(NEWSnet) – The U.S. Census Bureau knows that the 10-year census counts tend to miss young children.

The questions for a given year is: what is the correct population is for those age 4 and younger.

The estimate for 2020 is that about 1 million young children were missed or undercounted, or about 5.5% of that age group overall.

“Our goal is to accurately count every child in the census and to ensure they are fully represented in our surveys,” Census Bureau Director Robert Santos said in the press release. “Quality statistics help communities better understand their needs and seek resources.”

Almost every county in the U.S. is believed to have an undercount of preschoolers. Places that are believed to have experienced the most significant undercounts include Washington D.C., Florida, Hawaii, California, Texas and Mississippi.

The 2020 Census had the complication of taking place shortly after the COVID-19 pandemic erupted, a situation that disrupted community outreach efforts that were planned to take place just before the official April 1 census date.

But it’s not just a pandemic situation.

During 2015, the Census Bureau researched why comparisons of Census data from one decade to the next, along with other data, showed that children age 4 and younger were consistently at higher risk of being missed than other population groups.

The missed children tended to include:

  • Those who were only a few months old or younger at the time of the Census.
  • Children who living with grandparents or relatives other than their parents at the time of the Census count.
  • Children in households who were missed entirely, such as rental addresses that were not known in the Census database.

The reasons also are varied:

  • The researchers found that respondents may be uncertain on how to include grandchildren or nonrelatives on Census rosters, a situation that that the bureau attempted to address in the 2020 reporting questions.
  • Young children who lived only with one adult were more likely to be missed – along with the adult.
  • Immigrant families or those who speak another language at home tend to be harder to reach.
  • Families with young children who moved about the time of Census or shortly afterward were more likely to be missed than families whose residence did not change.
  • Specific to this age group: a birth may be officially recorded in a different state than where the family lives. The Census gave an example of mothers from Virginia and Maryland giving birth at a hospital in Washington D.C.

The review of 2020’s data has since been compared to the Census Bureau’s overall demographic data, National Center for Health Statistics’ birth and death records, and Medicare data; with those studies providing information for undercount estimates.

The bureau said it plans to use the research to determine how to get a more accurate count of young children during the 2030 Census.

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