Census survey shows Utahns marry younger, have more children

Perlich said, "It is quite clear there is a cultural component driving the higher fertility rate" in Utah, namely its high percentage of residents who belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which puts strong emphasis on families.

She said similar numbers are found only in parts of some states in the West, such as southern Idaho, that also have many LDS members. "It is basically a Mormon culture corridor," she said.

Juliette Tennert, Utah state demographer, added, "The data are consistent with a culture that emphasizes the importance of family: Utahns marry at younger ages, have children at younger ages and have more children."

Besides the LDS influence, Perlich said Utah also is attracting a lot of immigrants — and they tend to move here during their childbearing years. That also contributes to larger family sizes and larger numbers of children. The Lotuleleis are examples. Both Kay and Tevita were born in Tonga, although Kay was raised in Utah. They are also LDS.

The new survey — which polls 250,000 Americans a month, or about 3 million over the year — has myriad other numbers that paint a picture of Utahns, from how much money they make to how much time they spend commuting, how many moved during the year, how much homes are worth and other data.

The survey estimated the median household income in Utah was $55,109 in 2007 — the 13th highest in the nation.

"We actually do really well on household income. But we do poorly if you look at per capita income," Perlich said.

She explained that teenagers work at higher rates in Utah than elsewhere, and when their income is added to their parents' earnings it results in high income per household. But because Utah has more children than average, when that household income is divided among all members, the per-person income is low. Initial data released did not include per capita income rankings, but did for households.

Men earn much more than women in Utah. Men who work full-time in Utah had a median wage of $43,035 (24th highest in the nation), but female full-time workers earned only $31,001 (33rd in the nation). "The gender gap remains," Perlich said.

The survey shows relatively few Utahns living in poverty or receiving public welfare. The state had the 43rd lowest rate of people living in poverty, 9.7 percent, and ranked No. 45 in the percent of households receiving cash public assistance, 1.3 percent.

Utahns are well-educated. They rank No. 6 for those age 25 and older who have completed high school, at 90.2 percent. They rank No. 18 for those with a bachelor's degree, 28.7 percent. But they rank No. 27, and are below national average, for those who have an advanced degree, 9.1 percent.