WASHINGTON – Today, Reps. Marcia L. Fudge (OH-11) and Cedric Richmond (LA-2) led 124 of their House colleagues in a letter to the Department of Commerce and U.S. Census Bureau expressing concerns with the decision to end Census enumeration a month earlier than previously planned.  The letter also requests the Department and Bureau identify how they plan to ensure an accurate Census count in a period four weeks shorter than previously identified as necessary to ensure the accuracy of the Census. 

On August 3, the Bureau announced that all 2020 Census data collection operations would end on September 30, one month ahead of the date it previously indicated would be necessary to ensure the accuracy of the Census count.  With counting efforts cut short, census takers will have just seven weeks to follow up with an estimated 56 million households nationwide, including some of the hardest-to-count Americans.

“By compressing an already tight schedule to conduct in-person outreach amid an unprecedented pandemic, the Bureau is threatening the integrity of the 2020 Census and laying the groundwork for what could be a historic undercount of the population,” the Members wrote.  “The roughly 40 percent of households yet to be counted include a disproportionate share of people of color, immigrants, low-income people, and the homeless.”

“Ensuring an accurate count of all people is critically important to the fair distribution of more than $900 billion in federal funding and Congressional and state legislative representation,” the Members added.  “If the remaining Census operations do not achieve a complete count, historically marginalized and vulnerable populations most in need of federal investment and representation will get the short end of the stick for the next decade.”

A signed copy of the letter can be found here.

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