Californian women told to have more children as birth rate in most populous state plummets

  • California's childbirth slip under 'replacement rate'
  • Decline in babies being born and increasing number of retirees put state at risk, study say
  • A baby born in California in 2015 will have twice the social responsibility of one born in 1985

California is at risk of losing its youthful image as the state is struggling with a declining rate of child birth.

Paired with a large number of ‘babyboomers’ expected to retire, and reduced migration, the state’s prosperity is at risk

In 1970, children made up 33 per cent of California’s population, a number which is expected to shrink to just over a fifth by 2030, a report by the University of Southern California shows.

Not enough: Childbirth in California is now below the 'replacement rate' and it is threatening future social and economic prosperity, the study said

Not enough: Childbirth in California is now below the 'replacement rate' and it is threatening future social and economic prosperity, the study said

This means that the world’s eight largest economy - and the most populous state in the U.S. - is going to have to get busy.

The study showed that a child born today will have twice the social responsibility of a person born in 1985.

With childbirth shrinking significantly in all major ethnic and racial groups since 2000, the state has now slipped below the ‘replacement rate’ of 2.1 babies per woman of childbearing age.

And with the ‘babyboom’ generation set to retire, there are not enough children born to fulfill the space they leave as taxpayers.

In 1970, California averaged about 21 seniors per 100 working age adults. By 2030, that number is predicted to rise to 36 per cent of working age adults.

Aging population: Low birthrate and increasing numbers retirees means California may struggle to care for its elderly in the future

Aging population: Low birthrate and increasing numbers retirees means California may struggle to care for its elderly in the future

‘These trends are not yet widely recognized, but they should be a wake-up call for policymakers,’ said Professor Dowell Myers, report author and director of the Population Dynamics Research Group at University of Southern California.

‘We will be increasingly dependent economically and socially on a smaller number of children.

'They are more important to the state’s future success than ever before.'

California's Child population decline


Homemade: As a result of the falling numbers of immigrants 90 per cent of Californian children under 10 were born in the state

Homemade: As a result of the falling numbers of immigrants 90 per cent of Californian children under 10 were born in the state

The report said this demographic shift mirrors those in other states, including New York, Illinois, Michigan and Massachusetts.

Although a diverse state, over half of children in California are of Hispanic or Latino origin, immigration to the state had been declining since the early 90s and is expected to continue to go down for the foreseeable future.

Over 90 per cent of the children under the age of 10 in the state were born in California.

‘The majority of the next generation of workers will have been shaped by California’s health and education systems,’  professor Myers said. ‘It’s essential that we nurture our human capital.’