Governor Launches “Complete Count Committee”
SALEM, Ore. (AP) – Oregon Gov. Kate Brown has formed an outreach committee to encourage response to the 2020 Census, ahead of a Supreme Court decision that could lead to undercounts of immigrant communities.
The governor announced on Monday that the newly formed Complete Count Committee will ensure a fair and accurate Census count. The U.S. Constitution mandates a complete count of the country’s population every 10 years. Census numbers determine how much money states get in federal funding. It’s also used to draw state legislative maps, which can have resounding effects on future elections.
Brown says next year’s Census count will be made more difficult because of a Trump administration push to ask how household members are U.S. citizens. Immigrant groups have argued that a citizenship question will discourage participation from households with non-citizens, leading to an undercount.
A study from Portland State University suggests that as many as one in nine Oregonians live with a non-citizen.
The Supreme Court is expected to make a decision this year on whether the administration can include a citizenship question–something that has not happened since 1950.
