Madera County vs. California Comparative Trends Analysis: Population Growth and Change, 1969-2022 Introduction Madera County: 2022 Population = 160,256 2022 Percent of State = 0.41% California: 2022 Population = 39,029,342 2022 Percent of U.S. = 11.71% Attracting and retaining people to live, work, raise a family, and retire underlies the economic vitality of any region. Population growth is both a cause--and a consequence--of economic growth. Patterns of population growth and change reflect differences among regions to attract and retain people both as producers and consumers in their economy. The following graphs offer a broad overview of trends in the pattern of population growth and change of Madera County with comparisons to California and the nation at large. This analysis features alternative approaches toward discussing, diagnosing and comparing Madera County vs. California's population growth over 1969-2022. The data used are those compiled by the Regional Income and Product Divisions of the Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. Department of Commerce. Population, 1969-2022 Figure 1. Figure 1 tracks Madera County's annual population for the period 1969-2022 to illustrate population patterns over time. During this 54-year period, Madera County's population rose from 41,079 in 1969 to 160,256 in 2022, for a net gain of 119,177, or 290.12%. NOTE: The county and state population totals reported by the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) are from the Bureau of Census midyear (July 1) estimates. These estimates may differ from those prepared independently in some states by various agencies and/or universities. Population, 1969-2022 Figure 2. Figure 2 tracks California's annual population for the period 1969-2022 to illustrate population patterns over time. During this 54-year period, California's population rose from 19,711,000 in 1969 to 39,029,342 in 2022, for a net gain of 19,318,342, or 98.01%. NOTE: The county and state population totals reported by the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) are from the Bureau of Census midyear (July 1) estimates. These estimates may differ from those prepared independently in some states by various agencies and/or universities. Population Indices (1969=100): 1969-2022 Figure 3. Figure 3 shows Madera County's population growth in a broader context by offering direct comparisons across time with California, the United States. The growth indices shown here express each region's population in 1969 as a base figure of 100, and the populations in later years as a percentage of the 1969 base figure. This method allows for more direct comparison of differences in population growth between regions that may differ vastly in size. Madera County's overall population growth was 290.12% over 1969-2022 outpaced California's increase of 98.01%, and topped the United States' increase of 65.57%. Population as a Percent of the California Total: 1969-2022 Figure 4. Another interesting and insightful way of contrasting the population growth of Madera County is to trace its individual percentage contributions to California's statewide population over time, as shown in Figure 4. A rising share means a region's population grew faster, or declined less, than California's population, while a declining share shows it grew more slowly. In 1969, Madera County's population totaled 0.21% of California's population, while in 2022 it totaled 0.41% thereby yielding a +0.20% share-shift.
Madera County Population: Annual Percent Change, 1970-2022 Figure 5. Figure 5 highlights the short-run pattern of Madera County's population growth by tracking the year-to-year percent change over 1970-2022. The average annual percent change for the entire 53-year period is also traced on this chart to provide a benchmark for gauging periods of relative high--and relative low--growth against the backdrop of the long-term average. On average, Madera County's population grew at an annual rate of 2.62% over 1970-2022. The county recorded its highest growth in 1979 (7.94%) and recorded its lowest growth in 2013 (-0.22%). In 2022, Madera County's population grew by 0.85% Madera County Population: Annual Percent Change and Decade Averages Over 1970-2022 Figure 6. Over the past five decades some counties have experienced extreme swings in growth, and often such swings have tended to coincide with the decades themselves. Figure 6 again depicts the annual percent change in Madera County's population since 1970, but this time they are overlayed with average growth rates for the decade of the 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s, and 2020-2022. During the 1970s, Madera County's annual population growth rate averaged 3.91%. It averaged 3.50% in the 1980s, 3.70% during the 1990s, 2.05% during the 2000s, 0.42% during the 2010s, 0.98% thus far this decade (2020-2022). Population Growth: Average Annual Percent Change by Decade Figure 7. Figure 7 compares the decade average growth rates for Madera County noted in the previous graph with the corresponding decade averages for California and the nation. As the chart reveals, Madera County's average annual population growth surpassed California's average throughout the 1970s (3.91% vs. 1.67%), outpaced California's average throughout the 1980s (3.50% vs. 2.31%), outgained California's average throughout the 1990s (3.70% vs. 1.38%), outperformed California's average during the 2000s (2.05% vs. 0.99%), amounted to less than California's average during the 2010s (0.42% vs. 0.68%), and topped California's average over the 3 year period of the current decade, 2020-2022 (0.98% vs. -0.44%). Finally, relative to nationwide population growth trends, Madera County outperformed the nation throughout the 1970s (3.91% vs. 1.10%), led the nation during the 1980s (3.50% vs. 0.95%), exceeded the nation over the 1990s (3.70% vs. 1.23%), led the nation during the 2000s (2.05% vs. 0.95%), fell below the nation in the 2010s (0.42% vs. 0.74%), and surpassed the nation over 2020-2022 (0.98% vs. 0.31%).
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