Appropriations Update
White House Budget Request
The White House released its Fiscal Year 2027 budget request for the Census Bureau at the beginning of April. The Trump Administration requested $2.01 billion for the U.S. Census Bureau in Fiscal Year (FY) 2027, which is $536.15 million more than the agency’s FY 2026 enacted funding level. Breaking the overall request down into the two accounts that fund the Bureau, the Current Surveys and Programs account would receive $288.5 million (approximately $31 million below its FY 2026 level), while the Periodic Census and Programs account would receive $1.723 billion (approximately $46 million above its FY 2026 level).
On April 22 and April 23, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick testified before the Senate and House Commerce, Justice, Science Appropriations Subcommittees, answering questions about the Department’s proposed FY 2027 budget. During the Senate hearing, Senator Brian Schatz (D-HI) asked Secretary Lutnick about the use of postal carriers as enumerators in the 2026 Census Test.
Late in April, the Administration shared a Congressional Justification with full details of the Census Bureau budget request. The Census Project’s summary shared key details, including one piece surprisingly missing: a communications and outreach contract for the 2030 Census.
U.S. House funding bill advances
The House Commerce, Justice, Science Appropriations Subcommittee approved its version of the FY 2027 Commerce, Justice Science Appropriations bill on April 30, 2026, by an 8-6 party-line vote.
As noted in a statement from The Census Project, “The bill recommends that the Census Bureau receive $1.49 billion in FY 2027, an amount equal to what the agency received in FY 2026. This funding level is approximately $521 million below the Administration’s request, $2.01 billion, and even farther below the funding level, $2.11 billion, that was endorsed by 85 members of The Census Project and 44 bipartisan members of the U.S. House of Representatives.”
Further, The Census Project’s statement noted concerns that, “once again, the Subcommittee has included language in its bill, Section 579, that would preclude the Census Bureau from enforcing the mandatory response requirement of the decennial census and ACS, while also limiting the Bureau to no more than two follow up inquiries across all of its surveys. This provision, which Congress has rejected twice before, would have a devastating impact on the decennial census, which historically has had to send more than two invitations to self-respond in order to count more than half of U.S. households. Likewise, the provision would undermine coverage in the ACS and the Current Population Survey, which require more than 3 and approximately 2.5 follow-up contacts, respectively. Major business, economic, and demographic surveys that have multiple follow-up contact strategies would likewise be adversely impacted, which is why the business community has expressed opposition to this language in the past. Given the adverse impact this provision would have on data quality overall, The Census Project hopes Section 579 will be removed as the CJS bill proceeds.”
The House CJS Appropriations Subcommittee is still accepting submissions of written testimony until May 8, 2026. Details for organizations interested in submitting comments in support of funding the U.S. Census Bureau in FY 2027 can find details in this blog from The Census Project.
U.S. Senate
While the Senate has not yet shared when it will consider FY 2027 appropriations legislation, 21 Senators sent a Dear Colleague letter on April 14, 2026 reflecting the funding recommendation from The Census Project, highlighting concerns about preparations for the 2030 Census and sustaining and enhancing the American Community Survey (ACS) in their call for making “the Census Bureau a high priority.”
Policy Update
April Standard Deviations Blog Features Report on Federal SOGI Data Landscape
The Census Project shared a Standard Deviations blog, “Demystifying Data Privacy: Understanding the Privacy Act of 1974”, from the Association of Public Data Users (APDU). The APDU authors wrote about privacy in federal data and resources APDU is working to provide to “help policymakers, researchers, advocates, and the public better understand the mechanics of the Privacy Act, the rights it conveys, and the obligations it imposes on federal agencies to collect, manage, and disclose personal information responsibly.”
The Census Project sponsors the Standard Deviations series to provide census stakeholders with an opportunity to share their news and views (not necessarily endorsed by The Census Project).
