California posted its first population increase since the pandemic struck – a gain that was driven geographically from the south.
The California Department of Finance counted 67,100 more residents in the past year to 39.13 million as of Jan. 1. State demographers connected the growth, the first increase since 2019, to legal foreign immigration and “natural” growth – births vs. deaths.
California’s population dropped by an average 196,000 residents per year in 2020 to 2022. In the 2010s, California added on average 240,000 residents per year.
When you ponder the 2023 reversal by county, you see a strong southern influence. The four counties covered by the Southern California News Group – Riverside, Orange, San Bernardino and Los Angeles – had a combined population growth of 37,086 in 2023 – a little more than half of the state’s additions.
Yes, it’s thin growth, but it’s growth. Statewide, the population grew by 0.17% in the year – that’s 0.21% more in these four Southern California counties and 0.14% elsewhere.
Here are the 10 largest increases in the number of residents by county in the 12 months ended Jan. 1 …
Riverside: Up 13,798 residents to 2.44 million, or 0.57% growth (the 14th largest percentage gain among the 58 counties).
Orange: Up 9,770 to 3.15 million, or 0.31% (No. 21).
San Bernardino: Up 8,739 to 2.18 million, or 0.40% (No. 19).
San Joaquin: Up 7,505 to 791,408 or 0.96% (No. 6).
Fresno: Up 6,517 to 1.02 million, or 0.64% (No. 13).
Los Angeles: Up 4,779 to 9.82 million, or 0.05% (No. 28).
Tulare: Up 4,238 to 478,918, or 0.89% (No. 8).
Kern: Up 4,135 to 910,300, or 0.46% (No. 17).
Monterey: Up 3,661 to 437,614, or 0.84% (No. 9).
Imperial: Up 3,258 to 182,881, or 1.81% (No. 2).
And the 10 largest population losses by county, a decidedly northern group …
Alameda: Off 8,787 to 1.64 million or down 0.53% (No. 51).
San Mateo: Off 3,737 to 741,565 or down 0.50% (No. 49).
Ventura: Off 2,097 to 823,863 or down 0.25% (No. 39).
Humboldt: Off 1,497 to 133,100 or down 1.11% (No. 57).
San Luis Obispo: Off 1,349 to 278,469 or down 0.48% (No. 48).
Sonoma: Off 1,293 to 478,152 or down 0.27% (No. 40).
Marin: Off 1,128 to 252,844 or down 0.44% (No. 47).
Santa Cruz: Off 766 to 262,572 or down 0.29% (No. 41).
Butte: Off 651 to 205,928 or down 0.32% (No. 43).
Tehama: Off 402 to 64,308 or down 0.62% (No. 52).
Largest percentage gain? Sutter County, 1.9% – up 1,862 to 100,110.
Largest percentage drop? Mono County, 2.5% – off 332 to 12,861.
Jonathan Lansner is the business columnist for the Southern California News Group. He can be reached at jlansner@scng.com
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