Henry Cuellar for Congress | Proven Leadership for Texas

by Gary Martin

WASHINGTON -- To prevent another undercount that state officials believe cost Texas $1 billion last decade, Census Director Robert Groves is touring neighborhoods along the U.S.-Mexico border today to map out a better strategy for the count.

Groves will visit neighborhoods near Laredo to encourage residents to respond to census questionnaires.

"We care deeply about reaching these communities with the message that responding to the census is easy, important and, most of all, entirely safe," Groves said.

The census is used by the federal government to establish formulas to distribute funds for various programs. An audit of the 2000 census found that 373,567 Texans were not counted -- 1.76 percent of the state's population.

Residents of unincorporated border-area subdivisions known as colonias made up much of the undercount, the Census Bureau has concluded.

"I want to make sure Texas gets counted," said U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Laredo, who asked Groves to tour the border region to see firsthand the challenges that census workers face.

Cuellar said he would discuss a media campaign in San Antonio and the Rio Grande Valley to urge residents to participate.

The census plans to air public service announcements in English- and Spanish-language media nationwide urging Hispanic residents to take part. Extra efforts are expected along the U.S.-Mexico border.

A census map of undercounted areas in 2000 includes the entire border region, from Brownsville to San Diego, Calif., Cuellar said.

Juan Vargas, Webb County's economic development director, said border counties, where most of the colonias are located, suffered substantial losses in federal funds.

Vargas estimated that the 2000 census missed half the residents living in colonias near Laredo -- an undercount of roughly 12,000 people.

A Census Bureau report found that workers conducting the count in the colonias faced difficulties with residents who had little or no knowledge of English, some who had no formal education and others who feared census takers would turn them over to the Border Patrol or immigration agents.

"I understand the different barriers," said Cuellar, whose district includes several border counties. "No paved roads and language barriers and the fear that they are going to be turned in to‘la migra.'"

Most of those not counted also were poor. Some 40 percent of Webb County residents live below the federal poverty line, Cuellar said. In 2009, the poverty threshold for a family of four was $22,050 in annual income, according to the U.S. Health and Human Services Department.

The census requires a count of all residents in the United States, regardless of immigration status.

Groves said the visit to South Texas would be his second to border colonias.

"I am confident that by understanding this population we can complete an accurate count and ensure the fair distribution of federal resources," he said.

Texas received $26.2 billion in federal funds in 2008, the last year that figures were available, according to the state comptroller's office.

But that amount does not include federal funds that went directly to cities, counties and school districts for programs that include housing, education, nutrition and vaccinations.

The census also will be used to apportion 435 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. Population growth in Texas could mean several new congressional seats for the state.

"If we get this right," Cuellar said, "for the next 10 years we will get more money, and we should get three to four more congressional districts."

The Census Bureau is hiring about 2,000 local workers in Webb, Zapata, Jim Hogg and Starr counties to help conduct the count. Census officials hope the local workers will be better able to reach residents in hard-to-count neighborhoods.

Groves visited American Indian communities in Alaska recently to inform them of the need to fill out the 10-question forms that census takers soon will be distributing.