Deployed Soldiers Cost N. Carolina a Congress Seat

During last year's Census, more than 40,000 troops were deployed from North Carolina's military bases—but because only 12,200 of them listed North Carolina as their home state, the state lost out on a congressional seat. That's because, though the Census usually counts the troops' current base as home, that changes when troops are deployed. At that point, they are counted in the tallies for their home state—usually the place they grew up or have family, the AP reports.

"A large chunk of those people who are deployed out may not consider themselves to be North Carolinians on their paperwork, but their presence at this base definitely impacts North Carolina's economy," says the governor's liaison. "They're voting in North Carolina. They're using goods and services in North Carolina." The state was 15,000 people shy of gaining an extra seat in Congress from Minnesota, and will also lose out on future tax dollars. (More 2010 census stories.)