Cotton Contact: Caroline Tabler (202) 224-2353
Cruz Contact: Jessica Skaggs (202) 224-5922
Inhofe Contact: Laurie Fitch (202) 224-4721
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Yesterday, the Commerce Department announced that it would add a new question to the 2020 census asking respondents whether they were citizens of the United States. The news comes after Senators Tom Cotton (R-Arkansas), Ted Cruz (R-Texas), and Jim Inhofe (R-Oklahoma) sent a letter to the Department asking it to add such a question and gather more accurate data on the number of U.S. citizens living in the country.
"Counting the number of U.S. citizens in the country should be a high priority of the census, and the only way to get an accurate count is to add a question about citizenship to the census itself," said Senator Cotton.
"I applaud Secretary Ross for honoring this request by my colleagues and me," Sen. Cruz said. "It is imperative that the data gathered in the census is reliable, given the wide ranging impacts it will have on U.S. policy. A question on citizenship is a reasonable, commonsense addition to the census."
"Accurate census data that reflects the total number of U.S. citizens is a vital part of our democracy." Inhofe said. "Without it, we can't responsibly ensure equal representation for states in the House of Representatives or assess voter participation. I applaud the Census Bureau for adding this common-sense question."
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