Rep. Takano: Census is Not a Tool for Political Gain
Riverside, Calif. – Rep. Mark Takano (D-Calif.), a member of the House Census Caucus, released the following statement in response to the Trump administration’s decision to include a citizenship question in the 2020 census.
“The Constitution clearly states that the goal of the decennial census is to provide an accurate count of people living in the United States. By adding a citizenship question, the Trump administration is purposefully undermining that goal in order to intimidate minority and immigrant communities and use the census as a political weapon.
“The distrust of the Trump administration among immigrant and minority populations already threatens the accuracy of the upcoming census. This decision, which is being made without the usual testing process that protects the integrity of the census, will exacerbate the under-counting of communities that are already under-represented.
“This yet another example of the Trump administration launching a politically motivated attack on California. I fully support Attorney General Becerra’s decision to challenge the use of the citizenship question in court, and I call on my colleagues in Congress to pass legislation that will improve the reliability of the census.’
Rep. Takano is a cosponsor of the 2020 American Census Investment Act, which addresses the chronic underfunding of the 2020 census and increases the likelihood of an accurate count.
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