Iowa governor creates panel to boost 2020 Census response

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds says she is appointing a committee to focus on getting as many Iowans as possible to participate in the 2020 Census.

She says the goal of the Iowa Census Complete Count Committee is to increase awareness among Iowans about the importance of responding.

Next year’s census will be the first to allow people to respond online.

The 2020 Census will determine how many congressional seats each state gets and guide the allocation of hundreds of billions of dollars of federal funding.

Reynolds said Thursday Lt. Gov. Adam Gregg will chair of the committee.

Reynolds says Iowa had a 79% voluntary response rate in 2010, the third highest in the nation.

Iowans may apply to serve on the commission at the governor’s website until Nov. 22.