July 20, 2018

In April, we told you how the Trump administration is trying to weaponize the US Census against immigrant communities. They're now accepting comments from the public on how they should move forward.

Here’s why adding this question is counterproductive:

• In the current political environment, it will impact participation based on fear of being targeted by the administration.
• It raises confidentiality issues about how government authorities use personal data.
• As the basis for fair political representation, the census data is used by local community leaders to allocate resources for education, hospitals, transportation, and any inaccuracies will have an adverse effect on the social infrastructure.
• It impacts industries when deciding where to operate as well as their decisions on hiring and customer needs.
• It invalidates eight years of careful and costly research, as the untested element will jeopardize the success of the count.
• In response to a multistate lawsuit, the Justice Department released documents warning of the harmful impact of adding the question, from plummeting response rates, higher costs and diminished accuracy. It also uncovered a paper trail linking the question to Steve Bannon and Kansas Secretary of State, Kris Kobach.
• It will incur a significant cost to taxpayers - every 1% decrease in response rate caused by the question will cost $55 million.

Now is the time to voice your concerns. Tell the Trump administration that they must remove the citizenship question from the 2020 Census. It's dangerous, counterproductive, and un-American.

Click here to submit your comments through our trusted partners at The Leadership Conference Education Fund. This opportunity will end August 7th, so make your voice heard today.