CAPAC, CHC, and Congressional Leaders Sound the Alarm: Trump Administration's Proposed Census Changes Threaten Fair Count of Every American

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Last week, 66 Members of Congress, including 15 Senators and 51 Members of the House, submitted a formal bicameral comment letter to the Department of Commerce. In their letter, Members warned that the proposed changes to the Census Bureau's 2026 Operational Test—a critical preparation exercise for the 2030 Census—will make an accurate count of all Americans impossible and undermine a decade's worth of federal funding, representation, and democracy itself.

The letter was led in the House by Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC) Chair Grace Meng (NY-06), Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) Chair Adriano Espaillat (NY-13), and Oversight Committee Ranking Member Robert Garcia (CA-42), and in the Senate by Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Ranking Member Gary Peters (D-MI), and Subcommittee on the Census Ranking Member Andy Kim (D-NJ).

The Trump administration's proposed changes to the Census 2026 Operational Test slash test sites from six to two, cut the respondent pool by 75%, swap out the census form for the much longer American Community Survey, add a citizenship question, and pilot postal workers as enumerators—all while cutting the public comment period in half and disbanding the Census Bureau's advisory committee without explanation.

“A complete and accurate Census is critical to determining congressional representation and the disbursement of trillions of dollars in federal funding for schools, hospitals, and social services. It is reprehensible that the Trump administration is once again attempting to undermine the Census for political gain,” said CAPAC Chair Grace Meng. “Their proposed changes to the test sites and test design threaten the integrity of the decennial census and risk suppressing Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander participation and representation. This cannot stand, and we will fight to ensure every person is counted as required under the Constitution.”

“Every Latino family deserves to be fully and accurately counted—not erased by a flawed test designed to fail the communities it was meant to serve,” said CHC Chair Adriano Espaillat. “An undercount of Latino communities will not be a simple statistical error—it will lead to a decade-long theft of representation, resources, and power from millions of Americans.”

“The Census is how we decide where power and resources go in this country. The current plan removes testing sites on the Fort Apache and San Carlos Apache Reservations in Arizona and adds a citizenship question that will have a chilling effect on the participation of U.S. citizens who are part of immigrant families. These changes could leave tens of thousands of Latino families and Tribal communities uncounted, meaning communities across the entire state will get less funding and less representation for the next ten years. We cannot allow that to happen,” said Senator Ruben Gallego.

“The Trump Administration’s push to insert a citizenship question into the Census test raises serious concerns that they are once again laying the groundwork to intimidate immigrant communities and manipulate the Census for political purposes. Any effort that discourages participation will undermine the accuracy of the Census and threaten the fair representation and federal resources that Latino and immigrant communities deserve,” said Ranking Member Robert Garcia.

“I am deeply concerned by the Census Bureau’s proposal to cancel four out of its six planned sites for the 2026 Census Test and to include a citizenship question, which the Census Bureau's own research has shown will make it less likely for people, including citizens, to respond,” said Ranking Member Gary Peters.“Reducing the scope and undermining the integrity of Census testing will make it more likely that communities across the country and in Michigan will be undercounted in the 2030 Census.”

“The Trump administration’s proposed test would ensure that the 2030 Census fails before it even begins. The Census is not some tool for party politics. It is one of the most fundamental pillars of our democracy, outlined by our Constitution, and must be done right or risk the loss of critical resources and equal representation for communities across the country,” said Senator Andy Kim.

The letter argues these sweeping changes—announced with little notice and minimal public input—will produce a scientifically worthless test, chill participation in immigrant and minority communities, raise unresolved constitutional and privacy concerns, and deprive Congress of the planning data it is legally owed before the 2030 Census is finalized. The lawmakers warn that every person not counted in 2030 represents ten years of lost funding for schools, hospitals, and housing in their community.

Members are calling on the Department of Commerce to restore all six original test sites, use the actual census short form, remove the citizenship question, provide Congress with the USPS confidentiality agreement and a legal analysis of respondents' privacy protections, and restore the standard 60-day public comment period.

You can read the full letter HERE.

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