Worsening migration numbers here are the result of Illinois Republicans and conservatives losing the information war (and thus elections) year after year, decade after decade. Here are Ted Dabrowski and John Klingner:
There’s nothing in the U.S. Census migration data to tell us what exactly Illinois’ neighbors have done to improve their migration demographics. But whatever it is, their numbers have become better over time, especially compared to Illinois.
In 2005, Indiana lost a net 27,000 people to domestic out-migration, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey.* Today, that state has more people coming in and fewer people leaving. The net result is a positive 10,000 in net in-migration.
The same goes for Michigan and Missouri. They now gain people from domestic migration instead of losing them.
Those states’ experiences begs the question. Are reforms to collective bargaining laws, lower taxes, and improved business climates the secret to keeping residents and attracting new ones? That’s been the experience of Illinois’ neighbors. Meanwhile, out-migration from Illinois has only accelerated.
The U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey has published state-to-state domestic migration data for the years 2005 through 2017. The domestic migration data is made up of two parts: current residents leaving and new residents moving in.
The big problem for Illinois is that both parts have gotten worse over the survey period. The percentage of residents leaving Illinois jumped 28 percent between 2005 and 2017, to 340,000 from 266,000. At the same time, the number of people moving into the state shrank a total of 7 percent, to 195,000 from 210,000.
In all, Illinois lost nearly 90,000 more net residents in 2017 than it did in 2005.
Meanwhile, Michigan has seen big positive changes. It lost over 64,000 net people a year to out-migration in 2005. Since then, the annual number of residents leaving the Wolverine state has fallen and more people have started moving in. In 2017, Michigan basically broke even on domestic migration.
Read more: Wirepoints
