Challenges

Complete Address List

The U.S. Census Bureau relies on a complete address list to conduct census operations. For example, this year the Bureau will send a postcard to each household with a unique identifying code that individuals will enter on its 2020 Census website. In places like Long Beach, where dense urban areas contain diverse populations and unconventional and informal housing, obtaining a complete address list can be difficult.

Broadband

The most significant change for the 2020 Census is that census responses will be collected primarily online. This new design will likely exacerbate internet access and digital literacy issues among historically underrepresented populations.

Privacy Concerns

Hard-to-count (HTC) groups have not participated in the census for a variety of reasons. These reasons include: socioeconomic and cultural considerations; lack of awareness and misunderstanding of the census; and, fear and lack of trust of government. Therefore, HTC groups are less likely to self-respond to the census questionnaire online, by phone, or by mail. Enumerators who may go out to homes to count residents who have not completed the questionnaire.

Citizenship Question

Immigrants and their families navigate an increasingly anti-immigrant climate. Although the courts determined that the 2020 Census will not include a citizenship question, the debate to include one has stoked fear that information collected regarding an individual’s immigration status may be used later for purposes not intended by the census count such as deportation. Recent immigrant communities and communities of color are likely already discouraged from interacting with government agencies. Immigrant communities currently face uncertainty based on the current political climate pertaining to their immigration status.

Reduced Field Capacity

The 2020 Census faces severe under-funding that previous census efforts have not experienced. The U.S. Census Bureau estimates it would cost $17.8 billion for an accurate 2020 Census count. To date, the federal government has allocated $12.5 billion. This funding deficit has resulted in the U.S. Census Bureau employing cost-savings measures that will impact HTC communities’ participation in the census directly.

Language Access

More than 200 languages are spoken in Los Angeles County, and the U.S. Census Bureau is only able to provide the online census questionnaire in 12 non-English languages. The non-English languages that the online Census questionnaire will be available in are Spanish, Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, Russian, Arabic, Tagalog, Polish, French, Haitian Creole, Portuguese, and Japanese. In addition, the Census Bureau will need to provide language translation and interpretation assistance for those who do not speak those 12 languages during the census.