(The Center Square) — New York’s population is rising amid a massive surge of foreign migrants that offset declines from residents leaving for other states, according to newly released census figures.
The Census data released last week shows that New York’s net population grew by nearly 130,000 between 2023 and 2024, the biggest growth among Northeast states. The population boom reverses declines between 2020 and 2023 when New York lost 482,257 residents, according to the data. New York ranked fifth in the nation for net population growth between 2023 and 2024, the data shows.
Data shows the arrival of foreign-born immigrants offset interstate migration from New York and other blue states, which lost residents to Florida, Texas, Utah, South Carolina, Nevada and other low-tax red states.
Nationwide, the U.S. population grew by nearly 1.0% between 2023 and 2024, according to the newly released figures, rising to nearly 340 million and marking the fastest annual growth since 2001. The growth was primarily driven by international migration that has drawn record numbers of new arrivals to New York, Massachusetts and states with ‘sanctuary’ policies and generous welfare benefits.
“An annual growth rate of 1.0% is higher than what we’ve seen over recent years but well within historical norms,” Kristie Wilder, a demographer in the Census Bureau’s Population Division, said in a statement. “What stands out is the diminishing role of natural increase over the last five years, as net international migration has become the primary driver of the nation’s growth.”
New York has had an influx of hundreds of thousands of asylum seekers amid a historic surge of immigration along the U.S.-Mexico border over the past two years. More than 56,000 migrants are currently under New York City’s care, costing the city more than $1 billion a year.
New York state’s net population increase comes after years of declines from residents fleeing for other low-tax states. A recent report estimated that New York’s population could shrink by about 2 million over the next 25 years because of low fertility rates and aging unless those losses are offset by foreign or domestic immigration.
Experts say the population swings between red and blue states have less to do with national politics than a lack of housing, prevailing wages and access to employment.
To be sure, population declines have major implications for a state’s revenue and tax collections. New York lost an eye-popping $24.5 billion in state-adjusted gross income in 2021 as residents fled to New Jersey, Florida and other low-tax states, according to the latest Internal Revenue Service figures.
In Albany, state lawmakers have become increasingly concerned about outmigration from the state and its potential impact on the economy. Bills seeking to improve the state’s business sector and boost its competitiveness are expected to be filed in the upcoming legislative session.
Republicans have long argued that New York’s outmigration is being driven largely by the state’s highest-in-the-nation tax burden, a business sector struggling under excessive regulations and rising labor costs.