California Leaving: State Population Declines for First Time
People walk along Santa Monica Pier in Los Angeles, California, on April 8.
Photographer: Roger Kisby/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Sacramento, Calif. (AP) -- California’s population fell by more than 182,000 last year, the first yearly loss ever recorded for the nation’s most populous state that halted a growth streak dating to its founding in 1850 on the heels of a gold rush that prompted a flood of people to seek their fortune in the West.
The figures released Friday followed last week's announcement from the U.S. Census Bureau that California would lose a congressional seat for the first time because it grew more slowly than other states over the past decade. Still, California's population of just under 39.5 million and soon-to-be 52-member congressional delegation remain by far the largest.