(WASHINGTON, D.C.)—This week, Rep. Jamie Raskin, the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, held a hearing entitled “Beyond the Citizenship Question:  Repairing the Damage and Preparing to Count ‘We the People’ in 2020.”

TAKEAWAYS

•  The Census Bureau’s planned digital outreach approach and Mobile Response Initiative are not an adequate replacement for Questionnaire Assistance Centers (QACs), which counted more persons than occupy the entire state of Vermont for the 2010 Census.  The Bureau should spend some of the $1.02 billion in unspent funds allocated by Congress to open QACs and ensure a full count.

• The Bureau must clarify the purpose of the data collected from the field test currently in progress that includes Trump’s citizenship question, as well as data collected pursuant to Trump’s Executive Order.

• GAO testified that the Bureau faces significant cybersecurity risks caused by its failure to fully test its systems in advance of the 2020 Census.  The Bureau testified that it is committed to resolving these security deficiencies.

WITNESSES

The Honorable Steven Dillingham, Ph.D.
Director
U.S. Census Bureau

Robert Goldenkoff
Director of Strategic Issues
U.S. Government Accountability Office

Nicholas Marinos
Director of Information Technology and Cybersecurity
U.S. Government Accountability Office

VIDEOS

Watch Chairman Raskin’s opening statement.

Watch Chairman Raskin’s question line.

Watch Rep. Pressley’s question line.

Watch Rep. Wasserman-Schultz’s question line.

Watch Rep. Maloney’s question line.

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