 Welcome back everyone. Hello. Hello. So we're we're back. So welcome everyone. And we will be doing the session now with Genesis Sanchez from Naleo, but before we go on to our session, we want to go ahead and give a specific recognition and thanks to the San Antonio area foundation for their COVID-19 response fund. And we also want to thank the United Way of San Antonio for all of their support and remind you all as well that if you have any clients, anybody who's in need of care coordination, please go ahead and send us your referral. And if you like, you can also go on to our website to go ahead and submit that referral. So also want to remind you that we have we're placing a special focus right now on supporting pregnant women and families with children at risk. So any needs, any questions, any referrals, please do not hesitate to reach out. And I think, well, I also want to remind you that we do have at the bottom the ask a question. So if you'll place your questions on there, we'll go ahead and address them at the end. And also we'll review with Genesis as well as with all of the other presenters as far as getting some questions answered through email and sending out some presentations. So I think at this moment, we're going to bring all of the dancing to an end. I know that the kumbias and the tacos were really, really good and the Sumba, but let's go on to talk a little bit about the census. And then after we get everybody counted through the census, then we could definitely enjoy some dancing and some tacos. All right. So with that, I'm here to present Genesis Sanchez. Thank you and now and thank you to the collaborative and to Charlotte for her technical help. And thank you to all of you. I know this is a difficult time to be focusing on anything but the immediate and so I really appreciate everybody's commitment to helping us get the word out about the importance of the census. As Anel mentioned, my name is Genesis and I'm the Texas Regional Census Campaign Manager for Nalayo. And who we are is we're an organization that focuses on growing and empowering Latinos to participate in our political process. And we do this by naturalization, electoral participation and census. This is the third census that we're working on and we're already working on the next one. So it just goes to show you the level of commitment that we have to ensuring a full count of our communities. I'm going to start out by just going over very quickly, like a recap of what the census is. The census is very simply account of every person who's living in the United States. So you'll hear me say, you know, we'll call it the enumeration, the count. It's mandated by the Constitution and it's the US Census Bureau that conducts the count every 10 years. And what's very important is that everyone is required to participate no matter their age, race, ethnicity or immigration status. We know that that was something of contention last summer and with the attempt to add a citizenship question to the 2020 census here to remind everybody that there is no citizenship question on the census. So why should we care, right, about a fair and accurate census for Texans that we anticipate that we'll receive about $60 billion back into our communities annually. So these are tax dollars that come back to us. And this is every year for the next 10 years. It determines where we should build the central services. We're thinking about things like schools, hospitals and roads. It funds key federal programs that our families depend on. So talking about Head Start, CHIP, Medicaid and WIC. And it determines political representation. So in 2020, we have the opportunity to redraw our districts and gain two to three congressional seats. So that means more representation for us and more advocacy for us as well. So as we're facing this public health crisis, one of the things that we want to be mindful of, right, is that the 2020 census is not top of mind for our communities, right? Everybody is worried about very different set of issues. But what it's also showing us right now is that it's very important that we have reliable and accurate census data because the folks who are, you know, taking action depend on that data to make decisions. So we're looking at first responders. Where did, you know, our government decide to build hospitals and community health centers and where did they not decide to do so, right? All of that is very much dictated by census data. We're also looking at things like grocery stores. So and we know, right, as public health professionals that one of the things that is most immediate, right, is the access to food and to access to the, you know, real material things that our families need. We're seeing those gaps where there's places where we have food deserts or we're running out of food in certain places. We're thinking about things like internet access as our children are moving into the digital space. Many of them are struggling to complete assignments and to be in community with their peers because they don't have access to the internet. Other things like school resources and very importantly right now, things like food banks. One of the things that we've seen in Texas is that food banks are not necessarily allocated where they should be because of inaccurate census data. And so one of the messages that we want people to take away is that as we face this public health crisis together, participating in the census now helps to secure funding for our future funding for our communities. This is a little bit of a takeaway slide, but I hope it kind of shows how vast this money really is allocated. So by far, this information is from 2017. By far, the