Official state population counts are in, and the news for Alabama is good.
Alabama’s official population count came in at 5,030,053, significantly higher than population estimates from earlier this year. That number was enough to keep its seven seats for another 10 years. For much of the past decade, the state was projected to potentially lose one of its seats, as slow growth in Alabama trailed the population boom in states like Florida and Texas.
The U.S. Census Bureau on Monday released the new data - the first official numbers from the 2020 Decennial Census. The state population counts are used for apportionment, a process that determines the number of seats each state has in the U.S. House of Representatives, and the accompanying number of electoral college votes. These population totals also determine the amount of federal funding each state gets for things like schools, roads and hospitals.
[Can’t see the map? Click here.]
Alabama’s official population reported Monday was nearly 109,000 people higher than the last state population estimate, released earlier this year. Some other states, like Texas and Florida, which estimates showed were growing very quickly, showed slower growth than expected.
Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey released a statement following the official count.
“This data reveals what we’ve known all along – Alabama is a great state to call home, and many are choosing to do so,” the statement read. “I am extremely pleased that we will keep all seven of our current seats in the U.S. House to provide valued and needed voices to advocate for our state and our people for the next 10 years. Our success in the census was certainly a group effort across the entire state, and I offer my heartfelt thanks to everyone who played a part.”
Nyesha Black, director of socioeconomic analysis and demographics for the Center for Business and Economic Research at the University of Alabama, said she was struck by the difference in Alabama’s apportionment population and the estimates, particularly from 2019.
“This is good news for Alabama,” she said. The higher count means the state won’t lose representation, and those numbers have a lot to do with federal funding.
Before Monday’s numbers were released, Alabama seemed to be firmly straddling the line on potentially losing a seat, Black said.
Prior to this data release, estimates showed the state’s population had been essentially stagnant over the last decade, even as many of its neighbors have seen their populations boom. But the new numbers paint a slightly different picture. Alabama’s population grew by 5.2 percent between 2010 and 2020, which is much faster than estimates indicated. The most recent estimates before the official count projected Alabama had grown by just 3 percent.
[Can’t see the map? Click here.]
County population estimates released last year showed just three counties - Madison, Baldwin and Limestone - accounted for more than half of Alabama’s growth from 2018 to 2019. It’s unclear where the extra 100,000-plus people are in Alabama - county population totals won’t be released until September.
Previous estimates showed the majority of Alabama counties are losing people, and Black said lack of economic development in the state’s rural areas has meant population losses.
Estimates from before the official count was released showed that without immigration, Alabama’s numbers would be even worse, as more people have moved into Alabama in the last decade than have moved out.
Steve Katsinas, head of the Education Policy Center at the University of Alabama, praised Alabama’s effort in ensuring everyone in the state was counted, but echoed many of Black’s concerns about rural population loss.
“The great effort to count all Alabamians made by the Ivey Administration paid off,” he said. “Losing a House seat would have cost our state untold billions.”
But Katsinas doesn’t think Alabama is in the clear just yet. He also said Alabama needs a “Marshall plan” for its rural areas.
“But we better get serious about arresting the population decline in our small cities and Black Belt or we could lose two seats in 2030.”
Do you have an idea for a data story about Alabama? Email Ramsey Archibald at rarchibald@al.com, and follow him on Twitter @RamseyArchibald. Read more Alabama data stories here.
"all" - Google News
April 27, 2021 at 02:16AM
https://ift.tt/3evLBrL
Alabama to keep all 7 congressional districts, Census announces - AL.com
"all" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2vcMBhz
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Alabama to keep all 7 congressional districts, Census announces - AL.com"
Post a Comment