Siding with the NAACP, the Fourth Circuit on Thursday revived claims that the Trump administration is not ready for the 2020 census and is at risk of undercounting minority communities.
One of several court challenges involving the once-a-decade count, the civil rights group argues the alleged underfunding of outreach programs could result in an underrepresentation of minority and historically disadvantaged populations.
The NAACP and Prince George’s County, Maryland, first filed their lawsuit in March 2018, but a federal judge dismissed the case after finding the plaintiffs lacked standing because they had not suffered a concrete injury.
While a three-judge panel of the Richmond-based appeals court upheld the dismissal of the NAACP’s claims under the Administrative Procedures Act, the judges remanded the case for further consideration of claims made under the Constitution’s enumeration clause, which calls for a census once every 10 years.