6A | WEDNESDAY, APRIL 28, 2021 | SIUSLAW NEWS “I recognize the burden these restrictions place on Oregon businesses and working families. My goal is to lift these restrictions as soon as it is safely possible, and keep Oregon on the path for lifting most health and safety requirements by the end of June so we can fully reopen our economy. But we will only get there if enough Oregonians get vaccinated. There are ap- pointments available right now all across the state.” $20 million for immedi- ate aid to businesses in Extreme Risk counties Brown is partnering with legislators on the $20 mil- lion emergency relief pack- age to provide immediate aid to impacted businesses CENSUS from page 1A The 2020 Census pop- ulation data includes the resident population of the 50 states, plus a count of the U.S. military personnel and federal civilian em- ployees living outside the United States (and their de- pendents living with them) who can be allocated to a home state. Oregon will be one of the beneficiaries of an increase in population as the state will gain one member in Congress, determined after a two-and-a-half-month delay in completing the census. Oregon saw a 10.6 percent increase in resi- dent population — from 3,848,606 to 4,237,256 — and will consequently gain one voice in the low- er house of Congress. Each member of the Oregon del- egation to the House rep- resents 706,917 residents. Oregon Gov. Kate Brown was quick to acknowledge the increase in state repre- sentation, saying after the conference, “Every Orego- nian’s voice matters, and it is great news that as our state continues to grow, we will get an additional seat in Congress to represent us. Thanks to everyone who participated in the 2020 Census to make sure you were counted.” The challenges present- ed to the Census Bureau in 2020 were unprecedent- ed, according to the act- ing Director of the Census Bureau, Ron Jarmin, but he insisted results of last year’s census were accurate and thorough. Hurricanes, wildfires, lockdowns and civil unrest were all factors which Jarmin indicated combined to form serious challenges to collecting ac- curate information. “Despite all the challeng- es of the pandemic, the completeness and accuracy of these first 2020 Census results are comparable with recent censuses. We had numerous quality checks built into collecting the data, and we have conduct- ed one of the most compre- hensive reviews in recent census history during data processing,” Jarmin said. “We are proud to release these first results from the 2020 Census today. These results reflect the tireless commitment from the en- tire Census Bureau team to produce the highest-quality statistics that will continue to shape the future of our country.” Jarmin was just one of the high-profile speakers at the bureau’s YouTube national unveiling con- ference, and a subsequent question-and-answer ses- sion with the media and the public on Monday, April 26. The Census Bureau has attempted to distribute data and demographic re- sults more widely during this census cycle, by using social media and virtual in extreme risk counties through the state’s com- mercial rent relief program. “After conversations with legislative leaders, I am confident we can move quickly to bring relief to businesses and their em- ployees in extreme risk counties,” Brown said. “The vast majority of Oregon businesses have followed our health and safety guid- ance to protect Oregonians from COVID-19, even though doing so has come with an economic cost. This emergency aid will help businesses in extreme risk counties.” In addition, the governor announced that outdoor capacity limits for bars, restaurants, and other sec- tors will be raised from 50 to 100 people in extreme risk counties, with health risk when they meet the county metrics for case rates and percent posi- tivity, and Oregon meets statewide hospitalization metrics: COVID-19 posi- tive patients occupying 300 hospital beds or more, and a 15 percent increase in the seven-day hospitalization average over the past week. Counties will stay in ex- treme risk for a maximum of three weeks, and will be able to move to a low- er risk level sooner if their COVID-19 case rates are brought down in the inter- vening weeks, or if Oregon moves below 300 statewide hospitalizations or the sev- en-day hospitalization av- Three-week limit placed erage percent increase goes on Extreme Risk level below 15 percent. Under the Risk Level The governor has also framework, counties move worked in partnership with to (or remain in) extreme Portland metro-area hospi- conferences to share the department’s results. U.S. Secretary of Com- merce Gina M. Raimondo opened the meeting with praise for the agency and thanks for the participation of those