Today, the Supreme Court blocked an order from the Northern District of California requiring the Trump administration to continue its Census gathering efforts, allowing the Trump administration to end the count early.
Truncating the deadline could significantly harm historically undercounted and underfunded communities and result in an inaccurate Census count. A complete and accurate count is vital to ensuring fair and equal representation and distribution of federal funding for the next decade.
Justice Sonia Sotomayor dissented, saying, “The harms caused by rushing this year’s census count are irreparable. And respondents will suffer their lasting impact for at least the next 10 years.”
Every State, Every Vote Co-Chair Oregon Gov. Kate Brown released the following statement:
“I wish I could say I’m astonished. But sadly, the Trump administration’s efforts to undermine the integrity of the count are no longer surprising. So, I am extremely disappointed by the Supreme Court’s decision allowing the Trump administration to end the Census count early. Justice Sotomayor said it best, that this decision will cause irreparable harm for at least the next decade.
“By cutting the Census short, this will disproportionately impact communities of color, rural, immigrant, refugee, and tribal communities. It will diminish their representation in legislative bodies, result in decreased funding for schools, health care, and infrastructure, and cause irreversible harm across the country, in every state.
“The decennial Census is the foundation of our democracy and tells the story of who we are and where we are going as a nation. Attempts to erode the Census are attempts to destroy a key component of our democracy. This is in line with the Trump administration’s assault on our democracy, but it makes it no less abhorrent. This outrageous abuse of power will have dangerous and drastic effects that will be felt long after Trump is voted out of office.”
Read more about how Democratic governors are fighting for an accurate Census count and fair representation for every community at EveryStateEveryVote.com.
