Judge Halts Trump Effort to End Census Count Early
Houston-area unions today commended U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh’s decision to maintain the October 31st deadline for the 2020 Census. The ruling came after the Trump administration’s recent move to speed up counting for the census by cutting the final deadline short to September 30.
Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance (APALA) Civic Engagement Fellow Tammy Chang said: “With this ruling, fair count advocates everywhere are letting out a deep breath — and especially so in Houston and Harris County. Only 60% of Harris County residents have been counted in the Census so far, and just 57% in Houston. The census decides where federal funding will go for the next 10 years, and impacts every aspect of our lives. We’re thankful for today’s decision to extend the deadline, and we’re committed to redoubling our efforts to make sure everyone is counted.”
APALA and the Texas Gulf Coast Area Labor Federation have collaborated to make over 200,000 calls to members in hard-to-count communities in the Texas Gulf Coast over the past 9 months, with bilingual union members making calls to area residents in Spanish, Vietnamese, Chinese, Arabic, and Tagalog.
Texas Gulf Coast Area Labor Federation Political Director Jay Malone said: “A complete and accurate count in the 2020 census is critical to all working families in the Gulf Coast and across Texas, and that’s why the labor movement has been aggressively supporting outreach efforts for the past year. Every person who goes uncounted costs our communities $1,500 in critical funding for essential services that Texas Gulf Coast residents depend on.”
With this extended deadline, census enumerators and community advocates will be able to devote more time and resources to ensuring an accurate count. Anyone can self-respond online at www.my2020census.gov , by phone (1–844–330–2020 English, 1–844–468–2020 Spanish, 1–844–474–2020 Portuguese) or mail.
