Utah Fertility Rate Plunges 37% Since 2007, Dropping State From No. 1 to No. 6
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Jul 25
Utah Fertility Rate Plunges 37% Since 2007, Dropping State From No. 1 to No. 6
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Jul 25
Summary
Utah has recorded the steepest fertility-rate decline of any U.S. state since 2007, falling more than 37% in what the report calls its biggest modern drop.
That slide reflects a broader shift in which more women delay childbirth or decide not to have children at all; nationally, about half of 30-year-old women are now childless for the first time.
Utah still remains above the national fertility rate, partly because the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints—whose members make up about half the state's population—continues to encourage large families.
The reversal is striking because Utah long symbolized big-family culture, but demographers say the length of the decline suggests a deeper demographic change with potential economic and political consequences.