largest chunk of money that comes back into the federal program is Medicaid. And so with both the expansion and the decrease of Medicaid, we see exactly how much that can harm us. But we're also looking at things like SNAP, loan guarantees, Section 8 housing, CHIP, Title I grants, special education grants. So all of these things combined really do help create and really inform how our communities, if they're really accessing all of their needs in order to be healthy and thriving. And one of the difficulties of the count is that although it's improved over time, it historically has missed a lot of different community members. So we're looking at Black, Latino and Indigenous communities, folks that live in low-income households, immigrants and individuals who don't speak English very well, people who rent, maybe people who live in non-traditional housing, people who live in rural areas, the highly mobile, the very young, so children age 0 to 4, community needs affected by natural disasters, individuals with disabilities and the elderly. Here in Texas, about 25% of our population live and was considered a hard-to-count area. And about a 1% undercount in our state would mean that we lose about $300 million every year for the next 10 years. That's a lot of money, right? And we know that one of the key things about this is that we won't let our families, you know, we won't let things happen to them. We're still going to show up for them. But when we don't have those federal funds, it puts a real strain on our local efforts. So that's something that we want to avoid. So this is a snapshot of literally what is happening in real time. So on the left, this is what is considered a hard-to-count map. So this is from the center for the City University of New York. The City University of New York, they created a map to show some of the difficulties of counting folks. And so in Texas, the darker the red, we're looking at the left, the darker the red, the harder to count. So this means that these are these red spots where households that had a really difficult time engaging with the census, returning the form. On the right is the current response rates. So this is what's happening right now in real time. So as of the 7th of April, and you can tell the harder it is to count or the harder it is to count, the harder it has been to count as of today. So right now, Texas is currently at about a 41% response rate and compared to a 45% national response rate. So we're lagging a little bit behind and we really need that additional support from you, from community members to get the word out. So as I mentioned earlier, one thing I want to, I also want to reiterate because I know most of us work with families is that the very young are the most likely to be excluded from the census count. So in 2010, we had a net undercount of about a million very young children. So we're looking at that age range from zero to four. And the thing about it is that caretakers don't know that they should include their babies. So they'll return the form, but they may look at their newborn and say, well, this child isn't in school yet. Maybe they're not accessing services and maybe the baby doesn't talk. So it's a lot of different reasons. There's a ton of research that goes behind this, but one of the key things that we should remind folks of is that when you tell them, hey, don't forget to do your census, you also want to say, hey, don't forget your babies. It's important to say babies because once you start from babies, you know, you're like, oh wait, my baby and my toddler and my, you know, 10 year old. And so you start thinking very, very early on. So it's going to be a really important message to reiterate. And we're in it, right? So the other thing I also want to share is kind of where we're at at the census. So we're in the self-response phase of the census 2020. And what that means is that the Census Bureau operates by sending out invitations to households, right? So they have a master list of addresses and they send out an invitation to each of these addresses. And so once those addresses receive an invitation, they're invited to participate online or by phone. And then this week, actually on April 8th is when they start sending out paper forms. So what we would traditionally think of as the more, you know, like old school way of responding to the census starts this week. So if you have, if you're working with community members who, you know, maybe it's like you go and talk to them or you go and drop something off. A quick, hey, have you checked your mail? They're, you know, make sure you've responded to the census. So one of the key things that we want to reiterate again is that self-responding is the easiest way to make sure you're counted amidst this crisis. It's quick, it's easy and it can be done online by phone or by mail. So going back to kind of like the dates, again, this is the time period. The Bureau sends out staggered mail through the official, the USPS because it has to be staggered because you can imagine it's huge strain on our already strained system. So as of this week, if folks have not responded, you will, they will likely be receiving a reminder letter and a paper questionnaire. And the Bureau does this because they say, well, if they're not responding, it's because they're not comfortable with technology. They don't want to call. They need a little bit of a push. And so this way, folks will start to see the actual form in hand and we're hopeful that this is also going to increase response rates significantly because we also know a lot of our community still very much prefers to do things by paper. So this is what the sample