if you run a business in California – or anywhere else in the country for that matter – the census is your opportunity to help your state properly represent itself in getting its fair share of federal tax dollars. This is particularly acute in California given our messy fiscal situation. Every resident not counted means tax dollars that should come to our state will go somewhere else instead.

The census is a personal matter, to be sure, but you can help by encouraging your employees to complete the survey forms they will receive instead of discarding them as so often happens. The survey is not an invasion of privacy as so many perceive it; rather it collects information that will guide better decision making by business and government for the next decade. Without that information much of our marketing and outreach effort, and much of the federal government's funds redistribution, is based on educated guesses – or worse uneducated guesses.

California is providing a wealth of tools to help you get the word out to your employees. Check out http://www.californiacompletecount.org/ for tips on messages you can insert into pay envelopes, posters you can get for the bulletin board, and much more. Don't wait – only 37 days to go, barely a month to ensure we get everyone in California counted and Uncle Sam giving back to our state instead of only to big banks.

As always I welcome your comments.