In celebration of our 12th newsletter, we present 12 data insights from across StatsAmerica. These data draw from federal statistical agencies and our own research.
1: Population growth
The five counties with the greatest population growth and decline from 2020-2023 in the United States, courtesy of Counties in Profile:
| County |
Percent change in population |
| Counties with the most population growth |
| Kaufman County, TX |
27.8% |
| Rockwall County, TX |
21.8% |
| Long County, GA |
21.2% |
| Luce County, MI |
20.5% |
| Comal County, TX |
20.1% |
| Counties with the most population decline |
| Loving County, TX |
-32.8% |
| Garza County, TX |
-22.3% |
| Reeves County, TX |
-20.5% |
| King County, TX |
-18.1% |
| Cameron Parish, LA |
-15.1% |
Source: StatsAmerica from U.S. Census Bureau
It’s interesting that three of the fastest-growing and four of the fastest-declining counties are in Texas. Kaufman and Rockwell counties are both suburbs of Dallas, while Comal County is a suburb of San Antonio; Long County, Georgia, is a small county southwest of Savannah; and Luce County, Michigan, is a very small county (second-least populous in the state) in the Michigan Upper Peninsula. All the counties with the greatest declines are extremely rural; indeed, Loving and King counties are the least and third-least populated counties in the country, respectively.
2: Median age
The five counties with the highest and lowest median ages in the United States in 2022, courtesy of Counties in Profile:
| County |
Median age |
| Counties with the highest median age |
| Sumter County, FL |
68.3 |
| Jeff Davis County, TX |
62.0 |
| Charlotte County, FL |
59.9 |
| Kent County, TX |
59.9 |
| Catron County, NM |
59.5 |
| Counties with the lowest median age |
| Madison County, ID |
21.6 |
| Lexington Independent City, VA |
22.7 |
| Radford Independent City, VA |
23.3 |
| Kusilvak Census Area, AK |
23.7 |
| Chattahoochee County, GA |
23.9 |
Source: StatsAmerica from U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey
Retirement communities in Florida and sparsely populated counties in Texas and New Mexico comprise the counties with the highest median ages in the country, while those with the lowest median ages are small counties and two college towns (Brigham Young University – Idaho is in Madison County and Radford University is in Radford).
3: Innovation Index
The five counties with the highest and lowest headline innovation index values, which indicate innovation capacity and potential for economic growth, courtesy of Innovation Intelligence:
| County |
Headline Innovation Index |
| Counties with the highest headline index |
| Utah County, UT |
152.8 |
| Boone County, IN |
149.0 |
| Gallatin County, MT |
149.0 |
| Williamson County, TN |
148.0 |
| Hays County, TX |
147.3 |
| Counties with the lowest headline index |
| Valdez-Cordova Borough, AK |
68.8 |
| Skagway-Hoonah-Angoon Borough, AK |
77.6 |
| Northwest Arctic Borough, AK |
79.0 |
| King County, TX |
81.2 |
| Quitman County, MS |
81.9 |
Source: StatsAmerica
Fast-growing suburban counties in the west and south dominate the top five, with the only exception being Boone County (a suburb of Indianapolis). Poor and sparsely populated counties make up the bottom five, with three of them in extremely isolated parts of Alaska.
4: Percent of employment in the finance and insurance sector
The finance and insurance sector (NAICS 52) is a high-wage, high-productivity sector, and counties with a high proportion of workers employed in it often perform well on measures of economic prosperity. These are the counties with the highest percentage of their workforce employed in this sector in 2023, from Counties in Profile:
| County |
Percent employed in
finance & insurance |
| Dallas County, IA |
30.8% |
| McLean County, IL |
19.5% |
| Jefferson County, IA |
14.3% |
| Hudson County, NJ |
14.3% |
| New York County, NY |
13.1% |
| New Castle County, DE |
13.0% |
| Portage County, WI |
12.7% |
| Oldham County, KY |
11.4% |
| Collin County, TX |
11.0% |
| Eaton County, MI |
10.9% |
| Mecklenburg County, NC |
10.9% |
Source: StatsAmerica, from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Census of Employment & Wages
One may not think of Iowa when they think of finance and insurance hotbeds, but it has two counties in the top three: Dallas County, a suburb of Des Moines and one of the fastest-growing counties in the country, and Jefferson County, a relatively rural county in southeast Iowa. State Farm Insurance has its corporate headquarters in McLean County, Illinois. New York County (contiguous with Manhattan) and Hudson County, New Jersey, across the Hudson River from Manhattan, are no surprises.
5: Percent of employment in the manufacturing sector
These are the counties with the highest percentage of their workforce employed in manufacturing, from Counties in Profile:
| County |
Percent employed
in manufacturing |
| Aleutians East Borough, AK |
79.1% |
| Calhoun County, AR |
77.9% |
| Storey County, NV |
70.6% |
| Hancock County, KY |
64.7% |
| Washington County, AL |
56.6% |
| Bristol Bay Borough, AK |
55.6% |
| Aleutians West Borough, AK |
53.9% |
| Atkinson County, GA |
53.1% |
| Roseau County, MN |
51.4% |
| Ralls County, MO |
51.3% |
Source: StatsAmerica, from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Census of Employment & Wages
Three of the top 10 are in Alaska, while the others are mostly in the south and the west. Some of the counties are dominated by a single or just a few employers, like Tesla’s Nevada Gigafactory in rural Storey County, Nevada, and four aluminum manufacturing plants in Hancock County, Kentucky.
