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Receive a status report and provide general direction regarding the initial 2020 Census outreach effort and contract with the State of California
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Published Notice Required? Yes ____ No _X _
Public Hearing Required? Yes ____ No _X _
DEPARTMENTAL RECOMMENDATION:
The Department of Resource Management recommends that the Board of Supervisors receive a status report on the initial 2020 Census outreach effort and contract with the State of California.
SUMMARY:
The State of California Government Operations Agency (GovOps) has allocated $145,572 to Solano County to provide community outreach for the upcoming 2020 Census in order to better reach the local “hard to count” (HTC) population. The County has contracted with Solano Economic Development Corporation (Solano EDC) to assist with this effort. An update on the County’s overall strategy is provided below and will be presented to the Board.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
The costs associated with preparing the agenda item and presenting the update to the Board are nominal and absorbed by the department’s FY2018/19 Adopted Budget. The costs associated with conducting the Census 2020 outreach will be recovered through the $145,572 allocated funding from the state.
DISCUSSION:
The state has budgeted $90.3 million to be allocated for statewide outreach and media campaigns to reach the HTC areas and communities. Specifically, GovOps has allocated $145,572 to Solano County to utilize toward local marketing and outreach efforts. The Board adopted Resolution #2019-20 on January 22, 2019 to authorize the County Administrator to enter into an agreement with the state to utilize this allocation, and to enter into any other agreements or contracts necessary to implement the activities of the agreement and state funding. The Standard Agreement between the State and the County was subsequently executed on March 25, 2019.
To facilitate outreach efforts and mandatory reporting required under the agreement, Solano County contracted with Solano EDC to take the lead in these efforts on April 2, 2019.
Currently, Solano EDC is drafting the County’s Strategic Plan which will provide an overview of how the County will utilize its funds and how the goals of reaching the HTC communities will be accomplished. The Strategic Plan is due to the State within 60 days of execution of the Standard Agreement (no later than May 24). The County and Solano EDC are working with the State’s Regional Census Representative to ensure the Strategic Plan is complete and meets the State’s requirements for submittal. Submittal of the Strategic Plan to the State does not require Board action, and its tight timeline makes presenting the complete and final Plan to the Board infeasible. Therefore, staff is providing an update to inform the Board of the status of this work and to receive general direction to help shape the strategic plan.
Summary of Outreach Strategy
Among the critical reasons for obtaining an accurate census count is that data from the Census provides important information for policy-makers to make important future decisions on infrastructure, social program funding, development, education, etc. Another reason is funding. It is estimated that for every person not counted, the local and state government loses roughly $1,900 per person per year in revenue. This directly effects a local, state and federal agencies’ ability to provide much needed services.
Utilizing SwORD, a State developed mapping and data tool that identifies hard to count areas, the Solano EDC was able to identify 21 Census Tracts in three jurisdictions that scored above the State median of the HTC Index of 37. These census tracts are located in three jurisdictions: Vallejo, Fairfield and Dixon. Their score ranged from 41 to 115. These 21 census tracts included 11 in Vallejo, 9 in Fairfield and 1 in Dixon. These tracts will be the priority areas to disseminate information.
SwORD identifies the top three key factors driving the HTC Index status. For each tract the EDC identified and tabulated these critical factors. In total, there were 13 factors within the targeted tracts. The top 5 in frequency included: unemployment, moved recently, households on public assistance, non-family households, and households below 150% of the poverty line.
Social media provides a strong marketing platform across demographics. The Solano EDC has contracted with a specialist that has a proven track record in both multi-media campaigns and long-term marketing efforts. Distinct social media content will be distributed on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to provide content as well as a platform for discussion.
Hard copy marketing materials will be distributed to strategic access points, events, and locations that have high visibility with hard to reach population pools. Content and design work will be a mix of those provided by Federal and State sources, as well as those created by our design theme following similar design standards and messaging.
The Solano EDC and the County of Solano will coordinate and implement the Solano Complete Count Committee (CCC). Because the budget limits the efforts and ability to bring staff on to provide distribution in the field, outreach objectives and tactics can be implemented by members of the Committee. Members are being strategically selected to be in position to distribute information reaching target audiences identified as HTC. Through the larger partnership of educators, faith-based organizations, local leaders, and other organizations, information will be distributed at local events, especially those that host communities that are known to be under-served and HTC. The initial kick-off CCC meeting is scheduled for May 16, 2019.
The Solano EDC will also utilize content, language translation, and materials already developed by the Census, State, and other organizations and jurisdictions that could be shared to avoid redundancy and duplication of effort. It should be noted that counties and community-based organizations are actively sharing information, strategies, and ideas because everyone wins with a successful campaign.
Metrics and results will be ultimately be provided to both Solano County and the State of California through SwORD.
ALTERNATIVES:
The Board could choose not to receive this update on Census outreach. This is not recommended as the Board has previously expressed its interest in obtaining greater public participation in the 2020 Census and it provides an opportunity for the Board to provide general direction to staff given the deadlines for the County to provide deliverables required under the state contract.
OTHER AGENCY INVOLVEMENT:
The 2020 Census will be conducted by the US Census Bureau. California GovOps contracts with the County to disperse the funding allocation. Solano EDC is administering the outreach effort through a contract with the County. Each city in the County has agreed to provide staff assistance to the County’s efforts to form and manage a Complete Count Committee. We have engaged the cities at various levels and have indicated support for this process.
CAO RECOMMENDATION:
APPROVE DEPARTMENTAL RECOMMENDATION