New York Attorney General Letitia James, leading a coalition of 18 states, 16 local governments and the U.S. Conference of Mayors, filed a merits brief in the United States Supreme Court in the case challenging the Trump administration’s attempt to add a question about citizenship to the 2020 census.
“The federal government is legally required to perform an accurate count of the people in this country every 10 years,” said James. “The thoroughness and accuracy of this count is paramount: it determines the allocation of congressional seats and federal funding for localities and municipalities. Simply put, we cannot afford for anyone to be left out. We look forward to presenting our position to the Supreme Court.”
In January 2019, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York ruled in favor of the New York Attorney General’s Office in a lawsuit to block the Trump administration from demanding citizenship information in the 2020 census. The United States Supreme Court will be hearing the case this month.