Trump Proposal Would Exclude Noncitizens and Demographic Questions from 2030 Census
Experts warn the sweeping changes would alter congressional seats, slash federal funding and undermine national data accuracy.
Tony Gutierrez|AP
Two children hold signs referencing the 2020 census at an outreach event in Dallas.
The Trump administration is proposing changes to the 2030 census that would dramatically alter the next national headcount.
The sweeping measures would exclude noncitizens – among them people in the country illegally as well as legal residents awaiting green cards – from the tally. The proposal would also ban questions about race, ethnicity and sexual orientation as part of a broader effort by President Donald Trump to redefine who the federal government counts as a U.S. resident.
The census counts each person in the country every 10 years. The results dictate distribution of congressional seats along with billions of dollars in federal funding and inform anti-discrimination policies. The proposed changes would upset the historical process established in 1790 and is likely to face legal challenges.
“The problem with this proposal is that it would require changes in census operations and methods that are untested, unprecedented and are likely to reduce response not only in immigrant communities but across the board,” says Terri Ann Lowenthal, a former staff director for the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability.
Historically the census has tallied all U.S. residents regardless of their legal status. The administration’s proposal released online on Wednesday called immigrants in the country illegally “not true inhabitants” in the U.S. “due to their lack of a sufficient tie and allegiance” to the country.
The move mirrors a similar effort during Trump’s first term. The Supreme Court ultimately declined to rule on Trump's 2020 directive to exclude immigrants living in the country illegally from the 2020 count.
Beyond immigration status, the Census Bureau is proposing to remove questions about race, ethnicity and sexual orientation from the short-form questionnaire. The proposal cited privacy risks, the sensitive nature of the topic and shifting standards around demographic categories as reasons. Removing those questions aims to boost response rates and overall population accuracy, according to the bureau.
While the census forms have not directly asked about sexual orientation in the past, the 2020 count asked couples living together to report if their partner is “opposite-sex” or “same-sex.” In his first term, Trump blocked an effort to add a sexual orientation question to the survey.
Congress has final authority over the census operations and count under the Constitution, and experts believe the changes could face legal hurdles.
“It violates not only current census law but also the U.S. Constitution,” Lowenthal says. “The Constitution clearly requires a count of all people who live in the U.S. on Census Day, regardless of immigration and citizenship status, and the courts have upheld that reading of the 14th Amendment and also Article One.”
The 14th Amendment mandates that congressional representatives must be apportioned among states by counting the "whole number of persons in each state.” Past Justice Departments across administrations of both parties have looked at the issue of whether the census can exclude immigrants in the country illegally or other noncitizens for apportionment purposes – all have said no, according to Lowenthal.
“So this administration is, you know, making a proposal that likely won't stand up to judicial scrutiny,” Lowenthal says.
Critics are concerned about how the changes may intimidate immigrants and distort vital public data.
“If people are worried about how citizenship information could be used or misused, they may be less likely to respond, which undermines accuracy for everyone, not just noncitizens,” Mark Mather, associate vice president of programs at the Population Reference Bureau, said in a statement.
Mather notes the census metrics shape annual population estimates, health statistics, federal survey benchmarks and a general understanding of disparities.
“Losing that means losing the ability to see those gaps,” Mather said.
There are also major legal and political questions. Changes in who gets counted for apportionment would affect representation and political power for years to come, according to Mather.
“Census data guide trillions of dollars in federal funding for transportation, schools, hospitals, housing,” Mather said. “If communities are undercounted, those errors get built into funding formulas and can shortchange those communities for a decade.”
The Month in Photos: Sept. 2026
Originally published by usnews.com. Syndicated material does not necessarily reflect the views of Glamour Canada.
