservedly, then the better off we're going to be when we go to Washington and ask for money."

What's new for the 2020 census

The census will be mostly administered online, a first in the country's history.

The Indianapolis Public Library will provide access for residents, IPL CEO Jackie Nytes said.

Who will the Complete Count Committee try to reach?

Well, everyone. But the committee will have a special focus on reaching "often overlooked, often undercounted, often missed segments of our community," Hogsett said. 

Those groups include renters, low-income residents, immigrant populations and black communities. 

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The U.S. Census Bureau created a predictor map that will direct the committee to "hard-to-survey" areas to focus efforts. The subcommittees focused on reaching those areas will identify why those populations are traditionally undercounted and the best ways to overcome those obstacles.

"We need to make sure that every group is given ample opportunity to participate, particularly immigrants who may face a language barrier, and it's incredibly important that members of these communities know that their participation is meant to include them, not to target them," said U.S. Rep. Andre Carson, D-Indianapolis, at the campaign launch. "We need to count everyone who is here, documented or undocumented."

Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court said it would decide whether citizenship would be counted on the 2020 census. The Trump administration move would put the question on the census for the first time in 70 years. Opponents argue that it would contribute to undercounting the country's minority population.

When does the campaign start?

This week. The committee began meeting immediately, but the official count day is April 1, 2020. 

"Ensuring an accurate and fair count is essential," Hogsett said. "It's not just needed, it's not just preferred and it's not just important. It is essential to our city's professional, governmental and environmental future.

"That is because census data is used to determine political representation at every level of government."

Call IndyStar reporter Amy Bartner at 317-444-6752. Follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.