Census Shows Boom in Minority Populations
We all know Texas is growing, but new Census figures released yesterday give us a clearer picture of exactly how and where Texas is growing. Figures show minorities accounted for much of the state's growth over the past ten years. From our political reporting partner the Texas Tribune:
The state's explosive growth during the past decade was fueled by a boom in its minority population, which accounted for 89 percent of the total, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Hispanics alone accounted for 65 percent of the state's growth over the last 10 years.
The Austin American Statesmancrunched the numbers at a local level:
Mirroring statewide trends among metropolitan areas, Central Texas grew larger and more diverse over the past decade, increases driven by spectacular growth in Hispanic and minority populations. In Austin, Hispanics and Asians combined to account for 71 percent of the city's population increase, according to new U.S. census figures released Thursday, the first complete count update of the state since 2000. Austin grew by 20.4 percent over the past decade to 790,390 to remain the state's fourth-largest city. Austin's Asian population of 49,864 ranked second among the state's largest 20 cities, behind only Houston. Its Latino population of 277,707 ranked fifth.
One Year Anniversary of Plane Attack
Today marks one year since Andrew Joseph Stackintentionally crashed his plane into a building that housed IRS offices on MoPac and 183 in northwest Austin. IRS worker Vernon Hunterwas killed in the attack. To mark the one year anniversary, Central Texas emergency management officials and City of Austin and state leaders met Wednesday for an emergency and disaster preparedness symposium. They gave updates on how they collaborate during emergencies and discussed how they would respond to any emergency situations in the future.
DPS Releases Sketch of Mansion Fire Suspect
The Texas Department of Public Safety is asking for the public’s help in identifying a suspect in the unsolved Governor’s Mansion arson case from 2008. DPS yesterday released new surveillance video from a camera near the Mansion and sketches of a man they say that could be the arsonist. DPS officials also identified three other persons of interest. Officials have made a direct link from the persons of interest to an Austin-based anarchist group that was linked to a planned attack on the Republican National Convention in Minneapolis in 2008.