The population of the United States is expected to rise from 332 million to nearly 370 million by 2080, and then begin to decline, according to a report released on November 9 by the US Census Bureau.
Deaths are projected to exceed births beginning in 2038, but immigration is expected to stave off the decline for four decades.
In 1998, the Pontifical Council for the Family warned of the effects of declining birth rates in its Declaration on the Decrease of Fertility in the World. More recently, Pope Francis rued declining birth rates in his encyclical Fratelli Tutti (n. 19); the Pontiff has also expressed strong concern about Italy’s declining birth rate.