Sánchez opposes Republican bill requiring census citizenship question

WASHINGTON – Congresswoman Linda T. Sánchez (D-CA) issued the following statement in opposition to the Equal Representation Act, a bill passed by the Republican-controlled House today that would require the Census Bureau to include a citizenship question on the census:

“This extreme MAGA bill is designed to scare immigrants, mixed-status families and minority communities from participating in the census. It’s yet another attempt by Republicans to undercount communities of color and deny them full representation in Congress and the federal funding they deserve.

“The Constitution requires a count of everyperson living in the United States. A citizenship question meant to severely erode that count is unconstitutional. The Supreme Court affirmed this in 2020.

“The census shouldn’t be used as a political tool to further game the system against immigrants and their communities. I voted against this partisan bill and will continue to fight for a full and accurate count of everyone in the United States.”

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