September 10, 2026 | Washington, D.C.
The Trump administration has proposed a major overhaul of the U.S. census that could change how millions of people living in America are counted — with potential consequences for congressional representation and federal funding.
Under the proposal submitted by the U.S. Census Bureau, the national count would include U.S. citizens and permanent residents, while excluding undocumented immigrants and some people legally living in the country on a temporary basis.
The Change Could Affect Representation in Congress
The census is conducted every 10 years, with the next full count scheduled for 2030.
Its population figures play an enormous role in American government. They help determine how the 435 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives are divided among the states and are also used when legislative districts are drawn.
Because states with larger immigrant populations could record lower population totals under the proposal, the change could potentially affect their political representation.
Federal Funding Could Also Be Affected
Census information is also used in decisions involving federal money for public programs and services.
Demographers and civil-rights advocates cited by Reuters warned that excluding large groups of residents could produce population figures that do not accurately reflect everyone living in a community.
That could have implications for decisions involving government resources as well as business and infrastructure planning.
Race and Ethnicity Questions Could Be Removed
The proposal contains another significant change.
It would eliminate portions of the census questionnaire that collect information about race and ethnicity.
Those statistics are widely used for demographic research and the enforcement of anti-discrimination laws.
The Proposal Is Not Final
Importantly, these changes have not taken effect.
The proposal is open for 30 days of public comment, and any attempt to change who is included in the census could face significant legal challenges.
The 14th Amendment says congressional representation should be apportioned according to the “whole number of persons” in each state, an issue that could become central to future court battles.
The Supreme Court previously blocked the Trump administration’s attempt during his first term to add a citizenship question to the 2020 census, finding problems with the government’s stated rationale for doing so.
With the next census still several years away, the newly proposed rules could trigger a major political and legal fight over who should be counted in America — and how that count shapes political power.
Source: Reuters — September 9–10, 2026.
