STATEWIDE — The U.S. Census Bureau announced it will end its data collection a month earlier than expected — on September 30 instead of October 31 — even though only about 60 percent of the nationwide households have participated so far.

As of now, one of four Americans could be left out of the count. 

The decennial count is used to determine how to disperse billions of federal dollars for programs such as Medicaid, SNAP, and Foster Care and it helps fund schools, roads, hospitals, etc.

The census count also determines how many House of Representatives seats each state should receive; Florida is expected to receive at least two more seats in Congress, depending upon whether there is an accurate count.

“This is a reckless decision that is only designed to penalize members of our community,” Hispanic Federation President Frankie Miranda said.

The Census Bureau announced it will hire more employees to complete the count in time for its December 31 deadline. 

“We're putting an enormous brunt, not only on the Census Bureau but also our communities,” Miranda said.

In April, the Census Bureau asked Congress for an additional 120 days to conduct the census count.  Miranda also said there were many roadblocks that could result in an undercount in the Hispanic community.

Florida TaxWatch reported the Sunshine State lost $20 billion because of an undercount in the 2010 Census. 

Currently, Florida's participation rate is 60 percent, lower than the national average of 63 percent.

People in households that have not participated in a survey online, by phone, or with a door-to-door census interviewer can still complete the form online to ensure they are counted. Only one adult in each household may participate in the survey.