Articles Tagged: Census

With the buzz surrounding plans in Texas and California to carve up state maps in a tit-for-tat redistricting battle, one curious Iowan asked The Gazette: Could the same happen in Iowa?

City staff estimate Tiffin’s population has grown by more than 60 percent since the 2020 census, which showed Tiffin was the fastest-growing Iowa city at the time.

Similar to neighboring Midwest states including Illinois and Nebraska, people from other countries moved to Iowa at higher rates than those who came from other places in the United States.

For the first time in 27 years, the U.S. government is changing how it categorizes people by race and ethnicity, an effort that federal officials believe will more accurately count residents who identify as Hispanic and of Middle Eastern and North African heritage.

The cities in Iowa paying for a Census Bureau-run second count in 2024 — Altoona, Bondurant, Grimes, Johnston, Norwalk, Pleasant Hill and Waukee — are fast-growing suburbs of Des Moines.

Iowa faces challenges with growing its population, creating job opportunities for immigrants and expanding high-speed broadband into rural areas.

In 1900, almost three-fourths of Iowa population lived on farms or in small towns. By 2010, only 36 percent of Iowans remained in rural areas. Most small Iowa towns will never gain population again. That’s why some have turned their focus from growing numbers, to growing quality of life.

The ratio of college graduates produced in Iowa, to those living in Iowa is worse than all six of the state’s border neighbors, the analysis shows.

Some census takers who falsified information during the 2020 count didn't have their work redone fully, weren't fired in a timely manner and in some cases even received bonuses, according to the U.S. Commerce Department's watchdog group.

Not since the founding of the county has the population come to such as nearly as halt as it did in the first year of the pandemic, with 25 states showing a drop from July 2020 to July 2021

The second plan for proposed 2021 redistricting maps were released Oct. 21 for Iowa’s congressional, House and Senate districts.

Tiffin has seen its population double decade after decade. Now with more than 4,500 residents, the city could see its population double yet to more than 9,000 residents in 2030.

While local incentives can lure businesses to small towns, they are no guarantee alone that the town can be vital or attract visitors, according to a four-month IowaWatch investigation of towns with fewer than 5,000 people.

Iowa Senate Republicans all voted to reject the first set of proposed maps that would redraw statehouse and Congressional boundaries for the next 10 years. All Senate Democrats voted to approve the maps.

Census is “super important” because seats in the U.S. House and Iowa Legislature are apportioned, and state and federal funds are allocated based on the once-a-decade headcount.