Census Bureau to Test Citizenship Question for 2030 Census, Alarming Experts

The 2026 field test will use the American Community Survey, which includes a citizenship question, raising concerns about potential changes to the decennial census.

Feb. 5, 2026 at 7:07pm

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The U.S. Census Bureau plans to use a survey form with a citizenship question as part of its practice test of the 2030 census, raising questions about whether the Trump administration might try to make a significant change to the once-a-decade headcount that failed during the president's first term. The field test being conducted in Huntsville, Alabama, and Spartanburg, South Carolina, is using questions from the American Community Survey, the comprehensive survey of American life, rather than questions from recent census forms.

Why it matters

The inclusion of a citizenship question in the 2030 census practice test has alarmed experts, who are concerned it could signal an attempt to revive the Trump administration's failed effort to add such a question to the decennial census. This would mark a significant change to the census, which has not included a citizenship question in 75 years and is constitutionally required to count the 'whole number of persons' in each state, regardless of legal status.

The details

The Census Bureau did not respond to inquiries about why the American Community Survey questions, which include a citizenship query, were being used for the 2026 test. Experts say the ACS form would not provide a valid test of 2030 census operations, as it is a 'completely different animal' from the actual decennial census. The 2026 test was also pared down from six locations to just two, Huntsville and Spartanburg, which one former congressional staffer called 'a shell of what the Census Bureau proposed and should do to ensure an accurate 2030 Census.'

  • The 2026 census practice test is currently underway in Huntsville, Alabama, and Spartanburg, South Carolina.

The players

U.S. Census Bureau

The federal agency responsible for conducting the decennial census and other surveys of the American population.

Donald Trump

The former U.S. president who unsuccessfully tried to add a citizenship question to the 2020 census and signed orders that would have excluded undocumented immigrants from the apportionment figures.

Joe Biden

The current U.S. president who rescinded Trump's orders related to the census and citizenship data after taking office in 2021.

Terri Ann Lowenthal

A former congressional staffer who consults on census issues and expressed alarm at the pared-down 2026 census practice test.

Mark Mather

An associate vice president at the Population Reference Bureau, a nonpartisan research group, who said the use of the American Community Survey form would not provide a valid test of 2030 census operations.

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What they’re saying

“This full pivot from a real field test is alarming and deserves immediate congressional attention, in my view.”

— Terri Ann Lowenthal, Former congressional staffer and census expert

“The ACS form wouldn't provide a valid test of 2030 census operations. It's a completely different animal.”

— Mark Mather, Associate Vice President, Population Reference Bureau

What’s next

The Census Bureau has not indicated any specific next steps or timeline for the 2030 census planning and testing process.

The takeaway

The Census Bureau's decision to use a survey with a citizenship question in its 2030 census practice test has raised alarm among experts, who fear it could signal an attempt to revive the failed effort to add such a question to the decennial count. This would mark a significant change to the census, which is constitutionally required to count all persons regardless of legal status.