Posted: 09/22/2022 15:50:14
Modified: 09/22/2022 15:49:36
Unless something changes soon, New Hampshire’s population will peak in 18 years and then begin to decline as the baby boomer generation dies out.
This is one of the conclusions of a report by the Office of Planning and Development of the Department of Trade and Economic Affairs. If current trends continue, he says, the state’s population will grow to 1.51 million in 2040, nearly 10% above the current 1.38 million, before dropping to 1.50 million. 2050.
The Office of Planning and Development publishes population projections every five years. The projection is based on current fertility, death and migration rates, according to Ken Gallager, the bureau’s senior planner.
“The data is not a prediction of the state’s future population, but what is likely if current factors occur,” a news release said.
New Hampshire has seen more deaths than births in recent years. The only reason the population isn’t already shrinking is because enough people are moving here, usually from other states.
“The main driver of growth is migration,” Gallager said in the release. “Between 2020 and 2025, the state is projected to have a net immigration of 51,600 and we expect this immigration to be constant – between 50,000 and 52,500 over each 5-year period.”
After 2040, the project shows that this immigration will not be able to compensate for a growing gap between births and deaths.