Census Bureau

A resident of Mexico Beach, Fla., looks over damage caused to the Florida Panhandle by Hurricane Michael in October 2018.

National

2020 Census To Be Hand-Delivered In Disaster Recovery Areas

1:09pm May 03, 2019

by Hansi Lo Wang

The Census Bureau is planning to send workers to personally visit every household in Paradise, Calif.; Mexico Beach, Fla.; and Puerto Rico, which are still recovering from wildfire and hurricanes.

The Supreme Court justices are hearing oral arguments Tuesday over the citizenship question the Trump administration wants to add to forms for the 2020 census.

Supreme Court Appears To Lean Toward Allowing Census Citizenship Question

4:52pm April 23, 2019

The justices are weighing whether the Trump administration can include a citizenship question on the 2020 census. A decision is expected this summer, when printing of the census forms is set to begin.

A U.S. flag sits on the lap of a newly sworn-in citizen at a 2018 naturalization ceremony in Alexandria, Va. A new appeal in one of the lawsuits over the addition of a citizenship question to the 2020 census could complicate final preparations for the hea

Appeal To Census Lawsuit Ruling Adds Uncertainty To Citizenship Question's Fate

8:12pm April 17, 2019

by Hansi Lo Wang

The Census Bureau is counting on the Supreme Court to resolve the legal battle by June so that 2020 census forms can be printed. But an appeal in a Maryland lawsuit could complicate that timeline.

U.S. Census Bureau Director Steven Dillingham leads the agency in charge of carrying out the upcoming national head count of every person living in the country.

Census Bureau Must Be 'Totally Objective' On Citizenship Question, Director Says

8:15pm April 01, 2019

by Hansi Lo Wang

Responding to President Trump's tweet defending the controversial question, Steven Dillingham says his job will be "to conduct a census whether the question's in there or if it isn't."

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A Rhode Island resident holds an envelope he received for the 2020 census test run in Providence County.

What You Need To Know About The 2020 Census

9:05pm March 31, 2019

by Hansi Lo Wang

Why is the census important? How is it conducted? When does it officially start? NPR answers your questions about the upcoming national head count required by the U.S. Constitution once a decade.

Worshippers exiting a mosque in the Bay Ridge neighborhood of Brooklyn, N.Y., are handed fliers encouraging participation in the 2010 census.

For The First Time, U.S. Census To Collect Responses In Arabic Among 13 Languages

10:37am March 31, 2019

by Hansi Lo Wang

Households can respond to the 2020 census in more than double the number of languages supported in 2010. But some Arab-American community leaders are worried many Arabic speakers won't participate.

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The U.S. Census Bureau's headquarters is located in Suitland, Md., just outside of the nation's capital.

2020 Census Preparations Were Slowed By The Partial Government Shutdown

7:38pm February 25, 2019

by Hansi Lo Wang

The recent partial government shutdown delayed preparations for the 2020 head count, including for a field test of the controversial citizenship question, internal Census Bureau documents suggest.

U.S. Marines stand guard during the change of command ceremony at Task Force Southwest military field at Shorab military camp in Afghanistan's Helmand province in 2018.

Restrictions On Deployed U.S. Troop Data Could Put 2020 Census 'At Risk'

8:08am February 25, 2019

by Hansi Lo Wang

New security measures limiting access to military records may prevent the Census Bureau from accurately counting service members, according to a newly released internal memo obtained by the NAACP.

The Trump administration is planning to ask the Supreme Court to take up a sped-up review of a lower court's ruling that blocks the addition of a citizenship question to the 2020 census.

Trump Administration To Ask Supreme Court To Decide Citizenship Question's Fate

5:34pm January 22, 2019

by Hansi Lo Wang

In a court filing, the Justice Department says it plans to ask for a speedy review by the Supreme Court of a lower court's ruling blocking plans to add a citizenship question to the 2020 census.

The moon hangs low in the sky over the remote Inupiat Eskimo village of Noorvik, Alaska, the first community in the U.S. counted for the 2010 census.

National

Why The U.S. Census Starts In Alaska's Most Remote, Rural Villages

5:00am January 21, 2019

by Hansi Lo Wang

The 2020 census is set to begin in Toksook Bay, Alaska, continuing the tradition of counting the most remote parts of the most northern state before the rest of the U.S.