The Nevada State Demographer’s Office released its most recent population estimates for Nevada and its counties, cities, and unincorporated towns. The 2016 estimates show a statewide increase of 55,790 persons over 2015, 1.9 percent for the year.
Broken out by region, Clark County experienced an increase of 47,828; Washoe County an increase of 6,370; and other northwest counties (Carson City, Churchill, Douglas, Lyon, and Storey Counties) saw a population increase of 1,487. The counties along Interstate 80 (Elko, Eureka, Humboldt, Lander and Pershing Counties) increased by 292 persons, and Central Nevada (Esmeralda, Lincoln, Mineral, Nye and White Pine Counties) increased by 126 persons.
“In December, the Census Bureau released their state estimates and Nevada was number two behind Utah for rate of growth and 12th for total population change,” said state demographer Jeff Hardcastle. “The estimates we’re releasing are prepared by the state for our purposes and show our estimates for the 17 counties, as well as the cities and towns.”
The projections are produced by averaging a housing-unit-based estimate and an estimate that looks at employment, school enrollment, and labor force. Statewide, population growth at 1.9 percent looks to be lower than job growth at 2.7 percent for September 2015 to September 2016. It is higher than labor force for the same period, at 0.1 percent, and school enrollment at 0.6 percent.
“In looking at Nevada and the surrounding states, for the periods between 2000 to 2005 and 2010 to 2015, when the most complete data was available, we are seeing slower growth rates,” said Hardcastle. “Overall, Nevada’s population is increasing due to natural increase, and migration has been playing less of a role.”
The complete Population of Nevada’s Counties and Incorp Cities 2016 Governor’s Certified Series can be found on the Department of Taxation’s website at https://tax.nv.gov/Publications/Population_Statistics_and_Reports/.
