By: Ray Hershel

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (abc40) -- Community leaders met in Springfield on Tuesday to highlight the importance of the 2010 census. The census is conducted every ten years.

Local officials are working to get an accurate population count across the state including Western Massachusetts. For one, it means more federal money according to Census Bureau Regional Director Kathleen Ludgate, "Three to four trillion dollars are distributed over the decade based on the census results." In fact, last time around ten years ago Massachusetts undercounted its population by fifty thousand people and that cost the state half a billion dollars.

The census is also used to determine political representation. Right now Western Massachsuetts has two congressmen, John Olver and Richard Neal.

Because of population shifts, Massachusetts could lose a congressional seat perhaps one in Western Massachusetts after the 2010 census. Congressman Neal says that would be bad news for residents, "It's hard to speculate at this juncture, I guess the argument I would make and I always have is there's a million people west of Worcester so it strikes me that on  that basis alone Western Massachusetts would want to keep two congressional seats."

If the state were to lose a seat it would be up to the Massachusetts legislature to re-district according to Congressman John Olver, "They could re-district to save all seats in Central and Western Massachsuetts or they could re-district in a different way."

Twenty years ago Massachusetts did lose a congressional seat.

Census forms will be mailed or distributed to households sometime next March.