Katrina hits Gulf Coast Census

Four years after Katrina and population counts are still a worry for coastal leaders. Read the Clarion Ledger's take on the issue.

Katrina hits Gulf Coast census
Population loss puts dollars, political clout in jeopardy


Gulf Coast cities hit hard by Hurricane Katrina four years ago stand to lose future federal funding, and possibly some political representation, as mostly lower-income residents stay away from the area, analysts say.

Harrison and Hancock counties in particular could lose federal grants for everything from education to health care to housing if the 2010 census count shows numbers significantly below pre-Katrina levels, said Judith Phillips, a research analyst for the Stennis Institute of Government at Mississippi State University.

Census data taken since the Aug. 29, 2005, storm shows people are returning to the Coast. But population levels are not what they were before the hurricane leveled the area.

Hancock County has lost 6,700 people, Phillips said. Harrison County's population has declined by 17,000, census figures show.

"People who have not returned are low income," she said. "That is going to end up negatively impacting the formula that affects (Housing and Urban Development) and housing money."

Local officials are looking for ways to make sure as many residents as possible are counted, a task that may be challenging because lower-income residents are less likely to respond to surveys.

In Gulfport, officials are turning to the social networking site Facebook to help coordinate census efforts. Meetings are planned in Biloxi and Waveland to decide the best strategy for an accurate count.

Waveland Mayor Tommy Longo said his city's door-to-door survey shows the area has changed significantly in population and demographics since Katrina.

"It's very important to us that we get a good, accurate count," he said last week.

Enrollment at Biloxi public schools is still 20 percent off its pre-Katrina level of 6,100, officials said.

Civil rights groups are urging census officials not to overlook displaced hurricane victims when they conduct their 2010 count on the Coast.

The groups, including national organizations and some from the Gulf Coast, want Congress to hold a field hearing on the Coast to examine hurdles to an accurate count.

They also want census officials to appoint someone to coordinate the count and to conduct a special census in 2011 or 2012.

An undercount would be "one more devastating blow" to the Gulf Coast, according to Wade Henderson, president of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights.

The Census Bureau conducts a major count every 10 years of people living in the United States, in addition to other, smaller counts. Census data is used for everything from distributing nearly $400 billion in federal funding to determining the number of congressional seats allocated to each state.

"The stakes for this census are extremely high, especially along the Gulf Coast," Henderson said.

Bay St. Louis business owner Dwight Isaacs said he fears of another monster storm and the high cost of insurance keeps people from returning to the Coast.

"They're scared, and that's understandable," he said, adding his post-Katrina mortgage payment has doubled because of insurance costs.

"It's just really hard to live and work here. Everything's so expensive," said Isaacs, who is closing his gift shop in the city's Old Town.

Businesses now face insurance costs of "anywhere from $10,000 to $25,000 a year," he said.

Phillips said the Coast's rising unemployment rate could offset the decline in population and result in a less severe funding loss.

But lower population levels also could cause the Coast to lose "a seat or two" in the state Legislature, said Marty Wiseman, director of the Stennis Institute.

He suggested the area count as many residents as possible.

But Sen. Roger Wicker, a Republican from Tupelo, said he opposes counting illegal immigrants.

"If someone breaks the law and has entered our country illegally, they should not be counted," he said.

But Wiseman said, "It would be wise, if the Coast wants to keep its legislative seats, to count everybody. (Hispanic residents) may be the very thing that saves the Coast."