House Dems demand rationale for adding citizenship question to 2020 census

Democrats on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee are demanding documents from Trump administration officials detailing their rationale for adding a question about citizenship to the 2020 census.

In a letter to Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross and Acting Director of the Census Bureau Ron Jarmin on Wednesday, ranking member Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) and five other committee members requested documents before a briefing with the agencies on April 11.

The members specifically asked for all documents and communications relating to any concerns expressed by the Census Bureau about adding the question, and all analyses of the question’s potential impact on census results.

The Department of Commerce announced late last month it was granting a Department of Justice request to reinstate the question about citizenship status to the 2020 census to help enforce the Voting Rights Act.

Citizenship hasn’t been a question on the centennial data collection form since 1950.

The agency’s decision has been met with stark opposition from Democrats and civil rights groups, which argue a citizenship question will frighten people in immigrant communities away from responding to the census, resulting in an inaccurate count.

The administration is now facing multiple lawsuits challenging its decision.

Wednesday’s letter was also signed by Democratic Reps. Carolyn Maloney (N.Y.), Lacy Clay (Mo.), Gerry Connolly (Va.) and Jimmy Gomez (Calif.) and Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.).