Home Contra Costa County Contra Costa County Census 2020 Phase II Grant Funding Available

Contra Costa County Census 2020 Phase II Grant Funding Available

by ECT

Martinez, CA – Contra Costa County announces its second phase of Census 2020 outreach grants through a Request for Proposals (RFP). The second phase of funding is available to tax-exempt organizations, schools, and public agencies and will consist of rolling mini-grants for Census events to help ensure every person in Contra Costa County counts.

The County seeks to fund grantees committed to ensuring a complete count of County residents with an emphasis on Hard-to-Count populations. The grants will fund organizations to host events between now and April 30, 2020 to engage and motivate hard-to-count residents around being counted in Census 2020. Grant amounts will range between $500 and $3,000.

“Contra Costa County proudly supports the collaboration between the County and our local schools,   organizations, and public agencies to ensure a complete count,” said Board Chair, Supervisor John Gioia. “These grants go to deserving organizations who know and serve the community in hard-to-count Census tracts.”

“Community Based Organizations have the most hands on experience working with our hard-to-count residents. They know how to meet their communities where they’re at and will be key to ensure we have a complete count in 2020,” said Supervisor Diane Burgis, Chair of the County’s Census 2020 Complete Count Steering Committee.

The grant funding was approved by the Board of Supervisors based on the recommendation of the County’s Census 2020 Complete Count Steering Committee to adopt the Request for Proposals (RFP) in two phases. This recognizes some smaller organizations may not be aware of the Census and in a position to apply until closer to the Census date (April 1, 2020). The Complete Count Steering Committee was appointed by the Board of Supervisors to help ensure a fair and complete 2020 Census count.

The Census collects data every 10 years, decides civic representation, and allocates over a trillion dollars in federal funding. Hard-to-count populations prove critical to a successful, complete count. Populations are considered hard-to-count for several reasons: they may be highly mobile, distrustful of government, require language assistance, or live in areas that are hard to enumerate. Twenty percent of our county’s population live in hard-to-count Census tracts. San Pablo, Richmond, and Pittsburg have the highest rates of residents living in hard-to-count Census tracts in Contra Costa County.

“We’ve seen a great shift in our demographics. There are so many different languages spoken, so many people who have come from other countries who might not be familiar with the Census process,” said Board Vice Chair, Supervisor Candace Anderson, Vice Chair of the County’s Census 2020 Complete Count Steering Committee. “Thankfully, I’m excited to see all the great people and boots on the ground effort we must get our communities ready to participate in the Census 2020.”

Grant applications will be accepted on a rolling basis until the funds are exhausted or April 30, 2020, whichever is first. Send all applications via email to [email protected].

All applicants are encouraged to attend the Bidders Conference on January 9, 2020 from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm at the Paramount Conference Room, 777 Arnold Drive, Martinez, CA.

For more information about Contra Costa County’s Request for Proposals and its Census 2020 work and resources, visit cocoCensus.org. Questions about the RFP go to Matt Lardner, Contra Costa County Census Outreach Coordinator, at (925) 674-7813.

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1 comment

Kevin Jan 3, 2020 - 2:56 pm

Well, you’re NOT counting me in, asshats! I hope more people refuse to let them hoodwink you into this nonsense.

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