DANVILLE — To help spread the word about the 2010 Census and its impact on local funding, East Central Illinois Community Action Agency is seeking volunteers to help canvass neighborhoods.

Laria Robinson, census coordinator for East Central Illinois Community Action, said she’s seeking about 50 volunteers to break up into groups of four or five to canvass neighborhoods from 9 a.m. to noon Dec. 5.

The deadline to sign up is Nov. 30. Volunteers will receive a T-shirt and lunch.

Volunteers will travel door to door educating residents about the importance of filling out the census form when it comes to them in March.

The volunteers will pass out a brochure entitled “Count Me In,” which explains the census process and its importance to the community.

The neighborhood canvassing is part of activities planned by the local Complete Count Committee to raise more awareness about the census.

The city has a “hot tract” area that census officials are targeting, where there was less than 50 percent response rate with the 2000 census.

This area in the city includes the downtown area and a large area south of Main Street from Gilbert to Buchanan Street.

The north side “hot tract” boundary is just north of Davis and Williams streets, with Gilbert Street the west border, Washington Street the east border north of Main Street and Buchanan Street and Perrysville Road the east border south of Main Street.

In this area, the 2000 final mail response rate was 44.7 percent. Total housing units in 2000 were 1,140 with a population of 1,943.

These will be the areas the volunteers will canvass.

Robinson said a lot of these are low-income areas.

Mayor Scott Eisenhauer has said city officials know there are people (such as illegal immigrants) who decide not to report themselves through the census.

“But what people need to understand is this is a very important program for the city’s future success, and that all the information remains confidential,” he said.

The information is not shared or sold to anyone else, he stressed.

“We want to let people know to don’t be alarmed…,” Robinson added of the volunteers in their neighborhoods.

The volunteers won’t take up much of residents’ time.

Robinson said the census “impacts everything,” with the 2010 census impacting local and state funding for the next 10 years.

Estimates indicate the area’s population has declined, so that means it will be even more important to make sure everyone is counted in each household, city officials have said.

The census counts citizens living in the U.S. every 10 years, and participation is required by law. The census should take less than 10 minutes to complete.

FYI

To volunteer to help with neighborhood canvassing for the 2010 Census, contact Laria Robinson at East Central Illinois Community Action Agency at 554-9146 or through e-mail at lsrobinson@comaction.org.