7:23 PM 12/31/1996
By MICHELLE KOIDIN
Associated Press
Texas has added more residents than any other state in the 1990s, which means good news for businesses but could put pressure on public services, Texas A&M University's chief demographer said Tuesday.
Texas even beat California, the nation's largest state with about 31.9 million people, demographer Steve Murdock of the Texas State Data Center at Texas A&M said. Texas is second biggest with about 19.1 million people.
U.S. Census Bureau estimates show Texas' population has increased by 2.14 million, or 12.6 percent, from 1990 to 1996, Murdock said. That compares with a national population jump of 6.7 percent.
"If these trends continue, we would expect that Texas will enter the 21st century with over 20 million people. That will mean that we will have increased our population substantially, almost doubling it from 1970," Murdock said.
"Growth is always a mixed bag," he said. "The growth rate that we have seen has caused a substantial increase in the demand for public services."
However, it also translates into "increases in markets for all kinds of products and goods and services, and (new residents) bring with them new skills and new potential for the state in terms of economic growth and development."
Texas was only the 10th-fastest growing state by percentage, but the nine leading states all have populations of less than 7.5 million. For example, Nevada, which was No. 1 with a 33.4 percent change, has a population of 1.6 million. It has added roughly 400,000 residents.
California, meanwhile, has grown by 2.12 million people, or 7.1 percent, while Florida, the fourth-largest state, has expanded by 1.46 million people, or 11.3 percent.
Texas' growth can be attributed to a mix of factors, Murdock said. About 55 percent came from births, 23 percent from international immigration and 22 percent from state-to-state moves.