Reaching Hard-to-Count Communities in the 2020 Census

Date: Thursday, January 9, 2020 - 10:00am

Location: 2154 Select one, Washington, DC 20515

“Reaching Hard-to-Count Communities in the 2020 Census”

PURPOSE

The hearing will examine the Census Bureau’s strategies and plans for reaching hard-to-count communities in the 2020 Census.

BACKGROUND

The Constitution requires that the Census count every person in the United States. The results of the 2020 Census will determine the apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives and the allocation of approximately $1.5 trillion in federal funding. Some populations, including immigrants, communities of color, children, and people experiencing homelessness, have traditionally been more difficult to count, leading to an undercount on previous censuses.

The 2020 Census is imminent, with counting set to begin in Alaska on January 21, 2020, and in the rest of the country on April 1, 2020. The Census Bureau must be fully prepared to count all communities in order to ensure the Census results are accurate, fair, and complete.

The Committee is very concerned that minority and immigrant communities, as well as rural communities with limited Internet access, are at serious risk of being undercounted in the 2020 Census, jeopardizing their accurate representation in Congress and access to federal funds.

One major cause for concern is that the Census Bureau has fallen behind its own targets for hiring census workers to reach hard-to-count communities and for hiring partnership specialists who serve as critical liaisons with these communities.

The Census Bureau must work closely with local communities to ensure an accurate count, including by addressing fears caused by the Trump Administration’s immigration policies and the failed attempt to add a citizenship question to the 2020 Census.

WITNESSES

Mr. Kevin Allis

Chief Executive Officer

National Congress of American Indians

Ms. Vanita Gupta

President and Chief Executive Officer

The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights

Mr. Darrell Moore

Executive Director, Center for South Georgia Regional Impact

Valdosta State University

Mr. Marc Morial

President and Chief Executive Officer

National Urban League

Mr. Arturo Vargas

CEO

NALEO Educational Fund

Mr. John Yang

President and Executive Director

Asian Americans Advancing Justice

Committee Notice:

https://oversight.house.gov/legislation/hearings/reaching-hard-to-count-communities-in-the-2020-census

Photo of Toksook Bay in Alaska by U.S. Census Bureau:

https://www.census.gov/library/photos/2020/toksook-bay/village.html