ACLU Comment on Supreme Court Census Ruling

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court has ruled it is too soon to bring a legal challenge against the Trump administration’s still-developing plan to exclude undocumented immigrants from the census count used to allocate seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. The case is Trump v. New York.

The challenge was brought by the American Civil Liberties Union, New York Civil Liberties Union, ACLU of Texas, ACLU of Southern California, and Arnold & Porter on behalf of immigrant rights groups.

Plaintiffs are the New York Immigration Coalition, Make the Road New York, CASA, American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, ADC Research Institute, FIEL Houston, and AHRI for Justice. State and local governments led by New York comprised another set of challengers.

On September 10, a federal court in New York blocked the Trump order, prompting the administration’s appeal to the Supreme Court.

Dale Ho, director of the ACLU’s Voting Rights Project, argued the case and had the following reaction:

“This Supreme Court decision is only about timing, not the merits. This ruling does not authorize President Trump’s goal of excluding undocumented immigrants from the census count used to apportion the House of Representatives. The legal mandate is clear — every single person counts in the census, and every single person is represented in Congress. If this policy is ever actually implemented, we'll be right back in court challenging it.”

Order: https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/20pdf/20-366_7647.pdf

Statement: https://www.aclu.org/press-releases/aclu-comment-supreme-court-census-ruling

Case details: https://www.aclu.org/cases/new-york-immigration-coalition-v-trump