Census numbers delayed to February

The population data used to allocate congressional seats and a $1.5 million federal budget to each state would not be ready until Feb. 9 or later in the month, John Coghlan, a deputy assistant Attorney General, said Monday. Federal law mandates the Census Bureau to submit the data by Dec. 31, but the bureau last week said it would likely miss the year-end deadline.

Why the delay? Coghlan said the Census Bureau found new irregularities in the head count data. He made the announcement during a court hearing over a lawsuit seeking to stop the Trump administration from shortening the head count process. The coalition of municipalities and advocacy groups that brought the lawsuit had said the rushed process would result in undercounting minority communities.

Dig deeper: Read Rachel Lynn Aldrich’s earlier report in The Sift on the implications of a possible delay.