being counted. “The American public deserves a big thank you for its overwhelming re- sponse to the 2020 Census,” she said. “Despite many challenges, our nation completed a census for the 24th time. This act is fun- damental to our democ- racy and a declaration of our growth and resilience. I also want to thank the team at the U.S. Census Bureau, who overcame unprece- dented challenges to collect and produce high-quality data that will inform de- cision-making for years to come.” Later, Jarmin responded to questions regarding the accuracy of the count and directed the public’s atten- tion to the bureau’s website, which detailed the follow- ing steps which were ac- tivated specifically for the most recent census. To adapt to last year’s unique challenges, the bu- reau provided additional opportunities for everyone to respond, including: • Deploying staff to plac- es in low-responding areas to answer questions and help people respond to the 2020 Census. • Introducing phone calls instead of, or in addition to, sending census takers door to door to follow up with households that hadn’t re- sponded yet. • Extending data collec- tion by 2.5 months to allow more time for households to respond and for follow up with those that didn’t. • Expanding outreach through more than 400,000 national and local partners and through national ad- vertising to encourage the public to respond online, by phone or by mail or to cooperate with census tak- ers. • Working with local tribal leaders to hire indi- viduals already living on reservation lands as census takers. • Adapting telephone operations to allow social distancing in the call cen- ters and to permit callbacks when sufficient operators were not available due to COVID-19 restrictions. • Sending teams of skilled enumerators from other parts of the country closer to finishing to areas lagging behind after hurri- cane damage. • Changing field proce- dures to minimize neces- sary in-person contact with the public, such as leaving census invitations on mail- boxes and training enumer- ators to exercise social dis- tancing during contact with respondents. • Providing and encour- aging electronic response options for group quarters facilities, such as nursing homes and detention cen- ters. In addition to these new- ly released statistics, Rai- mondo delivered popula- tion counts to the president to be used for apportioning the seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. In ac- and safety measures, in- cluding physical distanc- ing, in place. She added, “We know that the risk of COVID-19 transmission is lower out- doors. I am urging all Or- egonians, if you choose to gather with others, keep it outdoors. Indoor trans- mission is a key driver in the COVID-19 surge that is making renewed health and safety restrictions nec- essary.” The Oregon Health Au- thority will also be working to align Oregon’s outdoor mask guidance with the CDC guidance announced today. cordance with Title 2 of the U.S. Code, a congressional- ly defined formula is ap- plied to the apportionment population to distribute the 435 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives among the states. See CONT. page 7A Attention Hunters! Now is the time to select your 2021 hunts Complete your Controlled Hunt Applications Online at MyODFW.com tals to ensure systems are in place to closely monitor and manage hospital ca- pacity. Health systems in the Portland area are using the coordinated system de- veloped at the beginning of the pandemic to manage hospital surge capacity, bed space, essential services, and non-urgent procedures as needed over the next three weeks in order to preserve hospital beds and critical care capacity. “I want to thank hospital and health care leaders for the work they are doing to manage hospital bed space, so that no Oregonian is turned away from receiv- ing the health care they need,” Brown said. “Now, I am asking Oregonians to do their part to help stop the spread of COVID-19 in our communities so we can help support our nurs- es, doctors, and frontline health care workers.” Brown asked hospital leaders to alert the Gov- ernor’s Office and OHA immediately if addition- al measures are needed to preserve hospital capacity. If, after three weeks, Or- egon still exceeds statewide hospitalization metrics and one or more counties still meet the case rates and per- cent positivity for extreme risk, the Oregon Health Authority will evaluate why and make recommen- dations to the Governor’s Office. Your guide to great locally owned restaurants. Surfside Restaurant at Drift wood Shores Resort Is Open for take out only from 4pm - 8:30 pm Tuesday - Saturday Call 541-902-6447 Don’t wait to apply this year. 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