VIEWPOINT / Ty Kellogg / Geauga County 2020 Census, Complete Count Committee Member
By now, most of us have heard about the necessity of participating in the 2020 Census. There have been a number of local presentations by the local Census Complete Count Committee. I’d like to believe that the general public understands it is required by our Constitution and that it affects how federal dollars are distributed to states.
However, as I researched how Census data was used and how it plays a role in our rural committees and agriculture, two words come to mind: Food and Water.
In fiscal year of 2015, over 130 federal programs distributed $675 billion based on information obtained through the Census. Of those programs, approximately 20 of them are administered by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).
Landowners and non-landowners alike can all agree that we value an abundant, accessible and affordable food supply as well as clean water and other natural resources. Of that $675 billion, over $33 billion is related to FOOD. This is a combination of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (known as SNAP or ‘food stamps’), School Breakfast and School Lunch programs, Child and Adult Care Food, Emergency Food Assistance, Senior’s Farmers Markets among several others.
Based on research conducted by the Center for Community Solutions in 2018, the percentage of the population using SNAP is 3 percent in Geauga, 7 percent in Lake, 18 percent in Ashtabula, 14 percent in Trumbull and Columbiana, 18 percent in Mahoning, 8 percent in Portage and 12 percent in Stark counties.
There is also over $400 million distributed for WATER, waste disposal and emergency watersheds. My home county of Geauga County is influenced by three major watersheds: the Chagrin River Basin, the Cuyahoga River Basin, the Grand River Basin and a major tributary to the Mahoning River Basin. Most of Northeast Ohio falls in the Lake Erie Watershed, however, some also touch the Ohio River Watershed.
This funding, in conjunction with the H2Ohio program recently proposed and supported by Governor DeWine, Ohio Farm Bureau Federation and several other commodity, conservation and water quality research groups, really drives home the importance of clean, accessible water for ALL Ohio residents.
Food. Water. It’s really quite simple. By April 1, the Census Bureau will have sent you an invitation to participate. You can submit your information online, by mail or by phone. Your responses will help direct funding to Ohio. Your responses could help your friends and neighbors that are afraid, ashamed or unable to ask for help. Your responses could help you when you least expect it.
For more information on the 2020 Census and the Census Bureau, please visit https://2020census.gov/en.html.
