Document ID: ./input/supremecourt_opinions/opinions/20pdf/20a62_n7ip.pdf
Page Number: 3

Cite as:  592 U. S. ____ (2020) 

3 

SOTOMAYOR, J., dissenting 

Trump announced his intent to exclude undocumented im-
migrants from the population base for congressional appor-
tionment,  Secretary  Ross  announced  the  “Replan  Sched-
ule.”  Under the Replan Schedule, data collection would end 
on September 30, 2020.  The administration simultaneously 
stopped pushing Congress to extend the reporting deadline 
by 120 days. 

II 
  Respondents, who  are advocacy  groups,  cities,  counties, 
and Native tribes, sued to enjoin the Replan Schedule.  The 
District Court issued detailed factual findings, concluding 
that respondents had demonstrated a likelihood of success 
on the merits of their claim that the Bureau’s reversal was 
arbitrary and capricious,1 and that the harms to respond-
ents absent an injunction vastly outweighed any harm the 
injunction would cause the Government.  The court prelim-
inarily enjoined the Replan Schedule’s September 30 dead-
line for completing data collection (i.e., the deadline for in-
dividuals to complete the census questionnaire and for the 
Bureau to wrap up its field operations) and the December 
31 deadline for reporting the results to the President.  The 
District  Court  subsequently  clarified  that  the  Bureau’s 
original October 31 deadline for data collection would be re-
instated.    The  Court  of  Appeals  for  the  Ninth  Circuit  re-
versed the injunction as to the December 31 deadline, but 
affirmed the reinstatement of the October 31 deadline.  The 
Government now asks this Court to intervene and stay the 

—————— 

1 Specifically,  the  District  Court  concluded  that  respondents  were 
likely to succeed because the Government failed to consider important 
aspects of the problem; the Replan Schedule ran counter to the evidence 
before the agency; the Government failed to consider an alternative to 
and articulate a satisfactory explanation for its decision to adopt the Re-
plan; and the Government failed to consider reliance interests of munic-
ipalities  and  organizations  who  publicized  the  October  31  deadline  to 
their communities.  ___ F. Supp. 3d ___, ___–___, 2020 WL 5739144, *29–
*45 (ND Cal., Sept. 24, 2020).