Patterson forming panel to encourage Census response

PATTERSON — The city government hopes a new committee will make sure Patterson residents are counted in the 2020 Census.
How much of the money that Patterson people get back after they send it to Washington depends in part on its population.
The City Council voted unanimously Tuesday for a resolution calling for a committee composed of members “representing city government, education, faith-based organizations, media, businesses and parish census workers and volunteers. …”
Each member of the Complete Count Committee “shall form a sub-committee to insure that every citizen of Patterson is accounted for in 2020.”
The 2010 Census showed Patterson population growth of more than 19% in the previous decade. That meant an additional $2.5 million in federal funding for Patterson, Mayor Rodney Grogan said.
But this decade in energy-dependent St. Mary Parish has been dominated by a five-year slump in oil prices. The latest Census Bureau estimate shows Patterson’s population declining from 6,112 in 2010 to 5,839 in summer 2018.
Each resident missed by the Census count results in an average loss of $2,291 in federal funds, said Jeffery Duhe, a St. John Parish native who is now a partnership specialist with the Atlanta Regional Census Center.
Undercounts result in part from low response rates. The Census Bureau also predicts where response rates for the 2020 head-count might be low based on factors such as the number of immigrants, the demographic makeup of the population and the sort of work people do.
The national mail-back response rate for Census forms is about 74%, Duhe said. Online information at census.gov shows Patterson’s response rate to the American Community Survey, which develops five-year average statistics about communities, is about 57%.
The Census Bureau has also identified areas in Morgan City, Amelia and extreme western St. Mary where the response rate is predicted to be low.
Some of the most frequently undercounted groups are those who need federal programs the most, Duhe said. Those groups include senior citizens and children under 5.
“You send the money to Washington …,” Duhe told the council Tuesday. “Why not get back that money where it’s needed?”
Duhe urged the council to emphasize the confidentiality of Census responses. The Census Bureau isn’t allowed to share identifiable data with other agencies, including law enforcement. The individual Census information you might find on Ancestry.com or other genealogical sites is available only after 72 years, he said.
Also Tuesday, the council gave special recognition to Patterson public school teacher Alicia Brattin.
Brattin commutes from Youngsville each day to teach at Patterson High.
Councilman Travis Darnell, who is also a Patterson High teacher, said the school is often praised for its football program but gets less attention for its academic success.
“The most important thing is we’re succeeding,” Darnell said. “Our kids have an opportunity to attend an A school.”
Patterson High has earned an A grade under the state’s accountability system.
The council also got a break on the repair of a water line on Hurst Street. Engineering estimates said the project would cost about $80,000. The council accepted a bid of $47,000 from Jesse Doiron Inc. of Morgan City.