2010 Census

Darren Jackson, (D-Wake), rebutted statements from GOP leaders on the "curative" bills. Deborah Ross, (D-Wake)asked if Sen. Dan Blue's requested changes would be considered. (No answer.)

Apparently Blue's objections will not be considered. The chair limited debate on the bill. Rep. Paul Stam (R-Wake) spoke and defended the bills as presented by the leaders.

House Committee substitute HB 679. Electronic Vote recorded:
64 ayes
47 nays

Bill sent to the Senate Chamber by special messenger.

According to House Calendar, other bills for committee will be considered:
Session Law 2011-203, Wake
Session Law 2011-404, House

HB 777 "Redistricting Curative Bill" on all areas relating to maps with voting precincts left out because of a "computer programming error that failed to properly record the desires of the Redistricting Committee". In this bill the census tracts were inadvertently not transferred to the maps.

All that talk about North Carolina needing to redistrict because of a likely new seat in the House of Representatives was apparently premature. Now the shuffling of lines will be based purely on fulfilling the Republican partisan agenda.

MSNBC has the broader story, with much more analysis coming over the weeks ahead. One big piece of news, however, is already clear: scary brown people are taking over Texas. Most of the growth in the Lone Star state, which will get four new seats in the House, came from Hispanic families. It's easy to understand why Republicans are worried. The days of our country being controlled exclusively by rich old white men like Art Pope are numbered. Thank god.

Yesterday, the Institute for Southern Studies released a report showing how the economic crisis could spell trouble for the 2010 Census count, looking at the example of recession-rocked North Carolina.

You can read the full report here, and check out news coverage of the study here, here and here.

The Constitution of the United States requires that every ten years that we have a count of every person and household in the US while recording certain information about each person, including questions about ethnicity, race, relation to other household occupants, and gender. The 2010 Census will be one of the largest civil projects in the history of the US, employing hundreds of thousands of census workers, all in attempt to make sure that everyone is counted.

WHY THE CENSUS MATTERS

A blogger over at the blog Swing State Project has taken a crack at redistricting North Carolina after the 2010 Census. Currently it assumes that North Carolina does not add a new Congressional seat, which is seeming more and more likely. However, the author says that they're drawing up a new version that would take into account a 14th seat for North Carolina

Here's the link to the blog post. They think that we can redraw Virginia Foxx out of her district and take over the 5th, giving Democrats a 9-4 advantage in our Congressional delegation. What do you all think?

I worked the 2000 Census and have been fascinated by the process ever since. In those days we went out with our maps and lists of addresses. I carried those thick forms into every corner of Jackson County, North Carolina. The Jeep J-10 took me up roads without names to people who didn't see many other people. It was a charming and awkward way to get to know people.

Anyway, enough woolgathering, the US Census Department has decided to come to Fayetteville to warm up for the decennial, and they've brought new toys: