KHOU.com

A federal judge in New York has blocked the Trump administration from adding a question about citizenship to the 2020 Census. The U.S. Commerce Secretary says that citizenship question will help the Justice Department better enforce part of the Voting Rights Act. However, many states and cities, including Houston, are worried the question, which hasn’t been included since 1950, might scare immigrant households from taking part. It’s an issue experts say is critically important, especially in Texas. According to a 2017 fact sheet by the American Immigration Council, the state has nearly 5 million immigrants, nearly two-third of whom are non-citizens. According to Steve Murdock and Dr. Laura Murillo, here are the Census’ three biggest impacts: First, funding: more than $800 billion in federal tax dollars for schools, roads, law enforcement, libraries, health care, low-income housing, and countless other community services are divvied up based on that Census count.