Babaamaajimowinan (Telling of news in different places)
Babaamaajimowinan (Telling of news in different places)
Census Bureau Director Steven Dillingham, wearing a face covering printed with the words "2020 Census," faced questions from lawmakers Wednesday on plans for finishing the count. NPR has learned the bureau recently decided to end door knocking on Sept. 30, increasing the risk of an undercount. Andrew Harnik/AP
The Census Bureau is cutting short critical door-knocking efforts for the 2020 census amid growing concerns among Democrats in Congress that the White House is pressuring the bureau to wrap up counting soon for political gain, NPR has learned.
Attempts by the bureau's workers to conduct in-person interviews for the census will end on Sept. 30 - not Oct. 31, the end date it indicated in April would be necessary to count every person living in the U.S. given major setbacks from the coronavirus pandemic. Three Census Bureau employees, who were informed of the plans during separate internal meetings Thursday, confirmed the new end date with NPR. All of the employees spoke on the condition of anonymity out of fear of losing their jobs.
"It's going to be impossible to complete the count in time," said one of the bureau employees, an area manager who oversees local census offices. "I'm very fearful we're going to have a massive undercount."
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