New York State’s population grew by a hair in the year that
ended July 1, but because Sun Belt states like Nevada, Arizona
and Florida are growing faster, the Empire State stands to lose
seats in Congress after the 2010 Census. An analysis by Queens
College of population trends suggests that Texas will gain as
many as four Congressional seats and Florida’s delegation will
grow by two, while New York and Ohio will lose two seats each.
The projected decline in House representation is only the latest
installment of long trend. New York’s delegation in the House of
Representatives peaked at 45 seats, following the 1930 Census.
As other states grew more quickly, New York’s share in the House
got smaller. Now, New York has only 29 seats, and stands to have
only 27 after the next Census. The last time New York had 27
seats in the House was after the 1810 Census — when the chamber
had only 181 seats in the House — according to the House’s
apportionment Web site. At the time, those 27 seats represented
about 15 percen