Birth rates hit record lows, death rates hit record highs and international immigration to the U.S. continued to decline in the last decade.
The U.S. population growth rate"slowed significantly" the past decade, Ron Jarmin, acting director of the Census Bureau, said in a press conference Monday. The U.S. population increased by 7.4% since the last census from about 309 million to 331 million – the slowest growth rate the nation has seen since 1940.
Illinois, Mississippi and West Virginia are seeing more people moving out of state than are moving in, according to the Census data. of census data and interviews with demographers. Mirroring national trends, the largest group that has been moving away is people in their 20s, who account for more than a quarter of departures. In Chicago, Black residents, in particular have been leaving the state in recent years, according to the Tribune.One in three people cited a new job as the reason for their move, according to the Tribune analysis.
"Economic opportunity is driving some of that out-migration – brain-drain, specifically for younger people," said Jamiko Deleveaux, a researcher at the State Data Center of Mississippi."And we’re sandwiched between several states that are seeing population growth. Tennessee is seeing new growth, which kind of pulls Mississippi residents."California, Illinois, Michigan, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia each lost one seat.