Chicago’s 2020 Census Responses Lag Rates for Illinois, U.S.

(Bloomberg) -- Chicago’s response rate for the 2020 census is lagging behind Illinois and the overall U.S., spurring a push by Mayor Lori Lightfoot to ensure that residents are counted so the city doesn’t lose federal funds.

The city’s rate is at about 55%, Lightfoot said Monday during a press conference on the city’s west side, where in some spots the level is lower than 40%. Illinois’s response rate is almost 67% and the U.S.’s is at about 62%, according Marilyn Sanders, the Census Bureau’s regional director.

Lightfoot has sought to reverse Chicago’s population decline since taking office a little over a year ago and she’s now confronting the added difficulty of census outreach in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Without higher response rates, “we’ve got a lot to lose,” Lightfoot said.

“I am issuing a challenge to every community where your responses are low: please step up,” Lightfoot said. “We are still not where we need to be, not even close.”

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