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26 <br /> <br />Todd McGee said Orange County has always been very responsive, so the Census <br />Bureau is not concerned about Orange County, which leads to it being an unlikely candidate to <br />receive grant funds. He said he is worried about the digital divide, and the political atmosphere. <br />Commissioner Marcoplos asked if the participation percentage for Orange County is <br />known. <br />Todd McGee said the Census Bureau considers a 75% initial response rate to be good, <br />and Orange County was close to 90% in 2010. He said his goal is to be 10-15% higher than the <br />average response rate, and responses are accepted through July and August. <br />Commissioner Marcoplos asked if there is any benefit to marshal more volunteers. <br />Todd McGee said he is concerned about that because it may confuse people, since it is <br />unknown who has responded and who has not. He said it is possible that there will be an online <br />live response by census tract, which could possibly allow staff to engage in some targeted <br />outreach. <br />Commissioner Marcoplos said the federal government will have the specific information, <br />but sharing it would be a privacy issue. <br />Todd McGee said that is correct. He said the government cannot share identifying <br />census data with anyone. <br />Commissioner Bedford asked if there is a particular practice to county the homeless. <br />Todd McGee said the homeless are counted separately. He said the students that live <br />in dorms are also a unique group, which is counted by the University. He said a group that the <br />staff is concerned about is students that live in off-campus housing, since so many live in the <br />same dwelling. He said another hard group is those under age 5 years. <br />Chair Rich referred to the sites, and the upper right and lower left groups on the map, <br />and asked if there is a way to better reach this part of the population. <br />Todd McGee said the “be counted” site committee will look at this. He said a possible <br />location is the grange in the northwest part of the County. He would like to set up some <br />computers during one of their meetings. He said a volunteer fire station is another possible <br />location. <br />Chair Rich asked if information could be posted at the Animal Shelter. <br />Todd McGee said the committee will be creating flyers and posters to be distributed at <br />all government buildings as well as businesses, etc. He said the recreation centers and the <br />Sportsplex are also good location to publicize. <br />Commissioner Dorosin said it would also be good to partner with churches. <br />Commissioner Price said yes. <br />Todd McGee said the month of March has 5 Sundays, and pastors generally prepare 4 <br />sermons per month, and a 5th Sunday presents an opportunity to coordinate a 5th Sunday, <br />“souls to the polls” type movement. <br />Commissioner Dorosin said Todd McGee has identified the challenges, such as the <br />digital divide, etc., and seems to have good plans in place. He said is it also possible to partner <br />with the schools, which can stuff backpacks and email parents. He said when he served in this <br />area in 2000, there were more resources available (swag, fliers, etc.), and this may be helpful. <br />Commissioner Marcoplos said he can be a White Cross Volunteer. He said there is a <br />new Hispanic restaurant and market that opened, and the owners are leaders in the Hispanic <br />community and would happy to help spread the word. <br />Chair Rich said there are so many people who are untrusting of official things, and asked <br />if there is a way to better reach these people. <br />Todd McGee said with the low response and hard to reach communities, the best <br />practice is to identify the trusted community members and ask them to deliver the message to <br />the community at large. He said staff is working with the FSA, the Refugee Partnership, and <br />other organizations.