Census shows Illinois under-20 population declining faster than national average

(The Center Square) – Recently released data from the U.S. Census Bureau revealed Illinois has seen outsized shifts in its population by age demographic when compared to the national average.

The population of young residents in the state is decreasing at a rate multiple times the national average.

According to Bryce Hill, senior director of fiscal and economic analysis for the Illinois Policy Institute, the new data reveals demographics of the state’s population are shifting differently to other states.

“The 20s, 30s and 40s age groups nationally are growing between 4.3% and 5.5% over the past five years. Meanwhile, those groups in Illinois are growing at 1.2% – or slower than that,” Hill said.

He also said the youth, or under 20, population became smaller nationally as a result of decreased birth rates and the process of aging, but the population of young Illinoisans was falling at a sharper rate.

“The starkest contrast that we found was that Illinois...