Kent County vs. Texas Comparative Trends Analysis: Population Growth and Change, 1969-2022 Introduction Kent County: 2022 Population = 740 2022 Percent of State = 0.00% Texas: 2022 Population = 30,029,572 2022 Percent of U.S. = 9.01% Attracting and retaining people to live, work, raise a family, and retire underlies the economic vitality of any region. Population growth is both a cause--and a consequence--of economic growth. Patterns of population growth and change reflect differences among regions to attract and retain people both as producers and consumers in their economy. The following graphs offer a broad overview of trends in the pattern of population growth and change of Kent County with comparisons to Texas and the nation at large. This analysis features alternative approaches toward discussing, diagnosing and comparing Kent County vs. Texas' population growth over 1969-2022. The data used are those compiled by the Regional Income and Product Divisions of the Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. Department of Commerce. Population, 1969-2022 Figure 1. Figure 1 tracks Kent County's annual population for the period 1969-2022 to illustrate population patterns over time. During this 54-year period, Kent County's population dropped from 1,554 in 1969 to 740 in 2022, for a net loss of -814, or -52.38%. NOTE: The county and state population totals reported by the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) are from the Bureau of Census midyear (July 1) estimates. These estimates may differ from those prepared independently in some states by various agencies and/or universities. Population, 1969-2022 Figure 2. Figure 2 tracks Texas' annual population for the period 1969-2022 to illustrate population patterns over time. During this 54-year period, Texas' population rose from 11,045,000 in 1969 to 30,029,572 in 2022, for a net gain of 18,984,572, or 171.88%. NOTE: The county and state population totals reported by the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) are from the Bureau of Census midyear (July 1) estimates. These estimates may differ from those prepared independently in some states by various agencies and/or universities. Population Indices (1969=100): 1969-2022 Figure 3. Figure 3 portrays Kent County's population growth in a broader context by offering direct comparisons across time with Texas, the United States. The growth indices shown here express each region's population in 1969 as a base figure of 100, and the populations in later years as a percentage of the 1969 base figure. This method allows for more direct comparison of differences in population growth between regions that may differ vastly in size. Kent County's overall population growth was -52.38% over 1969-2022 trailed Texas' increase of 171.88%, and fell below the United States' increase of 65.57%. Population as a Percent of the Texas Total: 1969-2022 Figure 4. Another interesting and insightful way of contrasting the population growth of Kent County is to compare its individual percentage contributions to Texas' statewide population over time, as shown in Figure 4. A rising share means a region's population grew faster, or declined less, than Texas' population, while a declining share shows it grew more slowly. In 1969, Kent County's population comprised 0.01% of Texas' population, while in 2022 it totaled 0.00% thereby yielding a -0.01% share-shift.
Kent County Population: Annual Percent Change, 1970-2022 Figure 5. Figure 5 displays the short-run pattern of Kent County's population growth by tracking the year-to-year percent change over 1970-2022. The average annual percent change for the entire 53-year period is also traced on this chart to provide a benchmark for gauging periods of relative high--and relative low--growth against the backdrop of the long-term average. On average, Kent County's population contracted at an annual rate of -1.31% over 1970-2022. The county recorded its highest growth in 1972 (10.02%) and recorded its lowest growth in 1973 (-12.43%). In 2022, Kent County's population declined by -0.80% Kent County Population: Annual Percent Change and Decade Averages Over 1970-2022 Figure 6. Over the past five decades some counties have experienced extreme swings in growth, and often such swings have tended to coincide with the decades themselves. Figure 6 again illustrates the annual percent change in Kent County's population since 1970, but this time they are overlayed with average growth rates for the decade of the 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s, and 2020-2022. During the 1970s, Kent County's annual population growth rate averaged -1.71%. It averaged -2.27% during the 1980s, -1.31% in the 1990s, -1.01% during the 2000s, -0.72% during the 2010s, 0.30% thus far this decade (2020-2022). Population Growth: Average Annual Percent Change by Decade Figure 7. Figure 7 compares the decade average growth rates for Kent County noted in the previous graph with the corresponding decade averages for Texas and the nation. As the chart reveals, Kent County's average annual population growth posted below Texas' average during the 1970s (-1.71% vs. 2.32%), posted below Texas' average in the 1980s (-2.27% vs. 1.93%), posted below Texas' average during the 1990s (-1.31% vs. 2.04%), lagged Texas' average throughout the 2000s (-1.01% vs. 1.89%), fell below Texas' average throughout the 2010s (-0.72% vs. 1.53%), and fell below Texas' average over the 3 year period of the current decade, 2020-2022 (0.30% vs. 1.34%). Finally, relative to nationwide population growth trends, Kent County trailed the nation in the 1970s (-1.71% vs. 1.10%), lagged the nation over the 1980s (-2.27% vs. 0.95%), trailed the nation over the 1990s (-1.31% vs. 1.23%), fell under the nation in the 2000s (-1.01% vs. 0.95%), fell below the nation in the 2010s (-0.72% vs. 0.74%), and fell below the nation over 2020-2022 (0.30% vs. 0.31%).
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