The population of Alaska remained almost unchanged from July 2021 to July 2022, the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development announced Thursday.

In a press release, the department said 26 of Alaska’s 30 boroughs and census areas saw a loss in population. The Kenai Peninsula Borough was one of the four that saw growth, with a reported population increase of 909 people, second in growth only to the Matanuska-Susitna Borough, which added 2,666.

Overall, Alaska had a small increase in population, with a gain of 451 people, a 0.06% increase.

Despite that gain, the department noted that net migration, the comparison of people moving to Alaska with those leaving, still results in a loss. Between July 2021 and July 2022, the state lost 2,489 people. In the release, the department said it has reported a net loss each year since 2013, though those losses were slowed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to data accompanying the release, the Kenai Peninsula Borough was reported in the 2020 census to have a population of 58,799. The department estimates that the population has now reached 60,017, due to a net gain in both births and migrants. The average annual growth rate is 1%.

Though the state overall is seeing a steady population, the distribution of ages is trending older. The department reports that the population of those 65 years of age and older grew by 5% from July 2021 to July 2022, while the population between 18 and 64 years of age has declined by 1%.

In January’s issue of Trends, a monthly magazine produced by the department, a study by Karinne Wiebold showed that worker shortages in Alaska would be continuing through 2023 despite strong signs of economic recovery because of the aging population and continued out-migration.

Reach reporter Jake Dye at jacob.dye@peninsulaclarion.com.