City To Host 'Renton Census Countdown Day' Aug. 22

RENTON, WA—On Saturday, Aug. 22, Renton will host Renton Census Countdown Day, three simultaneous events in communities where the city is looking to gather more responses to the census.

The events will take place from 2 to 4 p.m. at the following locations:

• Benson Hill Fred Meyer (17801 108th Ave. SE)
• 200 Mill Building (200 Mill Ave. S) downtown
• Fire Station 12 (1210 Jefferson Ave. NE) in the Sunset area.

These drive-through events will feature multilingual census ambassadors with iPads to help residents submit their responses.

"We also have a $10 gift certificate as a thank you for submitting your form, and the Renton Chamber of Commerce is providing discount coupons to downtown Renton businesses," city officials said in a news release. "If that's not enough incentive, we'll also have free ice cream treats."

Every 10 years since 1790, the constitution has mandated the country count every resident in the United States.

The census provides the basis for re-apportioning congressional seats, redistricting, and distributing more than $675 billion in federal funds annually to support states, counties and communities’ vital programs — impacting housing, education, transportation, employment, health care and public policy.