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Exciting growth in Georgia -- and District 159
burns jon 2015
Rep. Jon Burns

Friends,

Last week, the United States Census Bureau released more localized data regarding population changes across the state. Georgia’s official population is now more than 10.7 million people. 

Our population has increased by 10.6% since 2010 when we were a state of almost 9.7 million people. Overall, the southern United States has experienced the fastest growth rate of any United States region, growing by 10.2%. In comparison, the average growth rate for the United States as a whole is only 7.4%. 

Georgia’s growth rate was the 13th fastest state in the nation (including the District of Columbia), and we are now the country’s 8th largest state! We also added the fourth-most number of new residents of all states. Compared to the rest of the Southeast, Georgia is the second-largest state, only smaller than Florida. 

Florida and South Carolina both grew slightly faster than Georgia, putting us in third place in the Southeast for growth.

In District 159, both Bulloch and Effingham County saw explosive growth. Bulloch County grew by 15.5 percent, adding almost 11,000 new residents. Effingham County grew by 24 percent, adding more than 12,500 new residents. Screven County has gotten slightly smaller, losing 526 people and shrinking by around 3.6 percent. 

Among Georgia counties, Effingham was the seventh fastest-growing, with Bulloch County growing 18th-fastest. This rapid growth rate puts both Effingham and Bulloch counties in the top 12 percet of fastest-growing counties in our state. Effingham County’s growth rate is in the top three percent of counties in the nation out of the over 3,100 counties we have in the United States! 

You may wonder why this information is so important. Firstly, the state-wide numbers are important because they determine the number of United States House of Representatives members that our state gets. 

However, the federal government also uses our state’s population data to determine how the federal government allocates its funding. The federal government allocates hundreds of billions of dollars for hospitals, fire departments, schools, roads, and other programs and services statewide.

The legislature will use the more localized numbers to determine electoral districts for your Georgia State House of Representatives and State Senate. 

We will also use these population numbers in our state’s budgeting process to allocate state resources during upcoming Sessions. Local governments will use this data to anticipate community needs. Local governments can use the localized data to evaluate which areas of their communities are growing most quickly. This data can help these governments decide which roads may need expansion or project which schools will likely see increases in enrollment in the short-term and long-term future.

If you have any feedback, do not hesitate to call (404.656.5052), email, or engage on Facebook. If you would like to receive email updates, please visit my website to sign up for my newsletter or email me.


Jon Burns represents District 159 in the Georgia General Assembly, where he serves as the House majority leader.