Calling for the NAACP to Begin Mobilization Efforts for Census 2010

WHEREAS, the 2010 Federal Census will perhaps be the most important headcount that this nation has ever experienced; and

WHEREAS, last year nearly 60 local communities successfully challenged official census estimates, including Fulton County, Georgia, which population increased 90,000 to nearly 1 million; our 99th National Convention host city, Cincinnati, which increased its population by 22,000 for a total of 300,000; and

WHEREAS, with hundreds of millions of federal dollars at stake, an inaccurate count can easily result in the loss of needed federal funding for all of our communities; and

WHEREAS, it is estimated that many states would either gain or lose congressional seats if current population trends are confirmed in the 2010 count; and

WHEREAS, an accurate 2012 census count is vital to the re-districting and apportionment efforts on the federal and state level; and

WHEREAS, despite the Census Bureau's initial plans for the 2010 Census to be the first census to use handheld computing devices, officials recently announced that it will count 300 million Americans the old fashioned way by paper and pencil; and

WHEREAS, because of undercounts in past censuses, the full and complete support of the NAACP is vital to its success;

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the NAACP affirms its goal of a complete and accurate Census 2010, especially in those areas of the country where African Americans and others were undercounted in past censuses, and will fully support Census 2010 efforts; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that each State/State-Area Conference designate a State/State-Area Conference Census 2010 Committee to assist units in their jurisdiction to ensure that information and resources are properly deployed in their local communities; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the NAACP through its local units will assist the recruitment program by referring both prospective employees as well as qualified vendors for employment as well as business opportunities that will be available throughout the nation; and

BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that the NAACP will advocate that the U.S. Congress and the U.S. Department of Commerce Bureau of the Census, that for the purposes of the 2010 census, that all prisoners be enumerated as residents of the census tract wherein they were domiciled at the time of their arrest and/or conviction.