Between 2010 and 2020, U.S. population growth slowed, according to Census data. Most counties across the country lost population during the decade, while more populous counties tended to grow.
The data showed that the U.S. multiracial population was up 276% in 2020 compared to the previous decade. A U.S. Census Bureau authority said the rise is likely caused by design changes made to questions that collect race data and the processing of that data, in addition to demographic changes over the course of the decade.
“These changes reveal that the U.S. population is much more multiracial, and more racially and ethnically diverse, than what we measured in the past,” said Nicholas Jones, the director of race, ethnicity, research and outreach for the U.S. Census Bureau’s Population Division.
Meanwhile, the population of white, non-Hispanic people who didn’t select a second race on the survey decreased for the first time in U.S. history. However, the population remains the largest racial group in the country.
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The community grew 39% between 2010 and 2020, bringing the population from around 93,000 to approximately 130,000.
In general, metropolitan areas throughout the U.S., including New York City and Los Angeles, tended to increase over the decade. The Villages only permits households with at least one resident aged 55 or older to live in the central Florida community.
The U.S. Census Bureau said that the slowing of housing unit growth “was not unexpected” in a report released Thursday, citing the housing boom in the mid-2000s that increased supply and the 2007-2008 recession that vacated many units.
“Those issues, and the recovery that lasted well into the next decade, potentially reduced demand for new construction,” the report said
However, some of the rankings changed within the 10 cities. For example, Phoenix, Arizona, replaced Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, as the fifth largest U.S. city. Philadelphia grew the fastest out of the top 20 most populous cities, with 9.4% population growth.
New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago and Houston make up the top four spots. In contrast to the previous decade, all 10 cities now have populations above one million, and all the cities grew throughout the decade.
The U.S. Census Bureau believes the rise is because of design changes made to two separate questions that collect race data and the processing of that data, in addition to demographic changes over the course of the decade.
“The improvements and updates enabled a more thorough and accurate depiction of how people self-identify, yielding a more accurate portrait of how people report their Hispanic origin and race within the context of a two-question format. These improvements reveal that the U.S. population is much more multiracial and diverse than what we measured in the past,” a U.S. Census Bureau report said.
While the White alone non-Hispanic population remains the most prevalent racial or ethnic group in the U.S. at 57.8%, it decreased from 63.7% in 2010.
Hawaii had highest diversity index, followed by California. However, all of these states had a diversity index of 65% or more.
The West was the region with the highest overall diversity index ranking, according to 2020 Census results.
Overall, the U.S. was much more multi-racial and racially and ethnically diverse than it was in past decades, said Nicholas Jones, director and senior adviser of race and ethnic, research and outreach from the population division of the Census Bureau.
Most counties across the country lost population during the decade, while more populous counties tended to grow. Additionally, population growth was mostly concentrated in metropolitan areas of the U.S.
The negative population growth in the three states marks a nationwide slowing in population growth since 1990 and 2000, with more states seeing moderate or low population growth than previous decades.
Most states in the West remained in the fastest growth category, while more low, moderate and negative growth was seen in other regions.
