Florida population expected to start growing again

It?s a small bounce, but Florida?s population should rebound this year from its first loss in more than half a century in a hopeful sign for the struggling state economy, new estimates from the University of Florida show.
The Sunshine State is expected to add about 23,000 residents between April 1, 2009, and April 1, 2010, following a loss of almost 57,000 residents the previous year, according to population projections released today by UF?s Bureau of Economic and Business Research.
?Based on changes in electric customer data, we believe Florida?s population has increased slightly over the past year,? said bureau Director Stan Smith who led the research. ?This may be an indication the state?s economy is no longer declining at the rate it had been before.?
Although the state?s unemployment rate remains very high, there are signs that the housing market is starting to pick up in a number of places, he said.
?It appears the state?s population loss was a one-year occurrence,? Smith said. ?Even so, Florida?s growth will be very slow during the early years of the new decade.?