invitation letter looks like if you haven't already received one or you haven't done it yet. If you're avoiding opening the mail for whatever reason, this is what it looks like. So it's just a quick kind of an explanation of what the census is and how important it is. And it has a census ID. And one thing that's really important to share to folks is that it's going to say dear resident. And this is both good and bad because on the one hand it the Bureau is not sending it out to specific people so they don't feel targeted. But on the other hand, when you see something that says dear resident, you're not that likely to open it, right? So just remind folks if they see something in the mail to open it, take a few minutes to fill it out and to follow the instructions on the form. Super easy. And so if people ask you one of the things that you want to be armed with is like the information that they will ask. And so they simply ask, you know, how many people are living here? They ask kind of what is the what is the residence? This is a house, apartment or mobile home. They'll ask for a telephone number, sex, age, state of birth, Hispanic origin, race, and then the relationships of the persons in the household. So people have an explanation, having a chance to explain, hey, well, maybe I'm taking care of more children right now. Well, maybe I have my nephew with me. Maybe I have my mother-in-law, all important to include. And so you have an opportunity to explain what the situation is inside your home. And then very importantly, it's also very important. It's key that we remind people what are they not going to ask. So things like citizenship status, immigration status, your social security number, the permits or licensing of any converted units on the property, the use of public benefits, criminal background or convictions, bank account payment information, employment, income or wealth information. And all of these things combined are really important, right? Because what the census does too is that they're asking you not super interesting questions, but it is a federal form and people may feel well. An example is maybe a person is a landlord and they have a number of units in the backyard, but they're not up to code. Maybe they haven't registered them with the city. So it's important to remind them they're not going to ask you about this weird room in the back. They're not going to corroborate information. They simply want to know how many people are living in this household. So what happens if you don't have your census ID? So maybe you are talking to a family and they say, well, I haven't received anything. This might happen. And so we have to be prepared to say, hey, you can still fill it out online. If you look here, it says when you go online to my2020census.gov, it'll say, you know, it'll prompt you to log in, which simply means plugging in your 12-digit census ID. And if they don't have it, you can simply just go to if you do not have a census ID, click here. And what happens from this point forward is that it'll ask you to type in your address and then you can go ahead and fill it out. So super easy. It's not complicated at all. And again, this might happen if people can use this, if they don't receive any census materials for any reason. If they lost the materials, they saw that dear resident and they said, well, this is just BAM or a credit card offer. I'm not going to open it. Or maybe you remind somebody and they say, well, I think I forgot to include my baby. They can go back and include their baby with this method. So again, important to have this in your back pocket. And one key thing is that we like to remind people is that you can't call the Bureau and ask for a form. So they'll just simply catch you on the phone or send you to answer online. Printing paper costs a lot of money and it's very complicated. The process is very intricate. And so having people call in and ask for a form is a little bit difficult for them. So one of the questions that we get a lot and we want to touch on, even though we're kind of far away from it, is what happens if you don't respond? So what happens is that your household gets pushed into a non-response universe. And so the Bureau will, they go into what's called a non-response follow-up phase, which they abbreviate as NERFU. And so during this time, this time has been pushed back a little bit because of the circumstances. So now from May 28th to August 14th, we have more time to respond. The Bureau has essentially added two weeks to their load. And so the census taker will come to your home if you don't respond through these three methods. But if they do, we want to reiterate they're never going to ask you to enter the home. It might be hot outside, but they can't come inside. They'll identify themselves. So wear a US Census Bureau badge like the one that you see on the screen. They're only going to ask you questions around the questionnaire. They can't ask you about your citizenship, immigration status, or any kind of financial information. If they see something that's not up to code, they can't ask you about that. They can't call the city and say anything about it either. And they can't ask you or request any additional documentation. So if you say, hey, I have four people here, they can't say, hey, prove it. So it's really important to keep in mind. And even during this time, if they do come to the door and they don't catch you, they'll leave something on your door kind of like FedEx does when they, you know, rock on the door and leave a package that simply says, hey, we were here to help you fill out your form. Sorry, we miss you. If you have time, please go online or call