By TESA CULLI

tesa.culli@register-news.com

MT. VERNON — The city has agreed to partner with the U.S. Census Bureau and has appointed a complete count committee to help get the word out about the importance of the 2010 census.

“This is the first time the Census Bureau has asked cities and communities to partner with them to get a more accurate count,” Mt. Vernon Tourism Director and local committee member Bonnie Jerdon said. “People just don’t realize how very important it is to be counted in the census.”

Jerdon told members of the Tourism Advisory Board on Tuesday there are areas of the King City that have been identified by the bureau as under-reported.

“The Census Bureau has provided us with a map showing the under-reported areas so we can try to hit those areas,” Jerdon explained. “Essentially it shows the downtown area from Harrison to Veterans Memorial Drive and from First Street to 21st Street.”

Jerdon said the Census Bureau has noted that homes in those areas receive forms, but don’t turn them back in. The bureau sends out enumerators to go to the homes, “but at some point they are turned away and can’t get the information. People fear the information is being collected for some other reason.”

Accurate Census information is important for municipalities because of grant and government funding which is based on population.

“Almost all funding from federal and a lot of the state funding for schools, roads, taxes and grants is determined by the Census numbers” Jerdon said. “We know we’ve been losing money because of inaccurate Census figures.”

According to information from the bureau, Census data is used to allocate billions of dollars in government funding and helps determine where roads are built, as well as schools and job centers. In addition, Census data determines how many seats each state will have in Congress and impact redistricting of state and local districts.

“People don’t realize the information provided to the Census Bureau is confidential,” Jerdon said. “It cannot be used by any other entity — not the IRS, not the police.”

Mayor Mary Jane Chesley has notified the bureau the city will be partnering with it to get accurate information for Census 2010, and has set up a link on the city Web site at www.mtvernon.com to access job information for the Census Bureau as well as a copy of a proclamation of support for the census.

“The City of Mt. Vernon, Illinois, recognizes the importance and the impact of the 2010 Census on the overall well-being and quality of life for all residents in the community,” the proclamation states. “Every resident in Mt. Vernon counts and deserves to be counted.”

Mt. Vernon is one of 39,000 local governments in partnership with the Bureau, according to the proclamation, and the Complete Count Comm-ittee will provide a summary report of its success to the Chicago Regional Census Center of the United States Census Bureau for the archives.

The first U.S. Census was held in 1790, the same year President George Washington delivered the first State of the Union Address, and a year later Washington D.C. was established as the nation’s capital.

The Census has been held every 10 years since that time, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

“The Census Bureau protects information that identifies respondents or their households for 72 years,” information from the Bureau states. “The questionnaire contains only a few simple questions and takes just a few minutes to answer and return by mail. Everyone counts. The census is a count of everyone living in the United States, including all 50 states, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and American Samoa. This includes people of all ages, races, ethnic groups, both citizens and non-citizens.”

Census questionnaires will be mailed to households in March 2010.

“We’re working to educate, build a lot of interest and trust before that time and get the word out.” Jerdon said.