Photograph by Skye Dunlap

U.S. Rep. Zoe Lofgren cut the ceremonial ribbon at the Census Bureau's new Sunnyvale office, which opened Friday, Jan. 7. Officials at the ceremony explained the Census' importance, and pointed out that the last count missed 7,000 Sunnyvale residents.




It counts to be counted

US Census launches 2000 roundup in search of the Sunnyvale 7,000

By Sam Scott

On Friday, Jan. 7, the U.S. Census Bureau opened its Sunnyvale branch in an office full of cardboard desks and maps. The bevy of TV cameras and print reporters covering the dignitary-heavy event testified to the fact that the once-a-decade census is a very big deal, with long-lasting effects.

Jose Hernandez, who works for the census, explains the importance of the decennial headcount by pointing to millions of missing dollars.

"Santa Clara County lost $84 million" over the past decade, he says. "That's a tremendous amount of money."

According to census officials, the federal government distributes more than $185 billion annually based on population and other data supplied by the census. Census numbers help target the best locations for schools, roads, bus routes and job training programs. An undercount robs areas of money that should be coming to them.

"If you're not counted, it means you don't exist in that community, so the community won't receive federal money," Rosemary Kamei, a publicist with the Census, says. "If your count is wrong, that error will ripple for the next 10 years."

Santa Clara County has indeed been feeling that ripple. Government statisticians say that in the 1990 census, 34,000 people were not counted. Sunnyvale accounted for an estimated 2781 of those no-shows, a fact that cost the city nearly $7 million during the nineties.

The city and county are determined to make sure that when the 2000 census forms are sent out in mid-March, they all come back by April 1 when as many as 1,500 field workers (at more than $15 an hour) will try to track down those who haven't sent theirs back.

"We want to make sure that we don't miss anyone," Alice Gamboa says. "One hundred percent is what we want."

Gamboa is member of Sunnyvale's committee to get the word out about the census. She says the committee has been meeting for nearly a year. She says the group of mostly volunteers is passing out fliers and speaking to churches, businesses and homeowners' associations.

Gamboa says the information is to educate the public on the importance of the census and to assuage the fear of people who may not be legal residents about divulging personal information.

Census officials stress that information given to census-takers cannot be shared with other government agencies.

The U.S. Census Department wears a smile that the INS does not. Convincing Santa Clara County's diverse population of that, however, presents a unique difficulty, Hernandez says.

"Santa Clara County is so diverse, so we that have additional problem," Hernandez says. "It'll take the rest of the county 50 years to get to our level of diversity."

Vice Mayor Jack Walker says it is more than the population numbers that matter to government officials. He says examining the trends such as age and racial makeup help the city focus its attention

"As policy makers, this information is critically important to us."

Censuses between 1970 and 1990, for example, showed that the over-55 population in Sunnyvale had grown from 10 percent to 19 percent--information that was used in last year's decision to build a new Sunnyvale senior center.

"We want to make sure that we don't miss anyone," Alice Gamboa says. "One hundred percent is what we want."

Gamboa is member of Sunnyvale's committee to get the word out about the census. She says the committee has been meeting for nearly a year. She says the group of mostly volunteers is passing out fliers and speaking to churches, businesses and homeowners associations.

Gamboa says the information is to educate the public on the importance of the census and to assuage the fear of people who may not be legal residents about divulging personal information.

Census officials stress that information given to census-takers cannot be shared with other government agencies.

The US Census Department wears a smile that the INS does not. Convincing Santa Clara County's diverse population of that, however, presents a unique difficulty, Hernandez says.

"Santa Clara County is so diverse so we that have additional problem," Hernandez says. "It'll take the rest of the county 50 years to get to our level of diversity."

Vice Mayor Jack Walker says it is more than the population numbers that matter to government officials. He says examining the trends such as age and racial makeup help the city focus its attention

"As policy makers, this information is critically important to us."

Censuses between 1970 and 1990, for example, showed that the over-55 population in Sunnyvale had grown from 10 percent to 19 percent--information that was used in last year's decision to build a new Sunnyvale senior center.

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