In this economy, states are angling to get as many federal dollars as they can to cushion the crashing sounds of their own budgets. Considering that certain federal programs operate on a pay-per-head system, states have a big incentive to make sure everyone is accounted for. According to a story in The Chronicle of Philanthropy, Illinois stands to lose $12,000 in federal money over 10 years for every uncounted soul in the state.
With numbers like that looming large, 10 Illinois foundations announced recently that they’d be teaming up on the “Count Me In” project, which will award $1.2 million in grants to 60 nonprofit organizations to help get people counted in the 2010 census. The funding recipients — which have ties to majority African America, Latino, immigrant and non-English-speaking neighborhoods — will educate traditionally undercounted groups about the census. Their efforts will involve training programs, special events, education campaigns and other activities that teach people the importance of mailing in their census forms.
A news blurb about the project from the Joyce Foundation states that this endeavor “marks the nation’s most extensive, coordinated effort to promote census participation in any one state by a group of philanthropic funders and nonprofit organizations.” The Chronicle also points out, however, that a similar effort in California is being undertaken by a single entity, the California Endowment, which plans to grant $4 million to make sure everyone in the Golden State gets counted.
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