Detroit sues U.S Census Bureau, claims agency missed thousands of residents
(CBS DETROIT) - The city of Detroit has filed a federal lawsuit against the U.S Census Bureau.
In an announcement on Tuesday, Mayor Mike Duggan said the city is challenging the federal agency's estimate which found the city's population dropped by more than 7,000 people in 2021.
"The U.S Post Office says the city of Detroit added 4475 more residences delivering mail in that year. Those 4475 residents would have had 11,000 people," Duggan said. "So let me be clear on this. Had the Census Bureau just taken the data from their sister agency, the U.S. Postal Service, they would have increased Detroit's population in the last year by 11,000."
The federal lawsuit is on top of the city's challenge of the 2020 census. At that time, the city said there was an undercount of more than 20,000 people.
The U.S Census Bureau even confirmed it missed a combined nine percent of the nation's Black and Hispanic populations.
"The bottom line is this: it's now clear that the data coming out of the U.S Census Bureau is completely divorced from reality," Duggan said.
The city also claims the federal agency is violating its own rules by not allowing the city to challenge its 2021 estimate, which historically the bureau allows.
Furthermore, the suit alleges the U.S Census Bureau won't review the city's evidence to prove an undercount and refused to share the formula on how the bureau reached its estimate.
The mayor said the bureau's population count could do harm to Detroit residents for years to come.
"All the federal funding, at least a large share of it, is based on population," Duggan said. "Everything from money going to the school lunch program to Medicaid and the like... We're just trying to get our fair share of the money and the way it works right now."
A decision on the city's challenge of the 2020 census is expected sometime soon.
If it's denied, the mayor said the city is ready to file another lawsuit.
We reached out the U.S Census Bureau for comment, but a spokesperson said it does not comment on pending litigation.