Make It Count Act (H.R. 7167)
Rep. Tom Barrett (R-MI-07) introduced the Make It Count Act (H.R. 7167), legislation that would add a citizenship and immigration status question to the decennial census, require congressional apportionment to be based only on a count of U.S. citizens, and only allow states to carry out a single congressional redistricting in the decade following a decennial census and apportionment. Full details are available in this blog from The Census Project.
A New Roadmap to 2030 Census Organizing
The Census Counts campaign recently released a new Roadmap to 2030 Resource Guide, “a practical, action-oriented tool designed to help organizations, advocates, and local leaders prepare for the next decade of census engagement.”
Requests for Public Comments
In April, The Census Project highlighted several requests for public comments that may be of interest to census stakeholders:
- The Bureau requested comments on the Survey of State Government Research and Development (SGRD) by May 1, 2026, following an earlier Federal Register Notice in November. The agency proposes to extend the survey without any changes.
- The U.S. Census Bureau requested public comment on revisions to the National Survey of Children’s Health (NSCH) by April 25, 2026. This is a follow-up from a prior Federal Register Notice in December.
Census Bureau Releases
The Bureau released new Business Formation Statistics (BFS) for March 2026.
The U.S. Census Bureau released a downloadable file containing estimates of the nation’s resident population by single year of age and sex as of July 1, 2025.
The U.S. Census Bureau released a series of data tables of the most common first and last names reported in the 2020 Census.
The Bureau released new tables and files containing detailed data from its 2025 Annual Survey of State Government Tax Collections (STC), including taxes imposed and collected by state governments and the District of Columbia. These data cover five broad tax categories and up to 25 tax subcategories.
The U.S. Census Bureau released a new summary report and data tables for the 2025 Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll (ASPEP). These statistics provide a comprehensive look at the employment of the nation’s state and local governments.
The U.S. Census Bureau released new data products from the Business Trends and Outlook Survey (BTOS), a survey that measures business conditions and projections on an ongoing basis, on April 9 and April 23, 2026.
The U.S. Census Bureau released new data on employment, food sufficiency, housing status, difficulty of paying usual household expenses, use of Artificial Intelligence (AI), and other topics from the Household Trends and Outlook Pulse Survey (HTOPS) on April 23.
The U.S. Census Bureau announced it will offer a two-day embargo period for qualified media to view the Vintage 2025 population estimates for local governmental units, including incorporated places, minor civil divisions and consolidated cities, and national, state and county housing unit estimates.
News You Can Use
Below are several articles posted on The Census Project home page in April 2026. For a complete listing, go to: 2026 Media – The Census Project. (News media coverage is not necessarily endorsed or supported by The Census Project, but is provided to give census stakeholders a wide spectrum of views and materials.)
Supreme Court redefines how states can factor race into congressional maps
The Christian Science Monitor
April 29, 2026
In major Voting Rights Act case, Supreme Court strikes down redistricting map challenged as racially discriminatory
SCOTUSblog
April 29, 2026
Virginia Supreme Court considers whether to block voter-approved US House map favoring Democrats
Associated Press
April 27, 2026
How federal confidential data contribute to the ‘public good’
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
April 25, 2026
Key facts about Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders in the U.S.
Pew Research Center
April 22, 2026
Florida lawmakers should start remedying the state’s census undercount | Column
Tampa Bay Times
April 21, 2026
Why did people stop responding to federal economic surveys? What can be done?
Brookings
April 14, 2026
Leon County lost $368M in federal aid after last census, group says
Tallahassee Democrat
April 13, 2026
Johnston officials expect city grew more than special census result
Des Moines Register
April 10, 2026
Data shines a light on community needs
The Alpena News
April 9, 2026
Letter to the Editor: Impact of a flawed U.S. Census
Navajo-Hopi Observer
April 7, 2026
Census Bureau effectively gerrymandered America
The Washington Times
April 6, 2026
Whistling Dixie
Unleash Prosperity
April 2, 2026
Counting trans people: Why better data collection is essential for better policy
The Conversation
April 1, 2026
