Orange County’s Census ‘Launch Parties’ Canceled Amid Coronavirus Concerns

Census launch parties previously scheduled for Monday, March 16 have been canceled as a precaution to slow the spread of COVID-19.

With national census day on April 1 looming closer, some Orange County officials are concerned about how this outbreak affects the county’s ability to get an accurate population count.

The census is mandated by law and determines how $675 billion of federal funding gets distributed over the next 10 years. An accurate population count means Orange County will receive its fair share of federal funding for schools, hospitals, roads, and other vital programs.

Census data also determines congressional representation and influence in the Electoral College. North Carolina is projected to gain one U.S. House of Representatives seat if everyone gets properly counted.

With elevated concerns due to the coronavirus outbreak in North Carolina, it was up in the air if Census launch parties in Orange County – dedicated to educating local residents about the census and letting them fill out the form on-site – would continue to be held.

The Chair of Orange County’s Board of Commissioners, Penny Rich, spoke with 97.9 The Hill’s Aaron Keck about these launch parties on Wednesday and how she hoped these important public events wouldn’t have to be cancelled.

“So right now we’re not cancelling anything, but like I said it can change day to day,” Rich said.

Despite her hopes, local census launch parties were cancelled as a precaution on Friday along with a delay in the opening of the county’s ‘Be Counted’ sites – or designated areas with public computers for residents to respond to the census.

But Rich had other concerns outside of the cancellation of these launch parties. She said she’s worried about the UNC community and how they will be counted now that university has moved classes online and discouraged travel around and outside the state.

Her question was: if students left for spring break and didn’t return, or if the university closes all together, will the county be able to get an accurate count by the time April rolls around?

“It is interesting if UNC does close and those students aren’t here on April 1 when the census happens, where do they get counted,” Rich asked.

Rich said this might prove to be a big issue as the student community adds an extra 30,000 people to the population. If each person counted brings more than $1,800 in state and federal funding each year, it’s important to know how to get an accurate count for the area even if coronavirus concerns have disbanded the usual population.

“We could lose out on some money if that’s the case so we’re trying to get some answers on that,” Rich said. “We want to keep people engaged, we want to make sure that everyone is counted still and that’s going to be a challenge.”

The U.S. Census Bureau says to mark your address as where you spend the majority of your time. This could potentially add to the confusion for students if the coronavirus outbreak forces them to remain home through the rest of the semester and into the summer.

Thankfully, 2020 is the first year the census will be available online. This means even if community members traveled away from home and can’t physically be at a ‘Be Counted’ site, or if they missed their mailed invitation, they can still fill out the form.

Orange County residents began receiving invitations to fill out the census last week. While national census day is on April 1, residents don’t need to wait until then to respond. You can complete the 2020 Census response form anytime by visiting the government’s website.

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