Analysis
The last comments are still coming in
The Bureau is working through a backlog of comments it has received but not yet published. We’ll keep publishing our analysis as they appear on the docket.
See the latest analysis →Comment period closed Nov 2, 2026
Hands offour census
Thank you for commenting. The public comment period on the Census Bureau’s proposed changes to the 2030 Census closed November 2. The Bureau is still publishing comments, and we’ll keep analyzing them here.
118,313comments published
89% oppose the rule
As of Nov 1, 2026
Watch this space
Calls for comment
More chances to weigh in
The proposed rule isn’t the only decision on the road to 2030. We’ll post other calls for comment as they arise, such as on the Bureau’s communications research.
News
Everything else census
Coverage, analysis, and statements on the 2030 Census as new developments come up.
Read the latest news →On the way to a complete and accurate census
The comment period has ended, but preparations for the 2030 Census continue. Note that the exact timing of tests, programs, and operations may shift depending on funding levels, operational decisions, and the results of testing.
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Sept 10, 2026
The Bureau proposes new rules
The Census Bureau publishes proposed residence criteria and regulations for the 2030 Census in the Federal Register.
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Nov 2, 2026
Public comment closes
More than 143,000 comments were submitted as of Nov 1.
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2027
Local governments review addresses
The Local Update of Census Addresses (LUCA) begins. The Census Bureau relies on a complete and accurate address list to reach every living quarter and its population for the decennial count; LUCA is how governments get to review that address list.
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By April 1, 2027
Topics go to Congress
The Census Bureau must submit the subjects and topics to be covered in the 2030 Census to Congress no later than April 1, 2027.
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By April 1, 2028
Questions go to Congress
The Census Bureau must deliver the exact proposed questions and questionnaire formats to Congress no later than April 1, 2028.
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2028
The Bureau tests the whole census
The End-to-End Census Test runs: the last and most comprehensive test of the mechanisms to be used in the 2030 Census.
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2028
Regional census centers open
The regional centers that run data collection, data dissemination, and geographic operations open for the decennial. There were six in 2020.
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2029
The address list is finalized
The final list of addresses is complete, and printing begins.
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2030
The country is counted
Census enumeration. Census Day is April 1, 2030.
What the Bureau proposed
From the proposed rule published Sept 10, 2026 (Docket No. 260903-0005).
Change 01
Many residents would no longer count
International students, work-visa holders, refugees, asylees, and other residents would be dropped from the apportionment count for the first time.
How the count would shrink →Change 02
People counted in the wrong place
A new January 3 to April 1 “enumeration period” and a tax-records test for where you live would miscount snowbirds, movers, rural P.O. box filers, college students, and service members.
Why tax records fail as addresses →Change 03
No race or ethnicity data
Asked in some form in every census since 1790, race and ethnicity questions would be prohibited. Nearly every other survey is weighted to census counts, so the loss would ripple through public health, civil rights, and business data.
What we lose without race data →One count every ten years decides who gets represented, and who gets resourced.
Nearly every part of public life depends on the census: not only seats in Congress and district lines, but also schools, roads, hospitals, disaster response, public health, and business planning.
Hands Off Our Census is a pop-up consortium that provides nonpartisan resources, analyses, and updates on the proposed census rule, bringing together organizations and experts across the census, data, and data policy communities.
Partners include: these links open in a new tab.
