Results of the 2010 Census

[Cubby]

The Census Day is April 1, 2010

The National and State Populations and Electoral Vote Changes will be reported in the last week of December 2010.

The County level data (going by what happened back in 2001) will be released sometime in March 2011 (3 months later). Racial Data may also be released at this time.

I don't remember when town and minor civil division (i.e. New England towns) data came out in 2001. Usually the Census Bureau releases the estimates in May or June, so maybe those months in 2011.

[Cubby]

West Virginia will be right on the edge between 2 and 3 seats, although it will likely stay at 3 if the present state and national estimates are right.

But remember what happened in 2000. The Census Bureau's estimates were short by 7 MILLION people, so I don't trust their numbers as much anymore. They said Connecticut was declining throughout the 90's yet we grew almost 4%. So I think the National population will be more like 316 million than the 309 that they currently predicting.

So if West Virginia ends up with 2 seats, how will they be split? The only one that sounds good is combining the 1st and third by way of Putnam and Roane counties, and making Kanawha, Central VA and the Eastern panhandle the 2nd district.

As Jefferson (Harpers Ferry) and Berkeley (Martinsburg) suburbanize and become more like Loudoun next door, will there be any kind of tension between them and the rest of WV? They have nothing in common with McDowell or Wheeling, they are part of the DC metro area.

[Cubby]

Personally, with current data needs being what they are, in a world like ours where changes occur more quickly, I don't think it would be a bad idea to go to a 5 year census, or something along those lines.

I wish we did a 5 year census like Canada does. But even at 10 years, all the libertarians and conservatives whine about how "intrusive" the questions are. Back in 2000 there was press coverage of lots of people saying they weren't going to fill out the long form of the census, which led directly to the American Community Survey. So there wouldn't be much support for it.

(I may be wrong about this) but we'd need a constitutional amendment to do a 5-year census since Article One of the Constitution specifically states the Census should be conducted every ten years.

[Cubby]

I may be wrong about this) but we'd need a constitutional amendment to do a 5-year census since Article One of the Constitution specifically states the Census should be conducted every ten years.

Technically that would be correct.  A sly argument would be that the constitution only mandates that there must be a census every 10 years.  It doesn't say that there can't be censuses taken in between that time.

They should use that line of reasoning. But one can never underestimate the fear/hatred of the Government between the Appalachians and the Sierra Nevada.