After seven years of declining birth rates, the U.S. is seeing an uptick. Research from the National Bureau of Economic Research attributes the rise in children born to remote work, fewer abortions, and increased feelings of financial security.
The 6.2% increase surprised economists who predicted 300,000 to 500,000 fewer births based on the birth rate downturns during the Great Recession of 2007 and the Spanish flu of 1918.
Interestingly, birth rates declined among foreign-born mothers, particularly those born in China. The study reported that 60% fewer children were born to native Chinese mothers and 17% fewer to those of Latin descent.
The bulk of the “baby bump” is due mostly to U.S.-born mothers under the age of 25, “suggesting that the pandemic led many women to start their families sooner,” researchers write. In total, 2021 saw a net increase of 46,000 children born in the United States.
Last year marks the first time since 2014 that the number of babies has increased in the U.S.
Between 2010 and 2020, Texas defied the national trend of decreasing birth rates. Due to migration and childbirth, Texas gains 1,000 residents every day. Just under 50% of the increase is due to newly born children, followed by migrants from other states (31%) and immigrants (21%).
The Texas baby boom is due mainly to Californians and New Yorkers who relocate to the state during their childbearing years to enjoy the lower cost of living, cheaper taxes, and smaller schools, The New York Times reported. Lloyd Potter, a state demographer and professor at the University of Texas at San Antonio, explained, “We have a higher proportion of population in the reproductive years.”
North Texas, in particular, has seen a rapid increase in population. Both Celina and Frisco, cities just north of the DFW area, have seen rapid growth. Celina’s population is expected to double in five years and Frisco is U.S.’s second-fastest-growing city, according to the 2020 census.
In response to North Texas’s influx of residents, many cities have invested in improving their infrastructure, such as widening the Dallas North Tollway and constructing more homes.
As the population of the DFW area increases, residents and lawmakers are looking to accommodate the newest and cutest residents born each day.