Brown, Cash stress importance of census on school funding

BUFFALO (WBEN) – In what has become an almost daily occurrence, Mayor Byron Brown held a press conference Monday morning to stress the importance of Buffalo residents filling out the census.

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Buffalo Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Kriner Cash joined Brown to discuss the impact of a complete census response on school funding.

“It’s important to understand that the census directly influences education, as census counts impact the federal funds allocated for educational programs,” said Brown. “We only have one shot every ten years to get the census right and students are counting on us to get the job done.”

Responses for the 2020 census will decide the annual allocation of roughly $675 billion for state and community needs, which of course includes funding for school programs and services.

“There’s no single more important task to be undertaken at this time right now by our families here in Buffalo than to complete the census,” said Cash. “We have averaged over $100 million from the federal government in the last five years, and this year will go to $130 million, but we must have an accurate census count in order to get all of those funds that come to support our children and families here in Buffalo.”

To fill out the 2020 census, go to 2020census.gov or call 844-330-2020 to complete the questionnaire over the phone. The deadline to complete the census is October 31.