MURFREESBORO, Tenn. -- Murfreesboro officials are trying to take a tally of its residents but the numbers aren’t adding up.

Video: City Says Census Doesn't Add Up

The more people a city has, the more money it gets from the state’s sales tax revenue and the better the services the local government can offer.

Murfreesboro firefighters have been charged with going door to door to count the city’s residents.

They said during their rounds, sometimes they get information, and sometimes they don’t.

Murfreesboro leaders said that every name the firefighters collect is worth $111. But when the city records are compared with the census count, the numbers don’t add up.

A 2005 census showed that almost 84,000 people live in Murfreesboro, but this year’s tally only shows 85,000.

The city estimates the increase in population, which has been reported on extensively due to the number of new businesses in the area, is greater than the number it has gotten so far.

"We’re pretty sure that there’s 100,000 people out there. If we can get to them, that’ll be fantastic," said city representative Chris Shofner.

The 15,000-person difference could leave the city more than $1.5 million short of what it needs to keep offering the services residents depend on.