Report warns of Census undercount

FROM THE ARCHIVE

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FEBRUARY 12, 2001

With millions of dollars of federal funding at stake, a report released on Friday warns that a repeat of the 1990 Census could be costly to American Indians and Alaska Natives throughout the country.

Focusing just on Albuquerque, New Mexico, the US Census Monitoring Board reports that nearly 3,000 Native Americans were left off the 1990 Census. Most lived on 11 reservations within a 50-mile radius of Albuquerque, the largest city in the state.

Since a number of agencies -- including the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Indian Health Service -- use the Census to help determine funding levels, an accurate count has a significant affect on tribes and cities with large urban Indian populations. The count is long-lasting too, tying communities to the results for the next 10 years.

But the battle over just how to ensure the Native Americans are accurately represented is another question whose answer may lie in a political battle over how to use data obtained from the 2000 Census. Democrats contend adjusted, or sampled, counts protect poor and minority populations while President George W. Bush and other Republicans push for the use of raw data.

The outcome of the debate will have a significant impact on Indian Country. Even the slightest difference in counts can affect how a tribe services its community and plans for its future.

"It would make a huge difference if there were five more youths or seniors," said Matt Foster, director of tribal lands for Sandia Pueblo in New Mexico. "It might justify an in-house physical therapy program versus contracting somebody else to do it."

The issue goes beyond reservations, though, according to the report. The mobile nature of Indian communities whereby tribal members travel freely between reservations and urban areas means schools, health care centers, and other social service providers in cities like Albuquerque must be able to meet the demand.

But three providers interviewed for the report couldn't keep up because they didn't plan for the population the 1990 Census missed. All three said an adjusted count would have provided a more accurate view of the Indian population and Ted Jojola, a University of New Mexico researcher who conducted the undercount study, makes the case for such a count.

"Because of systematic biases in census data collection, the use of adjusted counts for purposes of program development could significantly benefit both urban and reservation Indians in Census 2000," said Jojola. He also also chairs the American Indian / Alaska Native Census 2000 Advisor Committee.

Overall, the 1990 Census missed about 48,000 people in the state of New Mexico, 9 percent of whom were American Indian. If the problem repeats itself, the Albuquerque area alone could lose more than $20 million in federal funds over the next 10 years, according to a PricewaterhouseCoopers study.

Get the Report:
Profiling the Native American Community in Albuquerque: Assessing the Impacts of Census Undercounts and Adjustments (US Census Monitoring Board February 2001)

Relevant Links:
US Census Monitoring Bureau - www.cmpb.gov
US Census Bureau - www.census.gov