State losing fewer residents

People are finding Nebraska a good place to be this recession.

A new analysis on population movement in and out of Nebraska shows that the state is doing better at attracting people from other states and at keeping its residents in state.

The analysis released Wednesday by the University of Nebraska at Omaha's Center for Public Affairs Research showed that Nebraska continues its overall trend of having more people move out than move in.

But the loss of 2,500 people for 2008 was the smallest net loss since 1996 and represented half the average loss for the previous 11 years, the research center said.

With certain states — including Missouri, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Ohio — Nebraska saw net increases and departed from its typical annual population losses. Nebraska saw its strongest net gain in 20 years with Michigan and had a net increase from Iowa for just the fifth time in 20 years, the center said.

In all, Nebraska saw a net gain from 22 states for 2008, most notably from the South and Midwest, the center said. That number is up from 11 states the year before.

David Drozd, a demographer who used IRS tax return data to analyze Nebraska's trends, said the results point to Nebraska's relative strength during the recession and the nation's housing downturn.

He said the numbers indicate that Nebraska is a destination for people affected by the recession and is losing fewer people to hard-hit states and parts of the Sunbelt.

The trends also bode well for Nebraska going into the 2010 Census population count, which will help determine the allocation of federal funds and the seats in the U.S. House.

Contact the writer:

444-1128, jeff.robb@owh.com

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