Trump Administration Adds Citizenship Question to 2020 Census

For the first time since 1950, the 2020 Census will include a question on citizenship, the Commerce Department announced late Monday. Despite opposition from Democrats, the Commerce Department appeared to play down concerns the question would cause a disruption to Census data by preventing undocumented immigrants from responding. The Census, which is intended to count the entire population, is crucial for determining how federal funds are distributed and congressional districts drawn. “For the approximately 90 percent of the population who are citizens, this question is no additional imposition,” Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said in a statement. “And for the approximately 70 percent of non-citizens who already answer this question accurately on the American Community Survey, the question is no additional imposition,” he said. The Justice Department had pushed for the citizenship question early on in the Trump administration, and President Trump’s re-election campaign sought to drum up support for the move in an email to supporters last week that described it as “common sense.”