Emergency funds sought for census

Thursday, Jan. 20, 2000 | 11:37 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- Secretary of State Dean Heller said Wednesday $788,400 in emergency state funds would be sought to bolster Nevada's effort to make sure everyone is counted in the 2000 Census.

For every 1 percent of the population that is not counted, Nevada would lose $100 million in federal funds over the next decade, Heller told a legislative committee on reapportionment and redistricting.

He said more than 50 percent of the emergency money would be spent on a "media blitz" in Clark County to make sure residents return the mailed census report.

In the 1990 census Nevada had one of the worst responses in the nation of residents returning census forms -- just 61 percent. Thus, Nevada's population was undercounted by about 2.4 percent or 30,000 people. That cost the state some $200 million in federal funds over the next decade.

David Byerman, chief government liaison for Nevada for the Bureau of the Census, said the national mail response average was 65 percent, but estimates are that will drop to 55 percent. If Nevada maintains its 61 percent, it will go from one of the worse to one of the best, he said.

Heller, who was asked by Gov. Kenny Guinn to help in getting the full census count, said his request for money will go before a special meeting of the state Board of Examiners at the end of the month and then to the Legislative Interim Finance Committee in early February.

While members of the legislative committee had not seen details of the Heller plan, they approved a "generic letter" of support to be relayed to the Interim Finance Committee.

Heller said Nevada "historically had a hands-off approach" to the census, which he called "unfortunate." Other states have taken a more pro-active stance to make sure they get everybody counted, he said.

Heller said Guinn believes getting an accurate count of Nevadans in the census is the "single most important event shaping the future."

Tom Perrigo, chairman of the Southern Nevada Census 2000 Committee, said his group intends to start a media campaign two to three weeks before the census forms are mailed.

"We need the funding to do it. That's the key component," he told the committee.

The campaign would blanket the Las Vegas Valley with television, radio and newspaper ads. Of the total in emergency funds, $438,400 is set aside for Southern Nevada, $150,000 for Northern Nevada and $200,000 for a direct mail campaign by the state.

The television advertisements would stress the confidentiality of the information reported back to the Census Bureau. It would also stress the "quality of life" issue -- more federal money means better conditions in Nevada.

One particular thorny issue is how to count the homeless. A UNLV study, Byerman said, estimates 6,000 to 7,000 in the Las Vegas area, but the Census Bureau can't use estimates in its count.

Byerman said the actual total may be under the estimates.

The Nevada National Guard has been deployed to scout areas where the homeless live, such as the Las Vegas Wash. Many of the homeless, Byerman said, don't want anything to do with government officials.

Assemblywoman Barbara Buckley, D-Las Vegas, cited the annual Homeless Stand Down at Cashman Field -- where the homeless are given free hair cuts, flu shots and blankets -- and suggested there might be a special stand down held to get people signed up for the census.