New York, California, other blue states succeed in altering 2020 census numbers, report says

The Democrat-run states such as New York and Illinois are increasing 2020 census numbers after successfully asking for a review of the once-a-decade population survey that helps determine federal funding distribution as the states struggle with population losses.  

The distribution of the population of California is also being changed following a review, the Associated Press reported Thursday. That report says that "the once-a-decade census produces population figures that help determine political power and the annual distribution of $2.8 trillion in federal funding. The Census Bureau has two programs giving governments opportunities to have their population totals reviewed and adjusted if need be. Nearly 200 requests for reviews were filed by tribal, local and state governments for the 2020 census."

The updates can be used in future population estimates through the rest of the decade to determine federal funding, but the new information cannot be used to redraw political districts or alter the number of congressional seats each state received during the post-census apportionment process.

Illinois, California, and New York all lost one congressional seat following the 2020 census due to population changes, but even if the new information could be used to increase congressional seats, the gains reflected in the revisions would not be enough to do so. The most significant increase in population is coming to Illinois, with an additional 47,000 people being added after the review.

Illinois officials had requested the review after believing that census officials overlooked more than 40,000 people in senior facilities and care homes as well as nearly 6,000 college students in dorms. These group homes were difficult to count as many were locked down at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

"This correction will bring in millions in additional federal funding for crucial programs and help to ensure future counts reflect the true number of Illinois residents," Illinois Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker said. 

Illinois is one of three states to see a visible loss in population from the 2010 census to 2020. The other states that declined in population are West Virginia and Mississippi. However, since the 2020 census, New York and California have also seen significant decreases in population. 

Illinois has lost more than a quarter of a million people since 2020, according to the Census Bureau's population clock, while New York has lost more than 630,000 and California's population has declined by more than 570,000 people. 

"The most important kind of demographic economic change and political change that's happening in America is that the center of gravity, politically, economically, even from a social standpoint is shifting from the blue states of America like Massachusetts, New York, Connecticut and California, and it's shifting to states like Tennessee, Florida, Texas, the Carolinas, Arizona," Heritage Foundation economist Stephen Moore told the "John Solomon Reports" podcast last year. 

People are fleeing Democratic-controlled areas due to bad schools, high taxes and crime, according to Moore.  "This is a mass migration," he said. 

The new adjustment also resulted in 1,090 residents being added to New York City after officials requested a review when they believed that hundreds of prison inmates and college students were overlooked. Even though the number is small in comparison to the city's 8.3 million residents, officials believe it could result in an additional $6.5 million in annual federal funding for the city. 

The Census Bureau had placed 4,000 Mule Creek State Prison inmates in Amador County, California, but the most populous state successfully requested the agency to change the prisoners' location to the city of Ione. Additionally, more than 5,000 U.S. Navy sailors on the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier were originally placed in San Diego, where the vessel is partially located. However, the state successfully changed the sailors' location to National City, which is where the crew boards and gets off the ship.

According to the Associated Press, there were 353 federal assistance programs that used the Census Bureau data in 2021 to steer the allocation of the federal funding, up from 316 programs accounting for $1.5 trillion in 2017, the time frame for the last update of a similar study.

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