CITY GOT UP FOR THE COUNT OFFICIALS PRAISE CENSUS RESPONSE.

Byline: Heather MacDonald Staff Writer

SANTA CLARITA - Seventy-six percent of Santa Clarita residents mailed in responses to the U.S. Census, which could result in more federal money for the city, officials said Tuesday.

``The city went all out,'' said city spokeswoman Gail Ortiz. ``We're thrilled that it was effective.''

The city spent $63,000 in its attempt to remind people to mail in the forms this spring, targeting new home developments and traditionally underrepresented areas of the city such as Newhall, Ortiz said.

Posters showed seniors, middle-income couples and Latino families all pledging to turn in their census forms.

``We were hoping for the high 80s, but we'll take 76 percent,'' Ortiz said.

Just 69 percent of Santa Clarita residents mailed in census responses in 1990.

``We were such a new city that whole neighborhoods were missed because they were not on the maps,'' Ortiz said. ``We worked with the planning department to make sure that didn't happen this time.''

Overall, California's response rate was 70 percent, compared with 65 percent in 1990.

The report released Tuesday only tabulated the number of long and short census forms that were mailed in March and April to 120 million households nationwide. The rest of the residents were counted by census takers, who made home visits or telephoned.

Two sets of data are being compiled this year. A basic head count will be used to reapportion the 435 seats in the House of Representatives among the states. Another set of figures, tabulated with the use of statistical sampling to estimate the number and needs of people not reached by the mail campaign or census takers, will be used to allocate federal funds.

``We really tried to show our residents how much money Santa Clarita gets per person counted in the census and how important that money is,'' Ortiz said. ``So much depends on it.''