How Trump’s Proposed Census Changes Could Impact States’ Funding—and Political Power

The Trump Administration is proposing making changes to the U.S. census that could have a sweeping—and unequal—impact on the federal funding and congressional representation that states receive.The proposals, which still need to go through an approval process before being enacted, were publicly shared by the Administration earlier this week. In the document, the Trump Administration proposes excluding people who are not U.S. citizens and don’t have permanent residency from the census count. It also proposes barring census officials from including some demographic questions, such as ones about race, ethnicity, and sexual orientation, in the questionnaire.If the changes are approved, they would upend the federal government’s understanding of the country’s population, which would have cascading effects on the resources allocated to certain states.Here’s what to know about the census, the proposed changes, and which states could be impacted most heavily by the proposals.What is the census?The U.S. census takes place every 10 years, as required by the Constitution. The purpose of the census is to count every person residing in the U.S. The results are then used to help allot the appropr...