East Central Reporter

In a May 19 Facebook post, Illinois state Rep. Blaine Wilhour (R-Beecher City) took on the topic of population decline.

"'Population decline in Illinois is spreading, now affecting more than 85% of communities throughout the state and hitting communities of all sizes,'" he said in the post, quoting a recent Illinois Policy report. "This trend directly impacts how many teachers we need, how much we spend on programs for the needy, and how we prioritize your limited tax dollars."

U.S. Census Bureau data reported approximately 12.5 million people living in Illinois in 2022.

Wilhour's post shared a link to the Illinois Policy report on the topic of the state's population decline, focusing on what they could learn from Census data.

"Population decline in Illinois is spreading, now affecting more than 85% of communities throughout the state and hitting communities of all sizes," the report said. "There were 1,108 of Illinois 1,296 incorporated places that lost population in 2022, according to data released May 18 by the U.S. Census Bureau."

Population decline did not hit rural communities as hard as it did larger cities.

"Rural areas actually experienced the slowest rates of population decline in 2022, although it should be noted the rate of population decline in Illinois cities with populations above 100,000 would be -4.7 per 1,000 residents had it not been for the large population decline in Chicago," the report said. "Despite population decline affecting the overwhelming majority of Illinois communities, the state’s shrinking population is disproportionately concentrated in Chicago."

"Illinois' population shrank by 104,437 from July 2021 to July 2022, according to Census estimates released at the end of 2022," a recent report from the Daily Herald said. "New polling shows 51% of Illinoisans would leave the state if given the chance. Those most likely to want to leave? Prime working-age adults, ages 41-49."

That loss is a blow to the economy, affecting not only businesses but funding for public services as well.

A Pew article noted that the Southern states gained population more quickly than any other region of the country, while Illinois' population trend numbers continue to dip.

"In particular, the total population of the Northeast and Midwest shrank compared with the prior year," the article said. "New York and Illinois had the greatest declines, by 0.91% and 0.82%, respectively, primarily because many people moved out of those states. However, the rate of out-migration from New York slowed in 2022 compared with earlier in the pandemic, suggesting that the state’s exodus may have been a short-term reaction to the public health crisis. On the other hand, more residents left Illinois in 2022 than during the year before, accelerating the state’s population decline."