Cities lag in preparations for high-stakes census

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WASHINGTON—With the 2010 census looming, major U.S. cities whose residents are at high risk of being missed are struggling with a shortage of money and manpower to prepare for an accurate count.

A study by the Pew Charitable Trusts, released Monday, found several cities with substantially fewer resources than it had in 2000. City officials also expressed concern about a possible poor turnout next year, citing difficulties in finding displaced residents due to home foreclosures and skittish immigrants wary of filling out government forms.

Earlier this month, the Commerce Department ruled out seeking a temporary halt to large-scale immigrant raids as a way to boost participation in hard-to-count communities.

"Nobody is expecting a good census in 2010," said Joseph Salvo, New York City's population division chief. "I'm not optimistic. Since the last census we had 9/11, privacy issues, trust of government issues. And there's been no public declaration that we're going to suspend immigration raids like in 2000."

http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2009/10/12/cities_lag_in_preparations_for_high_stakes_census/