Why is the census so important?
The data collected by
the census next year will be used to determine a host of issues
critical to the people of Louisiana. Decisions
about what community services to provide, and how to distribute over
$300 billion in federal funds to local, state and tribal governments
each year for the next 10 years will be hugely affected by the results of the census.
For example, based on the results of the last census, Orleans
Parish received $943,391,602 of federal funding in 2007. Examples include:
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$25,203,181 for Title 1 grants to educational agencies
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$13,646,872 for Head Start programs
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$116,764,982 for road rehabilitation and construction
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$199,712,398 for Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers
In addition, census results affect the drawing of Congressional, State House and State Senate district lines, as well as the distribution of Congressional seats.
The full breakdown on federal funds distributed to Orleans Parish in 2007 can be downloaded from the following link: Orleans Parish Funding Table
For more information, also check out this article from the Greater New Orleans Community Data Center: CENSUS 2010: NEW ORLEANS HAS TO GET IT RIGHT THE FIRST TIME
To learn more about Census 2010 read An Introduction to the 2010 Census or the Census' fact sheets for Community and Social Service Organizations.
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