Franklin County is still lagging behind most of the rest of Florida in filling out the census

Franklin County is still lagging behind most of the rest of Florida in filling out the census.

As of Tuesday, only 32 percent of households in Franklin County had completed their census form.

Statewide, nearly 60 percent of households have filled out their census forms.

In Wakulla County the return rate is nearly 60 percent.

In Gulf County its over 34 percent and in Liberty County its just about 30 percent.

Much of the problem is that for the first time this year the census is mostly on-line which means people without good internet access aren't filling out their forms – local libraries, however, do provide free internet access to people who need it.

The COVID-19 pandemic is also affecting the response rate.

But even so, Franklin County is still well behind much of the rest of the state and the nation in completing the census.

Not filling out the census will have a big impact on how much federal funding Franklin County gets over the next 10 years.

Each completed census is worth about 14,500 dollars a year for schools, fire departments, medicare reimbursements, early childhood and special education and other needed services.

This is money that we pay in taxes that will only be returned to us if the government knows how many people actually live here.

The one piece of good news is that the census completion date has been moved to October the 31^st so there is time to get it done.

You can fill out your census now at http://www.census2020.gov.

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