Reports

Recent studies conducted during the pandemic have helped to identify subsets of the population most impacted by the coronavirus and the pandemic-induced economic recession. We use the recently released 2019 American Community Survey one-year estimates data to understand Texas’s most vulnerable populations, their share of the population, and explore some of their pre-existing challenges, specifically around housing and food insecurity and health insurance status.

The Texas Demographic Center assessed three proposed changes to the Urban Area definition. First, they examined the shift from population density to housing unit density. The second change aimed to eliminate the distinction between urban clusters and urbanized areas, potentially reducing Texas urban areas from 304 to 106. Lastly, the analysis explored the impact of raising the minimum threshold to 10,000 persons, leading to declines in urban population for 56% of Texas counties. Certain counties, like Crane, Jim Hogg, and Sutton, would transition from 100% urban to 100% rural population in 2020.