Census 2010 Initiative in Miami Gardens

The City of Miami Gardens Stand Up! Be Heard! Be Counted! 2010 Complete Count Census initiative officially kicked-off March 1, with radio public service announcements by Mayor Shirley Gibson, distribution of city branded posters and flyers. 

Direct mail delivery of the city's community park mailer and two scheduled city sponsored Census education and awareness events during the month of March. 

This planned effort is extremely important to the city's Mayor because she wants to ensure that the city reaches out and captures the participation of the hard-to-count communities in the city.  It is very important to the City of Miami Gardens and Miami-Dade County as a whole that every citizen is counted.

This is the first time that the City of Miami Gardens will be officially counted since its inception in 2003 and it is important that officials of the city get an accurate count of the population to ensure that the City of Miami Gardens allocate services properly and has better opportunities for partnerships and governmental resources over the next 10 years. 

In 2000, Miami-Dade County was estimated to be undercounted by as much as 20% and the number was even greater than 30% in minority and hard to count communities in the area.  As a result of this undercount eight of the following major programs were affected in Miami-Dade County- Medicaid, foster care, rehabilitation services, basic support services, child care and development block grants, social services block grants, substance abuse prevention and treatment block grants, adoption assistance, and vocational education basic grants.

Mayor Gibson and the City Council of Miami Gardens are committed to making sure that all of its residents and employees are aware of the importance of the 2010 Census and what it means for the city's future.  "It is very important that we expend all of our resources and energies to ensure that everyone is counted in the City of Miami Gardens.  The census is really about three things - politics, money and power, and the community needs to understand that an accurate census count helps to level the playing field," Mayor Gibson said.

According to the U.S. Census Monitoring Board report produced by Pricewaterhouse Coopers in 2001, it was predicted that over a 10 year period (2002-2012) over 58 of the largest counties in the U.S. would lose over $100 million dollars each in federal funds as a result of the undercount. Overall, 31 states, which included Florida, lost a total of $4.1 billion in Federal funding, and 58 counties, including Miami-Dade County, lost $3.6 billion.

The City of Miami Gardens has made great strides in the past seven years, and Mayor Gibson and City Council members want to make sure that the city continues to grow in a positive direction. 

Miami Gardens is home to the Miami Dolphins, Florida Marlins and Sun Life Stadium.  The city has hosted two Super Bowls, and each year hosts a BCS College Bowl Game, and is poised to host its signature event the 5th Annual Jazz in the Gardens Festival March 20-21, at Sun Life Stadium.

At the close of last year, Mayor Gibson and the City Council received great news about the city from a published report by CQ Press in Washington, D.C., where Miami Gardens had dropped 22 places to 35th from 13th in overall crime in the nation, and received an "A" issuer credit rating from the leader of worldwide financial market intelligence, Standard & Poor's (S&P).  Both accolades can be attributed to sound management and accurate distribution of the City's resources.

The City of Miami Gardens has launched an official website www.cmgcensus.com to educate its residents about the U.S. 2010 Census and what it will mean to the City of Miami Gardens.