The population of the United States has kept on growing because of the unceasing influx of immigrants, said a report from the U.S. Bureau of Census.
Immigrants accounted for almost half of the U.S. population growth in 2018. The entire country added some 2 million people in 2018, and 1.04 million of this total came from "natural increase," or the number of births over deaths. The balance of 978,826 consisted of immigrants.
The census bureau said 129,848 of these immigrants were from Puerto Rico, which is still recovering from a devastating battering dealt it by Hurricane Maria in 2018. Puerto Rico is an unincorporated territory of the United States.
Texas and Florida accounted for over one-third of the United States' population growth in 2018. Texas' population increased by 379,128 while Florida's grew by 322,000.
On the other hand, New York and Illinois lost the most people in 2018. The Empire State lost 48,510 persons while Illinois let go of 45,116. West Virginia and Louisiana also saw considerable drops, at 11,216 and 10,840, respectively.
Census data shows many U.S. residents are still moving to Florida (aka the Retirement State), resulting in net domestic migration gain of 132,603. International growth was higher, including U.S. citizens from Puerto Rico, at 175,670.
Florida's natural increase, however, is low at 13,323, partly because of the large number of retirees who move there. Florida saw 221,488 births and 208,165 deaths. Texas had 391,451 births and 200,500 deaths, for a natural increase of 190,951.
Among large metro centers, Dallas-Fort Worth had the largest numeric growth with a gain of 131,767 (1.8 percent) in 2018. Behind it was Phoenix with an increase of 96,268 (2.0 percent).
The Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach metroplex stands out because it also is losing residents to other regions at a rapidly growing rate. Miami-Dade, the state's largest county, had a decrease of 51,671 in domestic migration, or people moving to other parts of Florida or the U.S.
This drop was more than offset by an international migration boost of 58,732 and natural increase of 9,407.
A Wall Street Journal analysis of the census data shows the population of about one in 10 U.S. counties growing primarily because of immigration. It illustrates how new arrivals are shaping the U.S. as the population ages and the birth rate slows.
