Letter to the Hon. Steve Dillingham, Director of the U.S. Census Bureau - With City of Newburgh Having One of NY's Lowest 2010 Census Response Rates, Schumer, Gillibrand & Maloney Launch Push to Maximize 2020 Census Participation; Officials Stress an Accurate Census Count Is Critical to Resources for City of Newburgh

Letter

Dear Director Dillingham,

We write to request the Census Bureau ("Bureau") work with the City of Newburgh, NY to maximize the participation in the upcoming decennial census. Specifically, we request that the Bureau establish Questionnaire Assistance Center (QAC) in Newburgh, host a U.S. Census Bureau jobs fair for worker recruitment in Newburgh, and facilitate a meeting with key community leaders to better coordinate Census outreach and participation.

In 2010, Newburgh had one of the state's lowest response rates with only 57% of city residents responding. This is the prime reason why it is why we believe establishing a Questionnaire Assistance Center in the City of Newburgh is necessary. A QAC will provide electronic resources to help people complete the first ever internet-based decennial U.S. Census survey. Local leaders have expressed a strong desire to improve the community's participation rate, and we want the Bureau to work closely with them to achieve this goal.

As you know, representation and many forms of federal funding are directly related to the census count. Newburgh is an economically distressed city, and like many similar communities, it has been under-counted for many years. Establishing a Census Questionnaire Assistance Center in Newburgh will help reverse this negative outcome.

The Bureau will have to hire numerous temporary positions starting this fall and continuing into next year. We believe hiring diverse and well-trained workers will help ensure maximum community participation. To achieve this we urge the Bureau to organize a jobs fair in Newburgh. This type of community engagement will increase responsiveness and enhance accuracy. We believe that the greater the number of local applicants that the Bureau can field, the greater participation and engagement in the 2020 U.S. Census.

Finally, as education of community leaders and mobilization of community-based institutions is critical to maximizing participation rates, we request the Census Bureau meet with local leaders to determine best practices and how to improve response rates.

We look forward to hearing from you on these requests and to working with the Bureau to achieve the maximum participation in Newburgh, NY -- and in every community in our state.

Sincerely,

Source