Idaho Falls MSA vs. Idaho Comparative Trends Analysis: Population Growth and Change, 1969-2022 Introduction Idaho Falls MSA: 2022 Population = 165,608 2022 Percent of State = 0.06% Idaho: 2022 Population = 1,939,033 2022 Percent of U.S. = 0.58% 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 the Idaho Falls MSA with comparisons to Idaho and the nation at large. This analysis features alternative approaches toward discussing, diagnosing and comparing the Idaho Falls MSA vs. Idaho'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 the Idaho Falls MSA's annual population for the period 1969-2022 to illustrate population patterns over time. During this 54-year period, the Idaho Falls MSA's population rose from 66,432 in 1969 to 165,608 in 2022, for a net gain of 99,176, or 149.29%. 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 traces Idaho's annual population for the period 1969-2022 to illustrate population patterns over time. During this 54-year period, Idaho's population rose from 707,000 in 1969 to 1,939,033 in 2022, for a net gain of 1,232,033, or 174.26%. 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 portrays the Idaho Falls MSA's population growth in a broader context by offering direct comparisons across time with Idaho, 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. The Idaho Falls MSA's overall population growth was 149.29% over 1969-2022 trailed Idaho's increase of 174.26%, and topped the United States' increase of 65.57%. Population as a Percent of the Idaho Total: 1969-2022 Figure 4. Another interesting and insightful way of highlighting the population growth of the Idaho Falls MSA is to compare its individual percentage contributions to Idaho's statewide population over time, as shown in Figure 4. A rising share means a region's population grew faster, or declined less, than Idaho's population, while a declining share shows it grew more slowly. In 1969, the Idaho Falls MSA's population totaled 9.40% of Idaho's population, while in 2022 it equated to 8.54% thereby yielding a -0.86% share-shift.
Idaho Falls MSA Population: Annual Percent Change, 1970-2022 Figure 5. Figure 5 highlights the short-run pattern of the Idaho Falls MSA'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 illustrated 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, the Idaho Falls MSA's population grew at an annual rate of 1.74% over 1970-2022. The Idaho Falls MSA recorded its highest growth in 1974 (4.22%) and posted its lowest growth in 1982 (-0.34%). In 2022, the Idaho Falls MSA's population grew by 1.63% Idaho Falls MSA Population: Annual Percent Change and Decade Averages Over 1970-2022 Figure 6. Over the past five decades some msas have experienced extreme swings in growth, and often such swings have tended to coincide with the decades themselves. Figure 6 again shows the annual percent change in the Idaho Falls MSA's population since 1970, but this time they are displayed with average growth rates for the decade of the 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s, and 2020-2022. During the 1970s, the Idaho Falls MSA's annual population growth rate averaged 2.40%. It averaged 0.75% in the 1980s, 1.33% throughout the 1990s, 2.44% during the 2000s, 1.61% throughout the 2010s, 2.36% 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 the Idaho Falls MSA noted in the previous graph with the corresponding decade averages for Idaho and the nation. As the chart reveals, the Idaho Falls MSA's average annual population growth amounted to less than Idaho's average during the 1970s (2.40% vs. 2.81%), topped Idaho's average throughout the 1980s (0.75% vs. 0.65%), amounted to less than Idaho's average in the 1990s (1.33% vs. 2.52%), surpassed Idaho's average throughout the 2000s (2.44% vs. 2.00%), surpassed Idaho's average throughout the 2010s (1.61% vs. 1.52%), and registered above Idaho's average over the 3 year period of the current decade, 2020-2022 (2.36% vs. 2.36%). Finally, relative to nationwide population growth trends, the Idaho Falls MSA surpassed the nation over the 1970s (2.40% vs. 1.10%), fell under the nation over the 1980s (0.75% vs. 0.95%), recorded above the nation during the 1990s (1.33% vs. 1.23%), registered above the nation in the 2000s (2.44% vs. 0.95%), outpaced the nation during the 2010s (1.61% vs. 0.74%), and registered above the nation over 2020-2022 (2.36% vs. 0.31%).
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