us. So this is another way for them to engage and to try to get people to answer, especially folks who are afraid to talk to a bureau official. So how is all this information protected? One of the key things and methods that we protect this data is through Title 13. And so what Title 13 says is that since this data can only be used for statistical purposes, essentially what happens when you submit your information is that it becomes a data point. And so your information can't be used against you for any reason and this and it can't be shared with other agencies. So a lot of fear amongst our undocumented community is, well, if I share my information with one agency, they're going to share it with another. The two, the different agencies can't communicate with each other in that way. So that includes people like ICE, the Department of Homeland Security, local police officers, you name it, right? They cannot disclose that information. In addition, any identifying information cannot be disclosed for 72 years. So the idea behind this is that in 72 years, this information shouldn't be, there shouldn't be any reason it could be used against you. And the Census Bureau staff who have access to your information, including those enumerators, are sworn for life to protect your confidentiality. So they would be subjected to a $250,000 fine and are up to five years in prison for a wrongful disclosure of information. So I don't know about you guys, but a quarter of a million dollars is not worth it to know someone's name and some of this information that's on the form. But again, know as well that we're keeping an eye on this. There's a lot of noise. There's a lot to think about and to keep an eye on during this time. And so this is another one of those things that we're working on to ensure that the Bureau complies, right? And that we are protecting the civil liberties and information of our communities. So how can you support the 2020 Census? I'm so glad you guys asked. Continue to encourage networks and communities to self-respond. So saying something, you know, maybe you're visiting a family, maybe you're dropping off materials or food and just say, hey, have you had a chance to fill out your census and just reiterating it's fast, easy and your information is confidential. And one of the key things, one of the reasons that we just ask folks to do this is because our communities are looking for a trusted messenger to give the green light on the census. They might be hearing about it from, you know, the news. They might have gotten something in the mail. They may have heard something from their child's school. But they're looking for someone that they can ask questions of that they can, that saying, yes, I did it too. Go ahead and do it. So that's going to be really, really key. And then if you have a capacity, depending on where you are placing your organization, consider pivoting from those in-person activities to online activities. So if you have the capacity, maybe something like a text bank, a phone bank, or even leveraging social media to remind folks, hey, don't forget to do the census, even doing something like a Facebook Live and offering information about the census, you know, figure out where your community is, how they grab information and adjust. You may want to pivot from those big events to essential locations. So maybe partnering with one of those essential locations to distribute materials. So we're looking at grocery stores, food banks, diaper banks, et cetera. And stay in the loop. So if you want to learn more, if you want to continue getting updates, feel free to send me an email. I'll happily add you to my distribution list and send you all the updates that I have every week. And just so you, and if you have any questions, I also want to reiterate that I'm here to support you guys. Prior to the situation, I was traveling across all of Texas, spent a lot of time in San Antonio and I was training folks on the census, answering questions. And so I want to be able to continue to do that. And I know that a lot of this is very technical. People have a lot of questions about it. And so send me an email. I'm more than happy to answer and I'm more than happy to support any kind of events that you're doing online. And I can look over any material. I'm here to help. So don't be afraid to reach out. I also want to share a few resources that will be really key. So we, as an organization, have a bilingual census information hotline. And the number is 877-ACENCEL. So our operators are trained to answer questions. It's available from 8.30 a.m. to 8.30 p.m. central time. And the number was right there. So anybody can access this. So if you, maybe someone, you know, reaches out to you, they have a question, you can say, hey, I don't have the answer to that, but I know who does. And you can offer them our number. We're there to help. And so feel free to put this on any kind of material as well. That's also what it's there for. And the image on the left is also kind of like a social media graphic that you can throw up on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and just like once again, share the information about the importance of the census while giving people a resource. We also have other things. So we have a digital communications and outreach toolkit. And we have a guide on answering the census. We have that both in English and in Spanish. And so the idea behind this is that we know you have a lot going on. So in the toolkit, for example, if you want to send an email blast, we have the email blast built for you. All you got to do is plug in, you know, any information that's relevant to your community or to