Utah ranks 2nd for growth in U.S.

Utah was the No. 2 fastest-growing state in the nation the past year, thanks to achieving the nation's highest birth rate, its second-lowest death rate and a still-better-than-most economy that attracts more immigrants than average.

Also, new U.S. Census Bureau estimates released Wednesday say Utah's population grew by more than a half-million people during the 2000s decade, up 25 percent in that short time.

While the extra people may have put a squeeze on schools, roads and housing, it at least means "we're going to get an extra congressional seat, that seems very, very clear" after next year's formal census, said University of Utah research economist Pam Perlich. Utah just missed an additional seat after the 2000 Census.

Utah state demographer Juliette Tennert adds, "I think that Utah will continue to experience sustained growth through the next decade because of demographic factors (like high birth rates and low death rates) and the expectation of a more stable economic recovery."

The Census Bureau estimates that between July 1, 2008, and July 1, 2009, Utah's population grew by 57,229 people to a total of 2.78 million. That is the last population estimate the bureau will have before the full, once-every-10-years census is conducted next year.

Utah's population was up by 2.1 percent, which was the second-highest growth rate in the nation, and only two one-hundredths of a percent behind No. 1 Wyoming. The year before, Utah was the fastest-growing state in the nation, and was third fastest the year before that.

Tennert said the increase comes from a combination of high birth rates, low death rates and still-higher-than-most immigration rates.

Utah's birth rate, according to census estimates, was a highest-in-the-nation 20.7 per 1,000 residents in the past year, compared to a national average of 13.9.

The state's death rate was 5.3 per 1,000 residents, compared to national average of 8.1 percent. That was second lowest in the nation to Alaska.

Utah also had 5.3 immigrants last year per 1,000 residents, about double the national average of 2.8. The Census Bureau estimated that Utah had 2.2 immigrants from foreign countries per 1,000 Utah residents last year, and about 3.1 immigrants from other U.S. states per 1,000 Utah residents.

"With an unemployment rate about four percentage points below the national average, Utah is still on net experiencing in-migration, but at a much slower rate than at the peak of our economic expansion," Tennert said.