Council of Governments undertakes Census project

The Cowlitz-Wahkiakum Council of Governments will be coordinating a Complete Count Committee for the 2020 Census.

The committee will include representatives from both Cowlitz and Wahkiakum Counties.

Complete count committees (CCC) are volunteer committees established to increase awareness and motivate residents to respond to the 2020 Census. CCCs serve as state and local “census ambassador” groups that play an integral part in ensuring a complete and accurate count of the community in the 2020 Census. Success of the census depends on community involvement at every level. The U.S. Census Bureau cannot conduct the 2020 Census alone.

The goals of the Cowlitz-Wahkiakum CCC are to increase the self-response rate for households responding online, by phone, or mailing back their questionnaire through a focused, structured, neighbor-to-neighbor program; to utilize the local knowledge, expertise, and influence of each Complete Count Committee member to design and implement a census awareness campaign targeted to the community; and to bring together a cross section of community members whose focus is 2020 Census awareness.

The population totals from the census determine the number of seats each state has in the U.S. House of Representatives. The population totals also affect funding in your community, and data collected in the census help decision makers know how your community is changing. Approximately $675 billion in federal funding is distributed to communities each year based on census count data.

People interested in Census jobs or other activities should contact the COG office at CWCOG by regular mail at Administration Annex / 207 North 4th Ave, Kelso, WA 98626.