Four thousand dollars per person, per year, for 10 years. That’s a lot of money. And that’s how much we stand to lose in Hawaii for anyone missed in the U.S. Census. That’s why you count, and why any babies born before April 1, 2020, count, and everyone all the way up to the oldest kupuna counts. No matter who you live with or where you were born, each person in each house counts.

Census data is how the federal government decides how much funding each state will receive for certain programs such as small business loans, Crime Victim Assistance, Medicare and Medicaid, student loans, Head Start (which provides comprehensive early childhood education, health and other parent services to low-income children and families), highway construction, foster care, meals for public and nonprofit schools, emergency funding for disaster relief, and so much more.

These federal funds truly support all aspects of our community. In fact, more than 300 federal spending programs have relied on 2010 Census data to determine how to distribute $1.5 trillion to state and local governments, nonprofits, businesses and families around the United States. But Hawaii — and every county, town and neighborhood here in the islands — can only get its fair share of this money if there has been an accurate count of the population.

As of mid-August, 60% of Hawaii households had already completed their Census survey on their own — that’s the self-response rate. In comparison, the national rate is at 63% and the top responding state, Minnesota, is at 73%. Census Bureau staffers have been knocking on doors of those who have not yet responded to try to get us closer to a complete count. But even if we get to 90% of our residents counted, we face losing over $500 million a year … for the next decade. We won’t get a chance to fix any undercount until 2030.

Many assistance programs are targeted specifically to help populations with high poverty rates and populations living in rural areas. Unfortunately, these same groups are also where we are seeing the lowest self-response rates.

For instance, the areas surrounding Pahoa on Hawaii island are at 25%; Hana on Maui is at 23%; and West Molokai is at 23%. These historically undercounted areas and populations are at risk of being underfunded for much-needed programs that rely on Census data.

The Census is also about having a voice in government. The results of this once-a-decade count determine the number of U.S. congressional seats each state is allocated and is also used to draw congressional and state legislative districts. This means that an undercount in a specific community could affect who is representing them and their needs.

From a planning perspective, the data on population size, age and other factors are used to guide community and business planning. They impact decisions about where new roads, housing, schools, stores or emergency services will be located. An undercount for your community might mean certain services are no longer available or new services aren’t added.

Completing the Census is simple and can be done from the safety of your own home, in 59 languages. Your answers are confidential and the Census Bureau cannot release any identifiable information about you. Go online to my2020census.gov, call 1-844-330-2020, or go on, mail in that form that’s been sitting on your dining room table. The deadline is Sept. 30.

Please, take a few minutes today to make a difference for all of Hawaii. It really does count.

Micah Kane is CEO and president of the Hawaii Community Foundation.