Unable to make changes at the ballot box to shift the radical Left trajectory of New York government, residents voted with their feet in huge numbers last year, causing the greatest outmigration of any state. More than 216,000 people bailed out in the one-year period ending in July, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, and were replaced by nearly 74,000 migrants.
A common theme among working men and women is their plan to get out of the Empire State as soon as they retire for areas with lower taxes, better economic conditions, and government leaders that don’t ascribe to cashless bail, defund the police, and other policies that have put New York through a self-induced crime wave. The retirees take their nest eggs and pensions with them and leave a different set of less affluent residents to pick up the tab.
The migrant crisis has escalated since the summer as New York Mayor Eric Adams is reporting about 16,000 aliens coming into the city per month. The migrants are unable to get work permits and must be supported by the taxpayers unless they engage in off-the-books activities, which are not subject to the taxes levied on the state’s legitimate residents. The flood of migrants depresses wages and usurps the resources previously available to the homeless, veterans, and other people requiring government services. Adams, in an ever-escalating feud with President Biden over his open border policy, stated that the migrant crisis will “Destroy New York City.”
“If they think people are going to stick around and pay for this mess, they’re crazy,” said a retiring school teacher who had a 35-year career on Long Island. “We obviously can’t get them to change their policies or vote them out of office, so it’s goodbye and good luck to those who are left to pick up the tab.”
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From a purely economic standpoint, it’s no wonder why New York saw 884,000 residents hit the road since 2020. Factoring in new arrivals, the state lost a total of 631,000 people, well above the annual outflow in any decade since the 1970s. While it leads the nation in many out-migration categories, it places second in various others to California, another Blue state with Progressive policies that are leading to its failure. The two states take turns setting the bar for the highest taxes, fees and regulations, energy costs, inflation, and the most dangerous places to live.
Overall, the entire Northeast region lost only 43,330 people, with only Pennsylvania joining New York in posting population losses. New Jersey and all six New England states experienced small population increases. The state did fairly well in one category: Its population gain from natural causes—births minus deaths—was the third largest of any state at 41,536, trailing only Texas and California. Its birthrate was just below the 50-state median at 10.6 per 1,000 residents.