how many are leaving california
Roughly 5 million people left California in the last decade. See where they went. By Phillip Reese - preese@sacbee.com. An unprecedented number of Californians left for other states during the last decade, according to new tax return data from the Internal Revenue Service. About 5 million Californians left between 2004 and 2013. Roughly 3.9 million people came here from other states during that period, for a net population loss of more than 1 million people. The trend resulted in a net loss of about $26 billion in annual income. About 600,000 California residents left for Texas, which drew more Californians than any other state. Roughly 350,000 people came from Texas to California. The housing boom, recession and housing bust, which hit California harder than most states, likely played a role in the trend.