Comments due Oct 13, 2026 · Docket No. 260903-0005

Write yourcomment.

The Census Bureau has to read and respond to substantive public comments. The ones that land are specific, personal, and in your own words. Here's how to write one.

Submit on Regulations.gov Jump to the template →

Before you write

Six rules for a comment that counts

  1. Use your own words.

    Agencies may group identical form letters and treat them as a single comment. A personal comment stands on its own.

  2. Say who you are.

    Resident, parent, planner, researcher, business owner, organizer. Then say how you use census data or how it affects your community.

  3. Point to specific parts of the rule.

    The residence criteria, the January 3 to April 1 enumeration period, the tax-records test, the ban on race and ethnicity questions, or voluntary responses.

  4. Describe real consequences.

    What happens to your schools, district, funding, research, or business if the count is wrong?

  5. Cite the docket.

    Docket No. 260903-0005, Document 2026-18481. On Regulations.gov it's listed as docket USBC-2026-0628.

  6. Remember it's public.

    Comments become part of the public record. Leave out personal details you don't want posted.

What the template asks for

More time: extend the comment period until December 10, 2026.

A rewrite: oppose part 60 and part 70, and withdraw the rule for substantial revisions, including:

  • Count every U.S. resident, including visa-holders, refugees, and asylum seekers.
  • Bring back guidelines for detailed residence situations.
  • Go back to activity-based residence, not a “one hour” rule.
  • Fix or drop the January-to-April enumeration period.
  • Count incarcerated people at home, not at the facility.
  • Revise the tax-records language.
  • Drop the ban on race, ethnicity, and sexual orientation questions.

Keep the points you want, cut the rest, and fill in the highlighted brackets with who you are and why you care.

Open the template →

In the Bureau's own words

“[T]he data collected in these questions is needed by federal agencies to monitor compliance with the anti-discrimination provisions of laws such as the Voting Rights Act and the Civil Rights Act.”

U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Census handout on the race question

The Voting Rights Act and the Civil Rights Act are still on the books, and federal agencies still have to enforce them. Quoting the Census Bureau's own explanation is a direct way to make that point in your comment.

Read the handout (PDF) →

See the statutory uses of race and ethnicity data reported to Congress (PDF, pages 11–12) →

Anatomy of a strong comment

  1. Who I am[I am a transportation planner in Cuyahoga County, Ohio.]
  2. How I use census data[Our agency uses decennial counts to plan transit routes and apply for federal formula funding.]
  3. What concerns me, and why[The proposed tax-records test would place many rural residents at their P.O. box instead of their home, which would distort our service-area counts.]
  4. What I'm asking for[Withdraw the proposed residence criteria and keep counting every resident where they live on Census Day.]

Bracketed lines are examples. Replace them with your own.

The template

Copy it, replace every highlighted [bracket], cut the points that don't fit you, and add your own story.

Copy and adapt

The comment template

[Note: Comments may be submitted anonymously.]

To the U.S. Census Bureau:

I am writing to comment on the proposed rule “Decennial Census of the Population of Americans; Proposed Residence Criteria and Proposed Regulations for Demographic Questions” (Docket No. 260903-0005, Document 2026-18481, published September 10, 2026).

I am [add a description of who you are, such as your profession and/or state where you live], and I care about a fair and accurate census because [add a brief description of why you care].

First, I ask the Census Bureau to extend the comment period until December 10, 2026. Significant regulatory actions such as this one deserve more time for the public to review and respond.

Second, I oppose both part 60 and part 70. I urge the Census Bureau to withdraw the proposed rule and return with substantial revisions, including: [keep any/all points you would like to include in your comment]

• Abandon any criteria that would exclude U.S. residents, including visa-holders, refugees, asylum seekers, and others from the apportionment count. The purpose of the census is to count all people.
• Reestablish guidelines for detailed residence situations that encompass the varied living arrangements present in the United States such as for people who have recently moved, people in temporary shelters, and children in foster care.
• Return to activity-based criteria for residence, such as where someone usually lives and sleeps, rather than a confusing “one hour” rule.
• Eliminate or substantially revise guidelines for the “enumeration period” so that people (including seasonal workers and recent movers) are counted in the right place on Census Day and so that people (such as children in foster care and people in emergency shelters) are not accidentally excluded from the count.
• Count incarcerated people at their home rather than their facility. The current proposal shifts population toward the districts where prisons are built and away from communities where people live.
• Revise the language on tax records. The text “A person's “usual residence” should be consistent with, and evidenced by, their tax records (e.g., tax returns, W-2 forms)” ignores the limitations of tax records. For example, tax records reflect a mailing address (such as post office box, business address, or tax preparer's address) rather than residential address and thus are inconsistent with residence for many taxpayers, including for many military personnel and their families. Extreme reliance on tax records also risks missing many dependent children in the count.
• Drop the ban on demographic questions. The U.S. has asked about race in every census since our first in 1790. Information on race and ethnicity is critical for public health and civil rights enforcement and should not be banned. Similarly, sexual orientation, while not currently asked in the census, should not be barred from future censuses. The rule would bar the collection of sexual orientation data on future censuses and could restrict the collection or publication of decennial census data on same-sex couples.

As written, the proposed rule would exclude residents, result in an inaccurate count, and prohibit collection of important data on the characteristics of our population. Such outcomes are unacceptable and would harm all Americans.

Submit it on Regulations.gov →

Resources from partners

Guides, talking points, and sign-on letters from partners, including the National Council of Nonprofits guide and the Prison Policy Initiative talking points, plus a reading list on the rule.

See all resources →

Read the FAQs on the proposed rule →

Ready? Submit it.

  1. Finish your comment in your own words.
  2. Open the comment form on Regulations.gov.
  3. Paste your comment, add your name if you want it on the record, and submit by October 13, 2026.
Submit on Regulations.gov Read the full proposed rule in the Federal Register →
Rule
Decennial Census of the Population of Americans; Proposed Residence Criteria and Proposed Regulations for Demographic Questions
Agency
U.S. Census Bureau, Department of Commerce
Docket
No. 260903-0005 · Regulations.gov USBC-2026-0628
Document
2026-18481 · RIN 0607-AA75
Deadline
Comments must be received by October 13, 2026
By mail
4600 Silver Hill Road, Designation: ADDEMO/FRN, Washington, DC 20746