SILVER SPRING, MD – Researchers for the
Montgomery County Planning Department report a record number of births in 2006 –
close to 14,000 – a baby boom researchers partly attribute to the county having
a large number of women of child-bearing age.
The 13,806 births in Montgomery County in 2006 represent
300 more babies than were born in 2005. Of those 2006 babies, 40 percent were
classified as non-Hispanic white, 26.5 percent were Hispanic, 20.4 percent were
black and 13.3 percent were Asian/Pacific Islanders. The largest number of
births came from mothers aged 30-34.
Researchers also attribute the increase to the county’s
growing population of minorities, who tend to have larger families. By 2005, 43
percent of Montgomery County’s population was categorized as non-Hispanic white,
16 percent black, 14 percent Hispanic and 13 percent Asian/Pacific. (While
Hispanics may be of any race, the Census Bureau categorizes “Hispanic” as Mexican,
Chicano, Puerto Rican and Cuban – as well as those who indicate origins from
Spain, the Dominican Republic or the Spanish-speaking countries of Central or
South America.)
Almost 40 percent of Maryland’s Hispanics call
Montgomery County home. Hispanic women typically have the highest fertility
rates of any group.
The Montgomery County Planning Department prepares
employment, population and household forecasts for the county each year,
working from U.S. Census figures and with other local jurisdictions. The
information is particularly useful to Montgomery County Public Schools for
forecasting student populations.
Overall, the county’s population is growing less
rapidly than in the last century. The number of county residents swelled
following World War II, with growth peaking in the 1960s.
During the 1990s, the total number of new residents –
116,300 – represented the largest increase for any jurisdiction in Maryland.
Much of that, according to the Census Bureau, was due to increases in the
Hispanic and non-white populations.
Today, the population approaches 1 million. The county’s
population growth, expected to increase by 7 percent in the next decade, will
continue to drive higher birth rates, researchers say.
perpetuate the county’s high quality of life, the baby boom of 2006 reinforces
the message that they need to continue to build and maintain quality parks,
create pedestrian friendly areas – particularly around schools – and provide
first-class recreational activities.