CA's Population Shrinks Again, And Here's Why
CALIFORNIA — The Golden State lost more than 117,000 people last year, the second consecutive year the population declined, according to new state data.
The state population declined by 0.3 percent, bringing the total population to 39,185,605 as of Jan. 1, according to an estimate from the Department of Finance Monday.
The state was still well ahead of second-place Texas, with 29.5 million residents, but the decline could be a symptom of something other than the pandemic.
The population of California, the nation's most populous state, was likely shrinking amid an aging population of Baby Boomers and a decline in younger Californians having children, according to state demographers.
The state's population began its decline before the pandemic, but COVID-19-related deaths, federal policies restricting immigration and an increase in residents moving out of state during the pandemic contributed to the decline.
The pandemic killed tens of thousands of people in 2020, triggering California's first population decline ever; that trend continued in 2021.
The pandemic also prompted a sharp drop in international immigration amid travel restrictions and limited visas from the federal government. In 2021, California gained 43,300 residents from other countries. But that paled in comparison to the 140,000 that was common before the pandemic.
“I don't know if I'm surprised by it,” said Walter Schwarm, California's chief demographer. “It takes a while for the machinery of government and others to get back to normal.”
Last year, California lost a seat in Congress for the first time ever after the U.S. Census revealed slow population growth.
Some observers pointed to the state's policies and handling of the coronavirus pandemic for the continuing decline. In 2021, some 280,000 people left California for other states, outpacing the number of people who moved to the state.
"California's population declined by 117,552 people last year," Republican Assemblymember Kevin Kiley tweeted Monday. "It's not because we no longer have good weather."
The Golden State may also be outpricing its natives as record-high housing prices continue to plague families. Most of California's coastal counties lost people last year as residents flocked to the Inland Empire and Central Valley in search of cheaper homes.
"We are in this new demographic era for California of very slow growth or maybe even negative growth,” Hans Johnson, a demographer for the Public Policy Institute of California, told the Orange County Register.
Across Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego counties, the statewide median price of a single-family home hit a record high of of $849,080 in March, a 2.6 percent increase over the previous record set in August.
Yolo and San Benito counties were the only places to show population growth greater than 1 percent. Yolo County's increase was due to college students returning to dorms; San Benito's 1.1 percent growth was due to increased housing, the state said.
Half of the state’s 10 largest cities lost population: Los Angeles, San Francisco, Sacramento, Oakland and Anaheim. But San Diego, the state’s second-most populous city behind Los Angeles, grew slightly by 2,958 people, or 0.2 percent.
View the full report from the Department of Finance.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
CA's Population Shrinks Again, And Here's Why originally appeared on the Across California Patch
