June 28th, 2023 by WCBC Radio

Demographic issues continue to present significant headwinds for West Virginia. Employers are desperate for workers, colleges need more students and merchants always want more customers.

There have been some hints in recent years of more people moving to West Virginia, and the Ascend WV program is paying professionals to relocate here. However,  new Census Bureau numbers still show a declining and aging population between 2020 and 2022.

For example:

–The state’s population declined by nearly 19,000 during the period, to 1,775,156. The population peaked at two million in 1950, and it has been gradually dropping over the last seven decades.

—The median age of West Virginians is just under 43 years. That has not changed in the last couple of years, and it remains one of the highest in the country.

–And West Virginia continues to get older. The number of residents 70-74 rose by 6,661, to 71,411. That was the most growth of any of the demographic categories. One in five West Virginians is 65 or older.

–Age 25 to 64 are the prime working years, but the number of West Virginians in that category decreased over the two year period by over 21,000, to 887,500.