6: Bachelor’s degree attainment
High bachelor’s degree attainment drives regional economic growth and prosperity because it drives innovation and attracts businesses, contributing to higher productivity and economic development. These are the counties with the highest percentage of their population with bachelor’s degrees in 2022, from Counties in Profile:
| County |
Percent of population ages 25+
with a bachelor’s degree |
| San Miguel County, CO |
45.7% |
| Gunnison County, CO |
41.3% |
| Mineral County, CO |
40.6% |
| Williamson County, TN |
39.2% |
| Teton County, WY |
38.9% |
| Douglas County, CO |
38.7% |
| Hamilton County, IN |
37.8% |
| Pitkin County, CO |
37.4% |
| Summit County, UT |
35.8% |
| Loudoun County, VA |
35.7% |
| Arlington County, VA |
35.7% |
Source: StatsAmerica, from U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey
Colorado dominates this list, including three of its counties having more than 40% of the population 25+ with bachelor’s degrees. The Colorado counties are mainly ritzy ski resorts, like Telluride (San Miguel County), Crested Butte (Gunnison County) and Aspen (Pitkin County). Others are suburbs of major cities, like Williamson County (Nashville), Hamilton County (Indianapolis), Summit County (Salt Lake City) and Loudon and Arlington counties (Washington, D.C.).
7: Bankruptcies per capita
Bankruptcy is a legal proceeding initiated when a person or business cannot repay outstanding debts or obligations. A high bankruptcy rate indicates that people and businesses are struggling to stay on top of their bills. These are the states with the highest and lowest bankruptcies (total personal and business) per 1,000 people in 2023, from States in Profile:
| State |
Bankruptcies per 1,000 people |
| States with the highest rate of bankruptcies |
| Alabama |
3.50 |
| Mississippi |
2.99 |
| Tennessee |
2.76 |
| Georgia |
2.52 |
| Kentucky |
2.31 |
| States with the lowest rate of bankruptcies |
| Alaska |
0.29 |
| Vermont |
0.33 |
| Maine |
0.39 |
| New Hampshire |
0.52 |
| Massachusetts |
0.55 |
Source: StatsAmerica, from Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts
Southern states dominate the list of states with the highest bankruptcy rates, while lower-population states (except for Massachusetts) comprise those with the lowest bankruptcy rates.
8: Patents per capita
The patent rate is indicator of technological advancement and innovation because it reflects the creation and protection of new inventions. These are the states with the highest and lowest patents per 100,000 people in 2022, from States in Profile:
| State |
Patents per 100,000 people |
| States with the highest patent rate |
| Delaware |
164.2 |
| Massachusetts |
126.5 |
| California |
117.6 |
| Washington, D.C. |
116.0 |
| Idaho |
108.8 |
| States with the lowest patent rate |
| Alaska |
1.2 |
| West Virginia |
2.3 |
| Mississippi |
2.6 |
| Hawaii |
4.4 |
| Maine |
4.9 |
Source: StatsAmerica, from U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
9: Change in patents since 2019
Which states have experienced the most growth or decline in patent filings from 2019 to 2022? From States in Profile:
| State |
Percent change in patents
from 2019-2022 |
| States with the most growth in patent filings |
| Montana |
241.4% |
| Wyoming |
69.7% |
| Vermont |
41.7% |
| Idaho |
41.5% |
| Rhode Island |
14.9% |
| States with the most decline in patent filings |
| Alaska |
-47.1% |
| Arkansas |
-38.7% |
| Connecticut |
-37.0% |
| Washington, D.C. |
-35.9% |
| New York |
-34.8% |
Source: StatsAmerica, from U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
Only 13 states have had their patenting activity grow since before the pandemic, as of 2022. Of the almost 157,000 patents filed in 2022, just under 30% of them were filed in California. Though Montana leads the way in patent growth, it only had 297 filings in 2022, comprising 0.2% of the U.S. total.
10: Union membership
These states have the highest and lowest percentage of their workforce who are members of a union, via States in Profile:
| State |
Percent of workforce who
are members in a union |
| States with the highest % of their workforce in a union |
| Hawaii |
24.1% |
| New York |
20.6% |
| Washington |
16.5% |
| New Jersey |
16.1% |
| Connecticut |
15.9% |
| States with the lowest % of their workforce in a union |
| South Carolina |
2.3% |
| North Carolina |
2.7% |
| South Dakota |
3.6% |
| Utah |
4.1% |
| Arizona |
4.2% |
Source: StatsAmerica, from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Hawaii is by far the state with the highest concentration of union membership, likely because of the high number of workers in the hospitality industry.
11: Percent change in union membership
Which states have had growth and declines in union membership since 2010? From States in Profile:
| State |
Percent change in union
membership from 2010-2023 |
| States with the most growth in union membership |
| Mississippi |
63.0% |
| Tennessee |
54.8% |
| Oklahoma |
49.4% |
| Kansas |
42.9% |
| Arkansas |
40.9% |
| States with the most decline in union membership |
| Wisconsin |
-42.3% |
| West Virginia |
-40.0% |
| South Carolina |
-38.8% |
| Alaska |
-33.8% |
| Iowa |
-32.3% |
Source: StatsAmerica, from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
States with the most increases in the past 13 years have historically had lower union membership. Of the 50 states plus Washington, D.C., 25 have increased and 26 have decreased since 2010.
12: Broadband access
High-speed internet access facilitates economic growth, enhances educational opportunity, improves healthcare access and more. These are the states with the highest and lowest percentage of households with a computer and access to broadband, from States in Profile:
| State |
Percent of total households with
a computer and broadband |
| States with the highest broadband access |
| Utah |
93.2% |
| New Hampshire |
93.1% |
| Washington |
93.0% |
| California |
92.8% |
| Colorado |
92.7% |
| States with the lowest broadband access |
| Mississippi |
83.1% |
| Louisiana |
84.3% |
| West Virginia |
84.9% |
| New Mexico |
85.8% |
| Arkansas |
85.8% |
Source: StatsAmerica, from U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey