Census undercounted young Latinos, report says
Some 400,000 young Latino children were not counted in the 2010 Census, meaning their communities failed to receive the right share of federal funding, according to a new report released Tuesday.
The children, ranging from newborn to age 4, accounted for more than 36 percent of the total net undercount for all children younger than 5, a disproportionate share and emblematic of the greater problem in reaching minority populations, researchers said.
The finding comes as the Census Bureau last month kicked off a Census test in Harris County, surveying 225,000 households as part of its preparation for the 2020 review. It will be the first of its kind to rely primarily on the Internet. In 2010, about 9,000 children were missed in Harris County, according to William O’Hare, lead author of the report for the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials Educational Fund and Child Trends Hispanic Institute.
Five states — California, Texas, Florida, Arizona and New York — made up 72 percent of the national net undercount of young Latinos.
Texas accounted for nearly one-fifth of the total number of uncounted children, with most living in Harris, Dallas, or Tarrant counties.
Accurate Census counts are crucial to ensure regions receive the right portion of about$400 billion in federal money a year that is appropriated to programs like Head Start and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children.
District boundaries for lawmakers are drawn according to Census figures so an area with more people will have a greater share of representation.
“Any area that doesn’t get its fair share of population count doesn’t get its fair share of political representation,” O’Hare said.
Researches derived the undercount by comparing Census population estimates with birth and death figures. It’s not clear why Latino children are undercounted more frequently than others. It’s possible that their families are more likely to live in large apartment complexes and move around frequently, making them difficult to track, O’Hare said.