There are a lot of numbers floating around since the Census Bureau released its 2010 census redistricting data earlier this month, and not everyone agrees with them.
Officials in a few local municipalities think the population counts for their areas should be higher. Some are concerned towns won’t receive the desired amount of state-appropriated funding, given based on population, to provide services or that it will be tougher to apply for grants if an area doesn’t meet a population threshold.
Chad Hicks,Oak Island’s assistant town manager, pulled the town’s voter registration roll Monday and discovered there were 5,868 people listed.
Then he looked at the total 2010 Census count, which was 6,783 people. He said the two numbers appeared too close considering not all people over the age of 18 are registered to vote.
“We’re just trying to put together a case,” Hicks said. He’s also examining utility bills and looking at other data to show there might be more people in the town.
Officials in neighboring Southport are doing the same.
Mayor Robert Howardsaid he was disappointed at the census count because annual state population projections showed there should be more people living in the area.
Southport’s population was 2,833, according to the 2010 census, and a 2009 population projection showed 3,143 people.
The state projections are estimates based on a statistical method using the 2000 census count as a base. Growth rates, housing unit data and trends in growth over time are calculated and averaged, giving an estimated population for each municipality, said Jennifer Song, the state’s demographer.
Song said it’s not surprising to see slight differences between the annual projections and the 2010 census count.
“There’s bound to be some difference,” she said. “The last population count was based on the 2000 census data.”
Song’s heard from several municipal officials who want to challenge the 2010 census data, but she advised them to have proof of the need for corrections other than the state population estimates.
Town officials can appeal to the Census Bureau through a process called “Count Question Resolution.” The Census will accept challenges to the counts of living quarters and people, the recording of boundaries and the placement of living quarters within governmental boundaries.
Corrections were made to dozens of North Carolina municipalities after the 2000 census results.
But the corrected count sometimes added little more. A recount in Kure Beach showed 35 more people, and Belville’s corrected 2000 count showed 78 more people living in the town than the 285 who were counted.
Before any towns can challenge last year’s census data, however, officials must research and gather specific documents detailing reasons for challenging either the location of government boundaries or the location or number of housing units.
Challenges will be accepted June 1 to June 1, 2013, according to a website about the process. That gives municipalities time to discuss whether to move forward with a challenge.
Kure Beach Councilwoman Emilie Swearingen said she questioned the census count for the island town and planned to discuss the issue with her board.
Wrightsville Beach officials questioned the number of housing units when they noticed a decline in the number of units from 2000 to 2010. But Town Manager Bob Simpson said he wasn’t planning to challenge the result unless officials there later decided to do so.
By Shannan Bowen
Published: Tuesday, March 15, 2011 at 11:32 a.m.
Last Modified: Tuesday, March 15, 2011 at 11:32 a.m.
