8A | WEDNESDAY, MARCH 11, 2020 | SIUSLAW NEWS
SHOW from page 1A
“Our vendors were ex-
tremely complimentary of
the community and the fa-
cility,” he said. “We had an
excavation company greet-
ing people in the front of the
Florence Events Center and
good displays throughout
the building.”
Long-time vendors report-
ed comparable or increased
sales over past years, and
many people who attended
walked away with live plants,
flowerpots, appliances and
art, or secured contractors,
fiber internet through Hyak,
gravel and bark delivery and
other home services.
People also had the chance
to win big, with grand prize
raffles as well as individual
prizes offered throughout
CENSUS from page 1A
Oregon has had five U.S.
Congressional
Districts
since 1982, and these dis-
trict boundaries have been
redrawn incorporating the
new data collected after the
1990, 2000 and 2010 Cen-
suses.
The importance of col-
lecting accurate and current
information is essential; in
addition to representation,
there are billions of dollars
in funding allocated accord-
ing to the numbers of indi-
viduals in a county or state.
Florence resident Suzy
Lacer is a member of the
Lane County Complete
Count Committee and in an
email response to the Siu-
slaw News said, “The Cen-
sus needs to count everyone
(all ages, college students
living on campus, immi-
grants, non-residents, fam-
ily members, roommates,
newborns, renters, couch
surfers and grandparents)
that lives at each address, ef-
fective April 1.
“Lane County and ru-
ral areas had low response
rates during the last Census.
We need to get an accurate
count this time.”
the day.
According to Thompson,
show attendance was down
in comparison to the event’s
averages over 23 years.
“We had a steady stream
of people over the weekend,
but a noticeable difference
in demographics,” he said.
“It appeared many of our
older residents who we typ-
ically see come through un-
derstandably stayed away.
We expected virus concerns
would impact the show but
we were pleased it was min-
imal.”
The 2020 Florence Home
and Garden Show was pre-
sented by Coast Radio and
Siuslaw News. It was spon-
sored by Oregon Pacific
Bank, Central Lincoln PUD,
Three Rivers Casino Resort
and Bi-Mart.
Accurate counts ensure
that funding is equitably
distributed among the 50
states, based on need and
participation levels. Med-
icaid, the National School
Lunch Program, Headstart
and grants for special edu-
cation, highway planning
and construction also re-
ceive funding based on Cen-
sus data.
One of the major con-
cerns that has been shared
by the public regarding
participation in the Census
is the fear that information
gained will be used to target
undocumented individuals
and force them to leave the
United States.
This scenario is unlikely
and illegal, as Congress has
made a point of protecting
the information and indi-
viduals that participate. This
is because the U.S. Census
Bureau is bound by law to
protect respondents’ an-
swers and keep them strictly
confidential. The law en-
sures that private informa-
tion is never published and
that answers cannot be used
against participating indi-
viduals by any government
agency or court.
These concerns were
Buying or Selling? I can help.
PHOTOS BY MARK BRENNAN/SIUSLAW NEWS
The 2020 Florence Home and Garden Show took place at the
Florence Events Center from March 6 to 8, showcasing more
than 40 new and returning vendors.
heightened last year when
there was an attempt made
by the federal administra-
tion to add a question re-
garding citizenship status
to the 2020 Census. The
response from the public,
government officials and
the courts were overwhelm-
ingly opposed to the idea
and, after months of insist-
ing on the inclusion, the
administration dropped its
demand.
The idea that every house-
hold in the country will be
contacted and interviewed
has been a focus of the fed-
eral government and the
founding fathers since the
beginning of the U.S. repub-
lic. The mandate to count
every person in America is
codified in Article 1, Sec-
tion 2, of the U.S. Consti-
tution and the nationwide
count has taken place every
10 years since 1790. The
first Census was conducted
by riders on horseback and
was one of the first things
Congress instructed the
new government to do. The
methodology used to obtain
Census data has changed
during the past 200 years,
but the importance of the
count has only increased
over that time period.
Respondents to the 2020
Census can fill out the ques-
tionnaire for their house-
hold online, via mobile
device, by telephone or by
simply answering the ques-
tions asked by a Census tak-
er at their home.
Census takers can be
identified by a valid ID
badge, with photograph, a
U.S. Department of Com-
merce watermark and an
expiration date.
For more information on
the 2020 U.S. Census, visit
2020census.gov.
SEACOAST ENTERTAINMENT ASSOCIATION
PRESENTS
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From Venice with Love
Friday, April 3rd • 7:00 pm
Pre-concert talk 6:15 pm
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Ed Kopilec
Principal Broker
541 991-8630
1749 Highway 101 • 541-997-1200
Karla D. Holloway
CPA
Rick Yecny,
CPA
Rod McCulloch
CPA
Andrea Dexter
& Associ
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Write off
H
Tax Time Stress!
Stop in and see us at our Hwy. 101 location
733 Highway 101 (across from Safeway)
HOLLOWAY & ASSOCIATES, LLC
Certifi ed Public Accountants
733 Highway 101, Florence • Ph #541-997-3434
We specialize in
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Bookkeeping and Accounting Services
Payroll Services
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LLC’s
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Quickbooks Installation & Training
Serving Florence for over 40 years
Proud to be a Florence and Reedsport-Winchester Bay Chamber member.
CPA
Florence Events Center
Reserved Seating Tickets: $35 • Youth/Students Under 18: $10
541.997.1994 Buy Tickets Online www.SeacoastEA.org