2019 KIDS COUNT

Making Every Kid Count in the U.S. Census

The 2020 Census risks undercounting thousands of young Colorado children, depriving communities of federal funding and political representation for the next decade. Children under age 5 are more likely to be missed by the census than any other age group, with children of color, non-English speakers, and kids living in high poverty communities at highest risk.

The 2010 Census undercounted Colorado kids under age 5 by 5 percent, and the undercount of young kids in the 2020 Census could be even worse given fears about data privacy and confidentiality, according to the 2019 edition of KIDS COUNT in Colorado!, an annual county-by-county report on child well-being. Failing to count Coloradans will put billions of federal dollars and representation in Congress at stake in the decade following the nationwide count of every person. In 2015, Colorado received more than $2 billion in census-guided federal funding for kids’ programs alone, including Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program and Head Start, among others.

The annual KIDS COUNT in Colorado! report tracks the well-being of Colorado children statewide and at the county level. The 26^th annual report includes data and research on kids in the areas of demographics, health, early childhood, K-12 education and family economic security. The report is a complement to the national KIDS COUNT Data Book produced by the Annie E. Casey Foundation.