Statements from Mayor de Blasio, Corporation Counsel Carter, Census Director Menin on the Supreme Court Decision Regarding the 2020 Census Citizenship Question

June 27, 2019

Statement from Mayor Bill de Blasio:

"The Supreme Court's decision to send the citizenship question back to the lower court is a key victory in our fight, but the battle is not over. Cities across the country have stood together and made clear: if you live in the United States, regardless of immigration status, you are seen, you are heard and you must be counted. We must continue to resoundingly reject the politics of division and hate and fight for the fair representation this nation was built on. The President's hateful administration won't silence our voice. We must all stand up and be counted."

Statement from Corporation Counsel Zachary W. Carter:

"We are pleased that the Supreme Court has rejected the Trump Administration's thinly veiled attempt to discourage the participation of immigrant New Yorkers in the 2020 census by the inclusion of an unnecessary citizenship question. The City will now focus on the important work of ensuring that all New York City residents are counted in the 2020 census."

Statement from New York City Census Director Julie Menin:

"Today's decision affirms that the Trump Administration cannot utilize its constitutional obligation to count us as a tool to harm us. Rather than uphold the inclusion of the citizenship question, the court has rightly rejected the pretext that the Commerce Department used to justify this wholly baseless question. So while this fight is not yet over, this decision is a key victory for immigrant communities and for the City of New York in our battle to ensure this question stays off the census. With our Administration's and the City Council's joint historic $40 million investment in census outreach and education efforts for the city, we will ensure that every community is fully counted in next year's census and that we get our fair share of hundreds of billions in federal funds. Together, we can send a clear and strong message: we will not be silenced; we will not be invisible; and we will be counted."