The United States 2020 Census deadline has been moved up to Thursday after a Supreme Court ruling, cutting the counting period by two weeks amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

On Tuesday, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross to end the U.S. Census on Oct. 15, overturning a federal court order requiring the Census Bureau to continue the count until Oct. 31.

In the words of the Bureau’s associate director for field operations, it was “ludicrous” to expect the
Bureau to “complete 100 percent of the nation’s data collection earlier than [Oct. 31]” in the middle of a pandemic, said Justice Sonia Sotomayor in the dissenting opinion.

Hours after the ruling was released, the Census Bureau announced responses are set to be accepted online through Oct. 15 until 11:59 p.m. Hawaii Standard Time (HST), which is 2:59 a.m. in California.

In April 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Census Bureau extended the deadline for self responses to the census questionnaire field operation from July 31 to Oct. 31.

The funding the Los Angeles County community gets for the next 10 years is determined by how many people fill out the census.

“Unless more people respond, L.A. County will lose millions of dollars for services and a loss of political representation in Washington for the next 10 years,” said Los Angeles County officials on Tuesday.

See Related: Court Orders 2020 U.S. Census To Extend Through End Of October

Participation in the census is critical for members of any community, the population totals and breakdowns by sex, age, race and other factors it records determine the number of federal funds, grants and support states, counties and communities receive for the next decade.

More than $675 billion in federal funds are spent on schools, hospitals, roads, public works and other vital programs and the census ensures the Santa Clarita community receives an appropriate share.
Santa Clarita businesses also benefit from the use of census data to influence strategic decision-making and developers can use the information to identify areas in which to invest.

In addition, local governments can utilize census data to try and optimize emergency responses and improve public safety.

The House of Representatives is also impacted by the results of the census, as the apportionment of its 435 seats among each of the 50 states is determined by its results.

The census form can be completed online, by phone or by mail which must be postmarked by Oct. 15, more information on how to participate in the census is available here.

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