Births, marriages, divorces, and deaths for 1997.

Births According to provisional reports, an estimated 300,000 births occurred in the United States during December 1995. This was a decrease of 4 percent from the provisional number of births reported for December 1994 (314,000). The birth rate, 13.4 live births per 1,000 population, was 5 percent lower than the rate of 14.1 for December 1994. The fertility rate, 59.3 live births per 1,000 women 15–44 years, was 5 percent lower than the comparable rate for December 1994 (62.3). The seasonally adjusted fertility rate (61.6) was also 5 percent lower than the comparable rate for December 1994 (64.8). An estimated 3,892,000 live births occurred in 1995, a decline of 2 percent from the 3,979,000 births reported for the previous year. The birth rate of 14.8 was 3 percent lower than the rate of 15.3 for 1994. The fertility rate for 1995 was 65.5, 2 percent lower than the rate for 1994 (67.1). These lower rates continue the generally downward trend in 12-month rates observed since early 1991. The birth and fertility rates—which increased dramatically in the 1940's and 1950's, declined rapidly in the 1960's and early 1970's, and increased again in the late 1980's—have been declining steadily in the 1990's. The 1995 birth rate is the lowest since 1976 (14.6), while the fertility rate is the lowest since 1986 (65.4). The birth rates in 1995 were lower than in 1994 for 10 months, the same in September and higher in April. Changes in the annual number of births are affected by two factors— changes in age-specific birth rates and changes in the number and age composition of women in the childbearing ages. According to estimates prepared by the U.S. Bureau of the Census (1), there was less than a 1-percent increase in the number of women in the childbearing ages (15–44 years) between 1994 and 1995, but a 2-percent decrease in the number of women aged 20–29, the peak childbearing years. The 2-percent decline in the fertility rate between 1994 and 1995 is consistent with the aging of the baby-boom women as they move into their forties. The 1995 estimated total fertility rate was 2,020, which indicates the number of births that 1,000 women [Rates for infant deaths are deaths under 1 year per 1,000 live births; fertility rates are live births per 1,000 women aged 15–44 years; all other rates are per 1,000 total population. Data are subject to …