Is it illegal to lie on the Federal Census?

[no_hypocrisy]

I live in a municipality where a good portion of residents are not citizens (absentee landlords).

Could the non-citizens claim on the Census that they are citizens in a form of civil disobedience without legal penalty?

[jberryhill]

1. First off, yes it is illegal

Secondly, I’m not sure I understand your definition of “civil disobedience”.

Civil disobedience is an intentional violation of the law for the explicit purpose of receiving the penalty for violating it.

[unblock]

14. just to pick a nit,

i think civil disobedience is an intentional violation of the law for the purpose of calling attention to a bad, unjust, or inappropriate law or application of it to a particular situation.

the goal isn't to receive the penalty, although that is typically part of what's necessary to call attention to the issue. the goal is to get a bad law repealed or to have it not be applied to a particular situation.



a hungry person who commits a minor offense in order to get locked up so they can get three square meals a day isn't committing an act of civil disobedience, even though they intentionally violated the law for the explicit purpose of receiving the penalty for violating it.

[bitterross]

2. Yes. In general, it is illegal to lie on ANY Federal Form

It seems there are general laws that make it a crime to lie on any form you file with the federal government. This makes sense. Those laws would cover the Census form.


https://www.avvo.com/legal-answers/is-it-illegal-to-lie-on-a-us-census--2904574.html

[2naSalit]

3. Yes, it's illegal...

like with your taxes. The best thing to do is just ignore the question. You can't be forced to answer a question. Misrepresentation, however is a federal issue (I can't recall the consequence) and you could be charged. Think of it as lying to the the FBI. Census workers are allowed to ignore no trespassing signs, they do take an oath of office and are subject to federal rules of conduct, but you shouldn't lie about anything. Your best defense is to say nothing, therefore, do not answer the question.

I think the best way to protest such a question is to just not answer that particular question. Answer the rest as you normally would but that one question should be treated with the respect it deserves.

[llmart]

7. I had already decided not to answer the citizenship question.

Even though I am and always have been a citizen, I don't think it should be a census question and this is my little passive/agressive act. However, if I was ever asked by someone why I didn't answer it, I'd plead ignorance or "I must have forgotten to do that." Hey, it works for Don Jr. It's called the "too stupid to understand the law" excuse.

[onecaliberal]

4. It's onou okay to be a liar if you're a trump or working for them.

[rownesheck]

5. I'm thinking of writing

on the census form, "I don't answer to fucking nazis."

[hlthe2b]

6. If you mean the ''citizenship question, that is about US citizenship.

Which, if it appears, I will encourage all to join me in refusing to answer. And, no, it is not illegal to refuse to answer, leave blank. And, they have to count your census form as long as you complete the basic information.

[llmart]

8. Ha! See my post #7 where great minds think alike.

[OregonBlue]

9. The problem with that is that if we all do it, our districts will lose money and representation.

[hlthe2b]

10. No. No That is NOT true. As long as you complete the census, you can leave that ONE question blank

and it is STILL counted.


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https://www.democraticunderground.com/100212042545
YES, you CAN refuse to answer that question without legal repercussions, (if it IS Added) So, if we do lose in SCOTUS, it falls to all of us to try to get the word out

https://www.npr.org/2018/04/19/603629576/skipping-the-2020-census-citizenship-question-youll-still-be-counted

Updated on April 27

Incomplete questionnaires for the 2020 census, including those that leave the controversial citizenship question unanswered, will still be included in the upcoming U.S. head count, the Census Bureau's top official confirmed Wednesday to lawmakers.

"We process many surveys with incomplete responses. The census [was] certainly one of those [surveys] in the past. It will be in the future," the bureau's acting director, Ron Jarmin, testified on Capitol Hill during a House Appropriations Commerce, Justice, Science Subcommittee hearing on the 2020 census.

Asked by Democratic Rep. Grace Meng of New York whether people who don't fill out the citizenship question on the census form would be counted, Jarmin replied, "Yes, but we would definitely encourage people to fill it out as completely as possible."

[OregonBlue]

15. Thank you so much. I did not know this.

[NurseJackie]

11. I think that would only happen when people fail to participate AT ALL...

... it would be as though they "didn't exist" (officially) and the funding and representation would be adjusted based on the perceived population (officially). I do not believe that failure to answer the citizenship question is something that invalidates the census form.

[hlthe2b]

12. Yes.. And there appears to be several erroneously disseminating this. Important to correct.

[NurseJackie]

13. You had some great info (above)... thanks!

[fescuerescue]

16. It's illegal but they will never bring charges over that

Having said that, I see no reason to lie on it.

No upside, with a downside (theoretical)

I do say though, that as someone interested in genealogy, that I've learned alot about my ancestors from their census forms. I appreciate that.

Maybe someday by descendants will get to learn the truth about me, instead of some made up BS that I created in a futile hope of making a minuscule political point that no one will care about now, let alone 60 years from now.