Clarke leads NY Delegation letter to Census Bureau

“Extend Census Collection Deadline Due to Coronavirus Disruption”

Brooklyn, NY – Today, Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke (NY-09) led Members of the New York delegation, including Anthony Brindisi (NY-22), Antonio Delgado (NY-19), Eliot Engel (NY-16), Adriano Espaillat (NY-13), Hakeem Jeffries (NY-08), Gregory Meeks (NY-05), Grace Meng (NY-06), Joe Morelle (NY-25), Jerrold Nadler (NY-10), Kathleen Rice (NY-04), Max Rose (NY-11), Paul Tonko (NY-20) and Nydia Velazquez (NY-07), in a letter to United States Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross, whose jurisdiction includes the Census Bureau, to extend the data-gathering period to September for the 2020 Census due to social disruption caused by COVID-19. The letter states “the best practices necessary to effectively respond to the Coronavirus outbreak actively impede a Census count.”

Data for the Census is collected once a decade and impacts over $675 billion in federal funds, which are distributed for community resources based on this data including funding for schools, infrastructure, and public transportation. Census data also determines whether redistricting is needed, as well as the necessary political representation of each community. Census data is currently scheduled to begin April 1st and is scheduled to conclude by the end of July. The signatory New York Members of Congress are requesting an extension for Census data collection through September because “social distancing will make enumeration practically impossible during the current allocated time frame,” as stated in the March 12th letter.

“The Census Bureau expects over 60 percent of Americans to self-respond to the Census without interaction from an enumerator. Self-reporting will […] prove particularly difficult in an environment that does not encourage social gathering,” as stated in the letter.

The letter also states: “On March 11th, the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a global pandemic and civil society has responded accordingly with institutions across the country beginning to close down non-essential operations in order to slow the spread of the virus. As states and local jurisdictions continue to dedicate resources to expand their capacity to respond to this outbreak, there will be diminishing state capacity to administer the Census…Any count done under these circumstances would not only fail to properly account for the current American population, but it could also have more targeted negative impacts on communities historically disadvantaged by the state and the Census process.”

Census workers and events intended to raise awareness about the importance of filling out the Census will see diminished results because of the preventative measures to curb the spread of COVID-19. Additionally, thirteen percent of New York Residents do not have access to the internet at home, and so hard-to-count communities who would have otherwise relied on the internet but are now encouraged to practice social distancing as a protective measure against Coronavirus will exemplify difficulties of self-reporting. Factors of hard-to-count districts include “hard to locate,” “hard to contact,” “hard to persuade” and “hard to interview,” according to the Census Bureau. New York’s Ninth Congressional District historically has been one of the hardest to count districts in America.

Clarke said: “Our country is suffering from a major pandemic, and the resources used for health care in instances just like this Coronavirus pandemic are rooted in Census counts. New York and our country must be smart not only when it comes to protecting ourselves from COVID-19, but we must look forward to the next decade for the sake of our community’s future by ensuring all people in every district are counted. We must do everything we can to set our communities up for success by having the most accurate Census count. However, the current climate of practicing social distancing deepens the challenges of Census collection and so I and my New York colleagues, as per our letter to Secretary Ross who is responsible for the Census Bureau, are requesting an extension to best allow for accurate collection of Census data.”