CHEYENNE - Wyoming may have the ninth-fastest-growing population in the nation in 2007, but it has a stretch to go to catch up with other states in the region.

Amy Bittner, an economist with the state's economic analysis division, and Dick O'Gara, owner of the Wyoming Center for Business and Economic Analysis in Cheyenne, said comparing rates of growth from year to year doesn't tell the story.

Wyoming's estimated growth rate of 2 percent for 2007 translated into 10,000 more people, for a new total of 522,830, according to figures released this week.

Colorado also had a 2 percent growth rate for 2007 and picked up more than 95,000 new residents, for a new total of 4,861,515.

South Dakota, with a 1 percent growth rate, had a population increase of 7,747, the only state with fewer numbers than Wyoming. South Dakota now has an estimated population of 796,214, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

"In regard to population, we have a long way to go," O'Gara said Thursday. "I don't think you can compare rates year to year because of the numbers associated with the percentages."

Bittner noted that Wyoming's population has been lagging behind other states in the region for years.

"I'm not sure in comparing with other states, Wyoming has closed the gap," she said. "What the new figures show is that the population is catching up with job growth."

The good news, she said, is that apparently workers who have been commuting to the state to work may have found housing and are moving in their families.

O'Gara said he would be "shocked" if Wyoming has another 2 percent increase in population growth next year. He noted signs of decreased activity in the oil and gas industry.

"We're just not going to see job growth that high next year," he said.

He noted the lack of an increase in school enrollments at least at the state level, although the Census Bureau reports an increase in births.

O'Gara also said it's a little early to judge if the workers will stay here. In the past, workers have left the state when the economy tanked as a result of a decline in oil and gas development.

He characterized the state's growth rate in 2007 as a "one-year blip" and said Wyoming probably will drop from ninth fastest growing to 12th next year.

Because of its heavy reliance on mineral activity for growth, Wyoming differs from other states in the region which have broader-based economies.

Bittner said that if job growth continues, the state will see population increases in 2008.

"I don't think next year we'll see 2 percent again, but it could be over 1 percent," she said.

In 2006, job growth was 4.9 percent in Wyoming, the second highest in the nation. For 2007, she said, it looks like 3.5 percent job growth.

"That's still pretty strong," Bittner said.

In 1982 at the tail end of the oil and gas boom, Wyoming had a 3 percent increase in population. In 1984, the state began losing people.

"As long as the mining jobs continue, we'll see people come to Wyoming," she said.

Although there are stories about large numbers of retirees moving into the state, the new census estimates don't reflect how many are responsible for the state's population growth.

Bittner said the Census Bureau county age estimates to be issued later might help define the relocating retirees' contribution to the state's population growth.

Contact Joan Barron at joan.barron@trib.com or by phone at 307-632-1244.