Kane County was one of 93 Illinois counties to see a net loss of population between mid-2015 and mid-2016, according to a chart tweeted by Michael Lucci of the Illinois Policy Institute recently.
Kane County lost 1,824 residents, the chart reveals.
Chicago's Cook County topped the list of counties losing the most residents, seeing more than 66,000 people leaving in the time covered, according to the chart.
The Chicago Tribune reported that the city's metro area lost 19,570 residents in 2016 -- the biggest loss of any metropolitan area in the nation -- and 11,324 residents in 2015.
"There's this big regional thing going on," Rob Paral, a Chicago-based demographer, said. "It's not about what's wrong with Chicago; if anything, it's what's wrong with the Midwest or the Northeast."
The newspaper said the likely ramifications are both financial and political. Money given to local governments by other agencies are generally based on population. When communities grow, the state pours money into their programs; when that population shrinks, taxpayers shoulder the burden.
"Illinois should be one of the fastest-growing states," Eleni Demertzis, a spokeswoman for Gov. Bruce Rauner, said in an email. "Instead, people are leaving. That is why Gov. Rauner is working so hard to pass a truly balanced budget in order to make changes that attract employers and create good jobs."
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