# The Correct the Count Act Explained

This bill would change how the U.S. Census counts people. Right now, the census counts everyone living in the United States—citizens and non-citizens alike. This bill would require the Census Bureau to only count U.S. citizens in its official population numbers. To do this, the census would add a question asking each person whether they're a citizen, and the final population count would only include those who answer yes.

Why does this matter? The census count directly determines how many representatives each state gets in Congress and how federal funding gets distributed to states and communities. If non-citizens aren't counted, states with larger immigrant populations could lose representation in Congress and receive less federal money for schools, roads, hospitals, and other services. For example, a state with many non-citizen residents might end up with fewer congressional seats and less federal funding than it would under the current system, even though those non-citizens still live there and use public services.

This would be a significant shift from how the census has worked for decades. Currently, the census aims to count the total population living in each area, regardless of citizenship status. The bill would require this change to happen immediately upon being signed into law. It's worth noting that asking about citizenship on the census is controversial—some argue it's necessary for accurate representation, while others worry it might discourage non-citizens from responding to the census at all, which could lead to undercounting in certain communities.