Census Bureau Signs 150,000th 2010 Census Partner

U.S. Chamber of Commerce Joins Campaign to Encourage Participation

WASHINGTON, Jan. 11 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has become the 150,000th partner for the 2010 Census, the U.S. Census Bureau announced today. The U.S. Chamber joins a long list of national, local and community-based organizations that are voluntarily promoting awareness of the 2010 Census. National corporations such as Target, Best Buy and Sprint as well as nonprofits like the AARP and NAACP use their own resources to promote the census with employees, customers, members and the public. Community-based organizations, whether churches, neighborhood associations or service clubs, send the message that participating in the census is vital to ensure that the more than $400 billion in federal spending allocated annually based on census figures is fairly distributed.

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"These organizations are trusted voices in their communities, and the most important activity they can do as our partners is get the message out that the 2010 Census is easy, important and safe," said Census Bureau Director Robert M. Groves.

To support this message, the partners use their own resources to provide public displays of support for the 2010 Census to educate communities and encourage participation in the census. The partners do not receive any federal funds. Activities include displaying 2010 Census posters and fact sheets, organizing public events, creating and distributing literature on the importance of the census to their community, hosting centers where people can get assistance in completing their forms, and inviting Census Bureau participation in parades, festivals and other community events. The partners also use their Web sites, e-mail lists and social media accounts to spread the word.

The U.S. Chamber has committed to using its extensive member network of businesses to encourage participation in the 2010 Census.

"The U.S. Chamber is very proud to join with businesses and community organizations across the United States to help ensure a successful 2010 Census," said U.S. Chamber Senior Vice President and Chief Economist Martin Regalia. "Accurate census data is vital to business for strategic planning, marketing and growth and ensuring communities provide the communications and transportation infrastructure necessary to business."

The current number of partners already exceeds the total number that partnered in 2000, and more than 99 percent of the partner organizations are at the local level.

"That we have already exceeded the partnership total of 2000 three months before Census Day on April 1st is indicative of the grassroots support and passion for a full count in 2010 from every community across the country," Groves said. "People understand even more this decade that the census count affects the resources they have as a community -- resources like health care, roads and schools."

Census 2000 was the first time the Census Bureau conducted a partnership program. Many of the partners from 2000 have already signed on for the 2010 Census. The Census Bureau's extensive partnership program -- more than 3,000 staff reaching out to organizations at the local level -- has enabled thousands of other organizations to learn about the census and get involved.

To equip these partners to spread the word, the Census Bureau provides a host of materials, toolkits and other resources online at <http://2010.census.gov/partners/>.

Editor's note: News releases, reports and data tables are available on the Census Bureau's home page. Go to <http://www.census.gov> and click on "Releases."

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SOURCE U.S. Census Bureau