Extraordinary Effort Needed on Homeless Census

There is little time left for course corrections before the special census of the homeless is conducted March 20 and 21. But some adjustments appear to be needed if the count is to be accurate and if a true assessment of San Diego is to be gained.

This is particularly important in North County, where it is estimated that as many as 20,000 migrants live in squalid, makeshift quarters in the canyons and hills.

Federal funds are distributed to cities and counties according to census figures, and it’s estimated that every person counted will bring in $150 a year over the next decade. For 20,000 people, that’s $3 million a year. Given how few federal resources San Diego County has received to cope with the influx of immigrants, the need for an accurate count is crucial.

It’s also important for San Diegans to have an accurate picture of the community, including its homeless population.

Until now, migrants have not been included in the generally accepted homeless estimate of 5,000. How can community and elected leaders intelligently address such issues as low-income housing without accurate data on the numbers of homeless?

Counting the homeless is a formidable task, however. Some people, especially migrants in the country illegally, fear authority figures. Those, for example, who are sharing quarters with relatives or friends without the landlord’s knowledge, are reluctant to give any information they think might get them evicted. Some of the homeless are addicted to drugs or alcohol or are mentally ill and unable or unwilling to cooperate with census takers.

And there are the logistical problems of trying to find people sleeping in hundreds of spider holes, gullies, doorways, trash bins and parks.

Community groups have been working with the Census Bureau to help ensure as accurate a count as possible. But many advocates for the homeless fear that the undercount will be substantial. Outreach to the homeless has depended in large part on volunteer efforts of already overworked social service providers, religious groups and volunteers.

Community activists are concerned that there will be too few census takers to accomplish the daunting overnight task, as well as too few who are bilingual. They also worry that the census takers will be inadequately trained to deal with these frightened and sometimes hostile people.

Obtaining an accurate count, which is everyone’s aim, will depend on a symbiotic relationship between census workers and the social service providers and volunteers who have the trust of many of the homeless and the knowledge of their whereabouts and habits. This will be particularly true with the migrants, whose situation may be unlike any other the Census Bureau will encounter.

The bureau and the community groups must have the resources for the extraordinary outreach that will be necessary in the next couple of weeks. Many decisions by public and private agencies and businesses depend on it.