your network and send it and be on your way. So we understand. Again, there's no reason to reinvent the wheel. We have you. We've got you. So feel free to download these resources. And then that's it. Thank you all so much for your time. My email is here. And so if you have any questions and again, if you need any additional support, I'm here to help you. And if you. Yeah, I mean, if there's anything I can do to support the work that you guys are already doing, I know a lot of you continue to work with families very closely. And so we really appreciate you keeping your eye on the polls and trying to navigate so many different things at this time. So I also want to share my appreciation for the work that you are all doing. And if you have any questions, you can drop them in chat box. I'm happy to answer them as well. Thank you. Thank you, Genesis. So we do have a couple of questions and I'll read a couple of them here. We do have a bit of limited time, but is there a deadline to submit? And what is it? Yeah. So you have until August 14th. Okay. You can do it the better. Okay. Perfect. So we encourage everyone to just do it ASAP, but you do have until August 14th. For undocumented families that do not read or write or speak English or Spanish. Is it okay for us as CHWs to fill out for them via website? This is a little, this is made a little complicated. I would definitely send me an email and we can continue that conversation. Perfect. What can someone who is homeless do to complete the census? So I think that might go into that a little bit as well. That actually, they can still go online if they have the means to. And there's actually an option to include that you're experiencing homelessness at this time. Okay. Perfect. So let's see. I want to share a link. I have clients who are homeless and temporarily housed in a hotel. I can have them call in to be counted, correct? Yes. Yes. That is also going to be a really easy option. Okay. And so Cecilia is sharing a link here and she has shared it on her Facebook as well. So thank you, Cecilia. What is being done to reach the homeless population during COVID-19? Also, how are agencies working to reach immigrant families? So as far as reaching the homeless community, the Bureau continues to work with the agencies that most directly work with that population. So we're looking at food banks, shelters, et cetera. And so that operation is actually delayed right now because they're trying to, everybody is practicing social distancing right now. And so the operation is paused, but it'll be underway in a few days hopefully depending on kind of how the situation shifts. But they're continuing to have conversations with them. And then could you repeat the last question? How are agencies working to reach immigrant families? Yeah. So we've seen this across the board in San Antonio specifically. A lot of the city is working with a lot of nonprofits and organizations that do work with these communities to say, hey, what do you need? What can we give you in order for you to just quickly have a conversation with someone while you're dropping off material, while you're maybe at a food bank? And so what we've seen across the gamut is that people are trying to engage with those essential workers and the essential locations to say, hey, I know this is an additional ask, but something as simple as including a sticker, a flyer, some kind of messaging because they're already there. They're looking for assistance and they're going to trust that you're giving them good information. Great. Thank you, Genesis. And what percentage of census forms have been returned since they were sent by Mel? Juanita's question. So in Texas, we have a 41% response rate. So that means that the households, there's 41% of the households in Texas that were sent material, have sent their material back in terms of going online or calling. The national average is 45%. So we're lagging a little bit. We have a lot of room to grow. We anticipate that we're going to get to about 60 to 70%. And then the enumerators will have to assist with the additional percentage. Okay, great. And so I have Javier Hernandez mentioning here. I live along the border and people with HV1 visitor visa, they come stay into the state four out of seven days. Should they be counted? They should be counted. Yes. This is a good question. So if you live and work here, the majority of the time, you should be counted here, especially if you potentially have kids here, they live on, you know, on this side of the border. Definitely get counted here. Awesome. And so I just want to also for those who might have missed it on here, Crystal Oliva is mentioning that in collaboration with the Bear County's Complete Count Committee and the city of San Antonio, Central Med is also providing census assistance. And so also I encourage you guys to go and check out our Facebook. I know that Jordan's been sharing a lot of information and Genesis shared a lot of information and tools with us here. So I guess right now that we're at home, we should take advantage and just put a little bit of our effort in this. So if you have any more questions, again, please don't hesitate to reach out to us. And all of this information will be shared with everyone. Thank you all. And don't forget to go up to the top left to go on to the next session. I'm also one more thing before we leave. Okay, never mind. Unmute. Am I unmuted now? No. Okay. Yes. I am. Okay. So before we leave, anyone who comes back to replay this video on this site, I marked all of the questions in there so you can jump straight to the questions and answers when you come back and replay it. Okay. Awesome. Thank you.