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Oregon joined 17 other states today in a new lawsuit aimed at blocking President Donald J. Trump's administration from adding a question to the 2020 census that would ask people about their citizenship.
"The Census is part of the bedrock of our democracy. The U.S. Constitution guarantees an accurate census be taken every 10 years. Adding a citizenship question to the Census form has a deliberate and intended chilling effect on participation," said Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum in a statement. "As state Attorneys General we are committed to making sure every voice is heard, and we believe that every person in America counts. Period."
The federal Commerce Department, which conducts the census, has proposed adding a new question that would ask whether respondents are citizens.
Critics say that given the Trump administration's hostility toward immigrants, the question could reduce participation and result in under-counting the number of people residing in states, particularly those with large undocumented populations.
There are real consequences for an under-count because census data is used to apportion federal funding to states and to draw federal congressional and state legislative districts.
In a news release, the Oregon Department of Justice said "a 1 percent under-count on the 2010 Census would have resulted in less than $23 million in federal funding for Oregon."
(Disclosure: Rosenblum is married to the co-owner of WW's parent company.)