Virginia AG Jones Joins Multistate Challenge to Census Rule Change
The U.S. Census Bureau has proposed changing how the 2030 census counts people, including limiting counts to citizens and lawful permanent residents, redefining "usual residence," ending race and ethnicity data collection, and making other demographic questions optional. Virginia Attorney General Jay Jones announced on Nov. 4 that Virginia joined more than 20 state attorneys general, Washington, D.C., and the governors of Kentucky and Pennsylvania in a challenge submitted to the U.S. Department of Commerce. Separately, Housing Opportunities Made Equal of Virginia and other housing and legal aid groups sent Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick a letter opposing the changes and asking the Bureau to withdraw them entirely, warning the changes could affect funding for food, housing, schools, health care and legal services. The public comment period closed Nov. 2 after nearly 150,000 responses; the administration could withdraw, revise, or advance the rule, and data collection for the next census is not set until 2030.