WHEREAS, The United States Constitution requires an enumeration of the population every 10 years to apportion congressional representation among the states; and

WHEREAS, The next federal decennial census of the population will be taken on April 1, 2010; and

WHEREAS, It is vitally important for the State of California to do everything it can to ensure that every Californian is counted in the upcoming census; and

WHEREAS, A complete and accurate count of California’s population is essential to the state because the census count determines congressional representation, state redistricting, federal formula grant allocations, and the distribution of state subvention funds for an entire decade; and

WHEREAS, More than 70 federal programs benefiting California use census population numbers as part of their funding formulas, including formulas for education, health, and human services programs; and

WHEREAS, California is at risk of losing a congressional seat for the first time in its 159-year history; and

WHEREAS, In 2000, in part because the Legislature allocated more than $24 million in state funds to carry out a multicultural, multilingual, and multimedia outreach campaign, Californians’ mail-back response rate increased to 70 percent, up from 65 percent in 1990; and

WHEREAS, Prominent among those missed were the homeless, low-income individuals, people of color, children, those isolated by language, renters, those living in large households, and those whose homes were being foreclosed upon; and

WHEREAS, Without access to the same level of funding due to the state’s budget crisis, focusing limited resources on the Hardest-to-Count communities is the best way to achieve a complete count in California; and

WHEREAS, Ten out of the 50 Hardest-to-Count counties are in California; and

WHEREAS, On June 12, 2009, the Governor signed Executive Order S-10-09, creating the California Complete Count Committee to bring elected representatives, community-based organizations, business, and education leaders together in order to ensure a complete and accurate count of Californians; and

WHEREAS, The California Complete Count Committee held 20 Regional Convenings throughout the state to assess community readiness, and to identify and coordinate with trusted messengers and local community organizations; and

WHEREAS, The California Complete Count Committee, along with numerous local Complete Count Committees, is working to leverage existing outreach methods conducted by foundations, community-based organizations, and the private sector, and as part of this effort, is encouraging communities throughout California to conduct census outreach events as part of its “Be Californian. Be Counted” effort; now, therefore, be it