Milwaukee among cities appealing 2020 census count

U.S. cities and towns that have challenged their 2020 census population figures because they say residents were overlooked during the nation’s last head count have mostly just seen small victories, according to a report from the Associated Press.

Milwaukee, Wisconsin’s largest city, recently gained more than 800 residents after it was discovered that inmates at one of the local jails were wrongly assigned to a neighboring city. That challenge was organized with other Wisconsin municipalities.

Milwaukee has another appeal still pending, claiming 16,500 residents were overlooked in houses and apartments primarily in communities of color. The 2020 census put Milwaukee at 577,222 residents, down about 3% from 2010.

While updates to the census numbers cannot change how congressional seats were divided among the states, nor alter the figures used to redraw political districts, the changes can be used for future population estimates that help determine how $1.5 trillion in federal spending is allocated.