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DeLauro Condemns Trump Administration’s Attempts to Sabotage the Census

August 5, 2020

DeLauro: "To the administration we are saying, keep the deadline. Our neighbors in rural communities, in communities of color, and in communities in need should be seen, not silenced."

NEW HAVEN, C.T. —Today, Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (CT-03) delivered the following remarks at a press conference at New Haven City Hall urging the Trump administration to reconsider its decision to move the Census deadline, a clear attempt to leave communities undercounted:

Thank you. It is an honor to join Lieutenant Governor Susan Bysiewicz and New Haven Mayor Justin Elicker. The Lieutenant Governor has been very focused on this issue. She heads up the Connecticut Complete Count Committee with Secretary of the State Denise Merrill and State Representatives Chris Rosario and Pat Wilson Pheanious. She is crisscrossing the state to inform everyone about the importance of an accurate census. And, Mayor Elicker has also made this an immediate priority.

The census is too important to rush or to sabotage. So, we are here today to urge the Trump administration: do not stop the census. This is a matter of civil rights, economic justice, and racial justice. Do your job, the full job, the complete census. Anything less could hurt rural communities, communities of color, low-income people, and everyone. We cannot afford to sabotage the census.

Last week, the president asked about delaying the election. Previously, the administration tried and failed to revise the Census questionnaire in a manner that was expected to undercount people of color. The Supreme Court stopped them from doing so. Then, on Monday night, the president's appointee who heads the Census Bureau, Steven Dillingham, announced they will cease this vital, constitutionally mandated event—a whole month early.

As the Hartford Courant reported, quote, "Under pressure from the Trump administration, the Census Bureau has indicated it would roll back the date by which it concludes its on-the-ground counting, from October 31 to September 30."

In a pandemic like this, it would likely require every available moment to do the job fully and correctly to be able to count every person living in the U.S. as mandated in the U.S. Constitution. Giving up early is unconscionable and unacceptable.

It is hard to overstate how important the 2020 Census is for Connecticut. Local businesses rely on their one-of-a-kind data to analyze labor markets, avoid dangerous risks, and identify new customers. Data points from the Census determine the distribution of billions in federal spending for programs like Medicare, Head Start, School Lunch, school and hospital construction, new roads, child care for low-income families, as well grants to community organizations. Without these funds, we must make up the shortfall with municipal tax dollars that could be used for other local priorities.

Money for coronavirus response programs is tied to the results of the Census, too. So, this is literally a matter of life and death.

Our representation in the Congress could be at stake, as well. Our state could lose a seat, lose a representative, especially if it is the case that not every one of our residents is counted.

Achieving a fair and complete census should not be a political issue. It is a central tenant of our democracy, an enumerated requirement of our constitution, and a vital piece of the puzzle, with regards to getting our residents and families the services and funding they need to thrive.

So, to the administration we are saying, keep the deadline. Our neighbors in rural communities, in communities of color, and in communities in need should be seen, not silenced. The Census is too important to rush or to sabotage.