11/07/16 - Mayor's Column: Please Vote and Special Census
The 2016 General Election takes place this week on Tuesday, November 8, 2016. I want to encourage everyone to exercise one of the great freedoms we have as residents of America, by voting.
I want to share with you one of my favorite quotes by our 32nd President, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, on the importance of voting. FDR once said, “Nobody will ever deprive the American people of the right to vote except the American people themselves and the only way they could do this is by not voting.”
So, please get out and vote! You can find a great amount of information about the upcoming election, including polling place locations, on the St. Clair County Clerk’s website at http://www.countyclerk.co.st-clair.il.us/elections/Pages/default.aspx.
On a separate note, in partnership with the U.S. Census Bureau, the City of O’Fallon will soon be conducting a Special Census in O’Fallon. A Special Census will help O’Fallon get an updated population count, which will in turn help us qualify for state revenues we need to provide services.
We are now recruiting workers, mostly enumerators, for the Special Census. I encourage anyone wanting temporary-work or looking to make some extra money, to apply.
The U.S. Census Bureau will pay enumerators $13.84 per hour, plus mileage and paid training. Enumerators will be asked to work 25-40 hours, each week. Employees must be 18 years of age or older, and U.S. Citizens. Those working in the field are required to have a valid driver’s license and access to a vehicle.
Although we don’t have an exact date, we do know that the Special Census will start sometime in January, 2017 and is expected to last 3-4 weeks.
Applications to work for the Special Census can be picked up at City Hall, the O’Fallon Public Library, O’Fallon Public Safety Facility, or Katy Cavins Community Center. They can also be found at http://www2.census.gov/about/regions/employment-forms/bc-170d.pdf.
Applications need to be dropped off at City Hall or emailed to Grant Litteken at [email protected]. Applications must be submitted by November 14, 2016.
If you have any questions about the Special Census, please contact Grant Litteken ([email protected]) or Sandy Evans ([email protected]) by email or by calling 618-624-4500.
The strong working relationship between City Hall and the residents we serve is yet another example of why O'Fallon is such a great community in which to live.