Complete the Census Already!

The U.S. Census Bureau has a handy mapping tool where you can view many different layers of data relative to response rates.  As of June 30, Pennsylvania currently had a 65% response rate.  Unfortunately for Northeastern Pennsylvania, our response rate is far behind the Southeast.  So, for all of you who bellyache over Southeastern Pennsylvania getting the lion's share of Pennsylvania's funding, now's your chance to help claim your fair share!

Completing the Census really only takes a few minutes, can be done on paper, online, or by phone and does really determine a lot of important funding decisions.  If you are one of the many slackers who haven't filled out the Census yet, visit 2020Census.Gov and get it done!

Looking at the data by Northeast Congressional District, Cartwright's district has the lowest participation rate of any district.  Given the importance of federal funding to his economically depressed district, Cartwright needs to step it up in helping his constituents complete the U.S. Census.  The U.S. Census is as good as an example as any for the politicians to use their taxpayer-funded advertising to educate their constituents on the importance of an issue over the shameless self-promotion that is all too common.

Here are the individual districts with current response rates:

• District 7 - Susan Wild's district has a 70.6% response rate
• District 8 - Matt Cartwright's district has a 54.8% response rate
• District 9 - Dan Meuser's Distrct has a 65.3% response rate
• District 12 - Fred Keller's district has a 59.9% response rate

When you look at the data at the county level, Sullivan County is pulling one of the worst response rates in the Commonwealth of PA.  Literally, second worst of any county (Forest has the worst response rate.)  Here are the Northeast counties and their response rates:

• Bradford County - 59%
• Carbon County - 56.8%
• Columbia County - 61.4%
• Lackawanna County - 61.5%
• Luzerne County - 61.3%
• Lycoming County - 63.7%
• Monroe County - 48.6%
• Montour County - 57.6%
• Northumberland County - 61.9%
• Pike County - 37.4%
• Snyder County - 70.5%
• Schuylkill County - 61.4%
• Sullivan County - 28.9%
• Susquehanna County - 47.1%
• Tioga County - 52.8%
• Union County - 67.6%
• Wayne County - 45.1%
• Wyoming County - 54%

You can also look at the data on the municipal level.  Some highlights of larger ones and their response rates:

• Bloomsburg - 49.3%
• Carbondale - 60.4%
• Danville - 52.9%
• Dunmore - 65.5%
• East Stroudsburg - 56%
• Hazleton - 56.7%
• Honesdale - 60.9%
• Jim Thorpe - 62.3%
• LaPorte - 26.7%
• Lehighton - 68.2%
• Lewisburg - 60.3%
• Middleburg - 67.1%
• Milford - 54.9%
• Montrose - 32.2%
• Muncy - 68.9%
• New Milford - 44.6%
• Pittston - 59.5%
• Pottsville - 55.7%
• Sayre - 69%
• Scranton - 56%
• Sunbury - 58.8%
• Stroudsburg - 50.5%
• Towanda - 52.1%
• Tunkhannock - 64.4%
• Waymart - 56.9%
• Wellsboro - 62.6%
• Wilkes-Barre - 51.3%
• Williamsport - 53.3%