Asian Journal- The Filipino-American Community Newspaper

UNDOCUMENTED residents in the US will not be sent back to their countries if they fill out a census form, the US Census Bureau said.

In fact, these individuals will be able to shore up funds for their US-based families since a bigger resident-count will mean a bigger allocation for a particular area, a Filipino community partnership specialist, meanwhile said.

"(Department of) Homeland Security is not going to come knocking on your door if you filled out a census form," US Census Bureau deputy director Vicki McIntire told participants of Census 2010 summit in Las Vegas last November 13.

"We can’t and we don’t share information with DHS (Department of Homeland Security)," she added. DHS is the agency that oversees immigration activities, both legal and illegal, in the US .

McIntire gave the statements at the Treasure Island Hotel last week where a summit attended by leaders of the Asian and Pacific Islander communities in Southern Nevada was held.

Census summits are among many activities in line with the agency’s partnership programs where it coordinates with local community leaders to encourage members of their groups to participate in the census.

The Las Vegas summit was organized for the local API community by Filipino community leader Salve Vargas Spensko-Edelman, who is also a US Census Bureau Partnership Specialist.

"This event in itself is evidence of the major change we will have for the 2010 census," McIntire told Asian Journal at the sidelines of the summit.

She added the US Census Bureau is relying on community leaders to reach out to groups of people who were not responsive in the 2000 summit.

The US Census Bureau is mandated to undertake a survey every ten years to determine the population of the country. Results are used to allocate Congressional seats, electoral votes and government funding.

Last month, US Census deputy director Thomas Mesenbourg acknowledged that one of the challenges with getting an accurate count of residents is the "growing distrust in government of certain segments of the population."

He cited immigration issues that make most individuals hesitant to give information or answer basic census questions.

Mesenbourg said the US Census bureau is committed to protect any data that is gathered since employees take an oath of non-disclosure upon joining the bureau. Those who do not live up to this standard will face imprisonment or hefty fines.

While attesting that data is safe and secure, Mesenbourg said this message will be more effective if local partners are the ones telling members of the community about it.

At the summit, McIntire told community leaders, "We cannot do this without you. Your own treatment of our information to readers is what makes it successful."

Community leaders, meanwhile, vowed to convince its members to fill out and send back the ten-item questionnaire that they are scheduled to receive in the mail next year.

Partnership specialist Spensko-Edelman urged the API community to participate in the census process.

"All immigrants came here to give their children a better life. Participating in the census will help with that because it will help their area get more federal funding," she said.

McIntire explained that the higher the number of residents in an area, the more funding is allocated by the federal government. Federal funds are used to build local schools, parks, hospitals and other government offices to serve the residents of a community.

( www.asianjournal.com )

( Published November 18, 2009 in Asian Journal Los Angeles p. A3 )