Letter to Secretary of Commerce Donald L. Evans
August 1, 2003
Secretary Donald L. Evans
U.S. Department of Commerce
Room 5516
14th & Constitution Ave. NW
Washington, DC 20230
Dear Secretary Evans:
I write to support the Town of Romulus's request for a re-count to Census 2000, which undercounts the Town's population by nearly 3,000 residents. I ask the Census Bureau to return to Romulus and correct this oversight as soon as possible, at no additional cost to the Town or County, so that the town and Seneca County can obtain additional state and federal funding that is distributed based on population.
I am informed by the town that as Census 2000 was nearing completion, several housing units in the town were renovated and ready for occupation. The Spring Meadows and Lake Shore Landing developments, which once housed army personnel who worked at the former Seneca Army Depot, began renting in May 2000, just days after the Census finished its
nationwide count. There are now approximately 1500 people living in these developments.
Additionally, as Census 2000 was nearing completion, Five Points State Prison was in its final construction phase, awaiting its first inmates. The prison accepted its first inmates just weeks after the Census ended. By July 2000 there were 1500 inmates at Five Points State Prison.
As a result, just days after the census closed, Romulus had thousands more residents than its count indicates. I believe they should be counted in the town's population, and that the town should not have to wait more than nine years for an accurate count. Because the town is delivering services to these developments, which requires additional personnel, the impact of the undercount has been negative and dramatic. If the town is incurring the expenses of additional services, they ought to be entitled to any benefits that might come their way through state and federal funding formulas based on population.
The Census Bureau agreed to perform a special census for the town at an estimated cost of $35,353. This is too much for a small town to bear, especially when this oversight could have been corrected by the bureau on its own. Thank you for your consideration of this request, and I look forward to your response.
Sincerely,
Charles Schumer
U.S. Senate