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Columbus City Attorney: Cutting The Census Timeline Is Cutting People Out

Columbus City Attorney Zach Klein has joined the legal battle against the Trump Administration’s amended 2020 Census schedule. The U.S. Census Bureau recently announced the time for accepted self-response questionnaires and door-to-door follow-ups by census enumerators would be cut by an entire month. Instead of October 31, those efforts must conclude September 30. 

A coalition of attorneys general, cities, counties, and the bi-partisan U.S. Conference of Mayors filed an amicus brief supporting a lawsuit requesting a temporary injunction of the schedule change. The complaint calls the Bureau’s decision a “rush plan” that will hamstring outreach efforts and impair the count’s accuracy. A court hearing has been scheduled for September 17.

“We cannot allow the Trump administration to rob the citizens of Columbus and other communities across the nation the right -- as required in the Constitution -- to be counted," Columbus City Attorney Zach Klein said. "Cutting the timeline is cutting people out.”

Census results determine the number of seats allocated to states in the U.S. House of Representatives. The count also helps decide where to distribute billions of dollars in annual federal spending.

Columbus and Franklin County launched a census outreach strategy in March 2019. Here's a link for additional information.  

Mike Foley joined WCBE in February 2000, coming from WUFT in Gainesville, Florida. Foley has worked in various roles, from producing news and feature stories to engineering Live From Studio A sessions. A series of music features Foley started in 2018 called Music Journeys has grown into a podcast and radio show. He also assists in developing other programs in WCBE's Podcast Experience. Foley hosts The Morning Mix, a weekday music show featuring emerging and established musicians, our Columbus-area and Ohio-based talent, and additional artists that inspire him.
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