Rural Redefined
01/11/2023 |
In 2010, the percentage of the U.S. population living in rural areas was 19.3%. Today, the percentage is 20%. This is not due to some Covid-induced movement. Rather, the Census Bureau has redefined the definition of an urban area from one with 2,500 persons, which has been the definition since 1906, to now one with 5,000 persons. Using the old definition, the rural population would have shrunk to 18.7%.