More than 2,000 Census jobs will be are in southeast North Carolina through the Wilmington Local Census Office (LCO), which opened Jan. 13th.

The Wilmington LCO covers New Hanover, Bladen, Brunswick, Columbus, Pender, and Robeson counties.

In total, more than 24,000 jobs will be available throughout North Carolina.

Job seekers can find application information at www.2010censusjobs.gov or by calling 1-866-861-2010.

In addition, the information is available at the Employment Security Commission or JobsNOW.nc.gov. Some jobs will begin as early as January, while most will begin in February and March, and will extend until June or July.

“More than $400 billion in federal funds will be distributed each year based on the census count, so a complete count is critical to North Carolina,” Perdue said

“I urge everyone to fill out and mail back their Census forms. It’s easy, it’s important and it’s secure.”

The decennial census will take place on April 1, 2010. It is administered by the federal government, but requires support at the state and local level. In December, Gov. Perdue signed Executive Order No. 33 creating the North Carolina Complete Count Committee to coordinate Census activities at the state level.

“The 2010 decennial census outreach effort in North Carolina is unprecedented,” said Dr. Nancy Potok, U.S. Commerce Department Deputy Under Secretary.

“The Census form will be the shortest and easiest in history - ten questions that will take only ten minutes to complete, available in 59 different languages so that no one is left out.

Here in North Carolina, we have also tripled the scope of our partnership program. By working with local community organizations and groups, we will empower North Carolinians to help ensure that everyone is counted.”

Over $400 billion in federal funds will be allocated annually based on the 2010 Census figures. Based on recent estimates, the state will receive approximately $14,000 in federal funding per person counted over the next 10 years

In addition, Census data is the basis for the NC State Demographer’s projections, which are used to determine the distribution of state funds.

The Census will also determine whether North Carolina will receive an additional seat in the U.S. House of Representatives

North Carolina narrowly received a 13th congressional district after the 2000 Census by margin of 800 people.