COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Advocacy groups have asked the Ohio Senate to include more money for the U.S. census count next year in the upcoming two-year state budget.
Ashon McKenzie is policy director for the Children's Defense Fund-Ohio. McKenzie on Thursday testified in favor of an amendment in the Senate Finance Committee providing $1.1 million for census communication and outreach.
Gongwer News Service reports that McKenzie argued the money will allow communities to launch or enhance campaigns focused on hard-to-count populations and hard-to-reach areas.
Kelsey Bergfeld, coalition manager of Advocates for Ohio's Future, says Ohio could lose federal dollars if it's unprepared for the 2020 census.
Bergfeld says the state is significantly behind efforts ensuring every person in Ohio is appropriately counted.
