World Report: February 4, 2000
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Grades 4-6
Census 2000
Think of it as the ultimate attendance sheet. Every 10 years, the U.S. government is required to complete a population census, or an official count of every girl, boy, man and woman in the country. This time that's expected to add up to 275 million people!
The 2000 Census kicked off on January 20 in an unlikely place: Unalakleet, Alaska. Alaskan villagers are counted early because they can be hard to locate in springtime, when many of them scatter to fishing camps.
Stanton Katchatag, an 82-year-old Inuit man who lives in Unalakleet, became the very first person to be counted. He was greeted at his door by Census Bureau director Kenneth Prewitt. Prewitt asked Katchatag his age, his race and how he spelled his name. Next he asked for similar information about Katchatag's wife. The interview took 15 minutes, and then Prewitt continued on his way. Two down, 274,999,998 to go!
Counting One and All
Of course, Prewitt won't be making house calls to everyone in America. Most people will be counted in the Census through questionnaires, which will begin arriving in mailboxes in mid-March. Folks who don't complete the form by late April will be called by Census workers, and workers will visit the homes of those who can't be reached by phone.
People without homes will also be counted. The Census Bureau plans to hire 860,000 workers. Many of them will seek out people staying in homeless shelters, at campgrounds and even on boats. A special effort is also under way to reach people who do not speak English. In El Paso, Texas, where 75% of the population is Mexican American, Spanish-speaking workers will go door to door to explain the Census to residents. "We want them to feel secure," says Patricia Roybal of the El Paso Census office. The cost of the Census, which must be completed by November 2000, is $6.8 billion.
Making Sense of the Census
Why go to so much trouble to make sure everyone is counted? Because our country's founders said to. That's right: way back in 1787, the writers of the U.S. Constitution called for a Census every 10 years. They knew the country's population would change greatly over time. They decided that the number of lawmakers elected from each state to the House of Representatives should reflect the size of the state's population. That number is decided by the Census.
A lot of money is also riding on the results of the 2000 Census. The U.S. government uses Census numbers to determine how to divide up the $180 billion it spends on such public services as education, housing and job training. State and local governments use the figures to plan the right number of new schools, roads and police and fire departments. Says Census expert Linda Gage: "The government needs to know where people are and what services they need."
The Census Bureau estimates that the 1990 Census missed more than 4 million people. Half of those overlooked were children. Although kids don't fill out separate forms, they must be included on the form for their household. "Without counting children, we don't have a complete picture of our nation," says Gage.
More Changes to Come
The picture taken by the Census doesn't just show the number of people. It also shows the country's changing face. For the first time, people answering the Census will be able to select every racial category that applies to them instead of having to choose just one. People of mixed race are a growing part of the population. Folks over age 64 are another growing group. Their number is expected to double by 2050. The same goes for Hispanic people.
Because the population keeps growing, every Census in this century will be a bigger chore than the one before. In fact, the Census Bureau might want to get an early start signing up workers for the first Census of the next century. Officials predict that by then we will have 571 million people to count!
