The U.S. Census Bureau has released its official 2020 state population counts—a labor-intensive exercise it goes through every 10 years. This data will be used in Congressional redistricting efforts this fall, but for now we can see which states are net gainers of seats in the U.S. House of Representatives, and which states have lost seats.
The biggest gain was in Texas, which will receive two extra seats, giving it 38 in total for the next election. Colorado (now 8), Florida (28), Montana (2), North Carolina (14) and Oregon (6) each gained a seat. Losing seats are California (52), Illinois (17), Michigan (13), Ohio (15), West Virginia (2), Pennsylvania (17) and New York (26). In some cases, there is a trend; after the 2000 census, New York, and Pennsylvania each lost two seats, and each lost another one after the 2010 population tally. Over the last 20 years, so-called “frost belt” states like Michigan, Illinois, and Ohio have lost seats, while Florida and Texas have seen the biggest gains.
In the latest census, Alabama, Rhode Island, and Minnesota very narrowly averted a loss, while New York lost its seat by a total of 89 census forms not filled out.
Based on these changes, one might assume that there is an exodus from the states losing Congressional seats. In fact, New York and California increased their resident populations by 6.1% and 4.2% respectively. But Texas and Florida grew more rapidly, by 16% and 14.6% since the 2010 census count.
More information can be found directly at the official website of the United States Census: https://www.census.gov/en.html.
This article was written by an independent writer for Brewster Financial Planning LLC and is not intended as individualized legal or investment advice.