Texas had the biggest increase in population of any state in the country in the last year, according to estimates released Monday by the U.S. Census Bureau.
The data show the number of people in the Lone Star State grew by 367,000 from mid-2018 to mid-2019, bringing the state's total population to almost 29 million. The state remains the second most populous – behind California, which has nearly 40 million residents.
Florida had the second largest population growth in the county, adding more than 230,000 people.
The overall population growth in the United States was slowing, however, with fewer births in recent years and more deaths. The nation's population grew by half a percent between 2018 and 2019, adding 1.5 million people. In four states – West Virginia, Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont – deaths outnumbered births.
"With the aging of the population, as the Baby Boomers move into their 70s and 80s, there are going to be higher numbers of deaths,” William Frey, a senior fellow at The Brookings Institution, told The Associated Press. “That means proportionately fewer women of child bearing age, so even if they have children, it’s still going to be less.”
The state with the largest drop in population over the last year – 78,000 individuals – was New York.
A decline in international migration also contributed to the overall slowdown. It has dropped each year since 2016, according to the Census Bureau.
