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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowWestfield’s special census is again on hold, this time due to the federal government shutdown, the city announced Monday.
Westfield officials sought the special census to determine the number of people living in the fast-growing Hamilton County city and ensure the community receives adequate funding and resources. The city’s population is estimated to have increased since 2020, from 46,000 to nearly 63,000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Last year, members of the Westfield City Council voted to appropriate $1.8 million for the U.S. Census Bureau to conduct a special census this spring. However, on the day President Donald Trump took office, he signed an order freezing the hiring of federal employees, which prevented Westfield’s census, then scheduled to begin May 1, from taking place.
In May, the city announced that an exemption waiver secured by Indiana’s U.S. Sens. Todd Young and Jim Banks and U.S. Rep. Victoria Spartz, R-Noblesville, would allow the Census Bureau to move forward with the process. The census began in early August.
But now, the special census is again delayed by the federal government shutdown, which started Oct. 1.
“While we wait for updates from the U.S. Census Bureau, we want to thank our residents who have already participated,” said a statement from the city. “The Census will resume once the shutdown ends, and we’ll share information as soon as we have it.”
Westfield residents who received a note on their door from the U.S. Census Bureau should keep it, and it will be valid once the census process resumes, according to the city.
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