The countdown is on and folks, it’s not looking good for our area.

The final days for you to complete the 2020 Census is on, and Ann Owens of the Complete County Committee and the Toombs Montgomery Chamber of Commerce says Toombs County said Tuesday that Toombs County currently has 50.8 percent of the population county. That compares to a 59 percent response rate in the 2010 Census.

After September 30, there will no opportunity to be counted including online and the door-to-door Census takers will have completed their task and make no more home visits. However, you can still complete your Census online if you haven’t at www.my2020census.gov. You can also call Owens at the Chamber at 537-4466 and she will either walk you through the process or you can even go to the Chamber and she will help you there.

Owens says that the community stands to lose $210 million over the next 10 years if the count doesn’t increase, and approximately 100 local programs will be negatively affected in their funding.

The information you provide on the Census is secure and private.  There are no questions regarding Social Security numbers or citizenship, and the information is prohibited by law to be shared with any entity or agency. In Owens comparison, “If you have a social media account such as Facebook you’re already providing more information to the public than what is on the Census.”