SOUTH BURLINGTON, Vt. -
After 2012 in Vermont there's one clear challenge facing the state: it's shrinking population.
Many parents believe Vermont is the perfect place to raise kids saying it's a safe and active environment
But that's not everyone.
"Vermonters are having fewer babies," UVM economics professor Art Woolf said.
Last year there were 2,000 fewer babies born in Vermont than 20 years ago.
"I think it is worrying," Dr. Woolf said.
Another problem is that Vermonters aren't staying in state.
"More people leave Vermont each year than move to Vermont from other states," Dr. Woolf said.
In the past two years Vermont lost a total of more than 2000 people to other states.
And that's not good news for Vermont businesses or government.
"It's going to be hard to get employees. state government and local government tax revenues won't be growing and they might even shrink," Dr. Woolf said.
People on Facebook told us people are leaving because of a lack of jobs and high taxes.
Woolf thinks it also might be because young people want to head to bigger cities.
"Right now we're on the losing end of that because our population is falling. People are voting with their feet and saying this is not a particularly good place for me to live," Dr. Woolf said.
He also said that this slowing population growth is more consistent with Vermont's history. Speaking of which, the last time the state declined in population was in 1944.
