Report: L.A., Texas counties most diverse in U.S.

(CNN) -- Debates surrounding immigration and racial issues show that the face of America is changing every day, and a Thursday census report confirms it, noting that almost one in 10 U.S. counties is made up predominantly of minorities.

The U.S. Census Bureau report says 302 counties are considered "majority-minority," based on 2007 estimates.

In terms of sheer numbers, California's Los Angeles County leads the way with more than 7 million minority residents, about 70.9 percent of its residents. The county is home to about 4.7 million Hispanics and about 1 million African-Americans.

Los Angeles County led the nation in Hispanic residents, as well as non-Hispanic white residents (2.9 million), Asians (1.4 million) and Native Americans (146,500).

Other counties with more than 1 million minorities include San Bernardino, California; Orange, California; Riverside, California; Santa Clara, California; Bronx, New York; Queens, New York; Kings, New York; Harris, Texas; Bexar; Texas; Dallas, Texas; Harris, Texas; Miami-Dade, Florida; and Cook, Illinois.

Leading the nation in terms of percentages is Texas' Starr County, situated on the Mexican border. According to the census report, the county is 98 percent minority and has an estimated population of 61,833, of which 60,169 are Hispanic and 422 are African-American.

Many of the counties boasting hefty minority populations are in border states like Texas, Arizona and California, said Texas state demographer Karl Eschbach.

And although numbers like these make great trivia, Eschbach said they're also useful in determining which counties most need government support.

"One of the strong interests is that places that tend to have very high minority populations -- to use that old-fashioned phrase -- are also places that tend to be relatively poor," he said. "The correlation between racial concentration and economic need is, unfortunately, very strong."

Often, high Native American, Hispanic and African-American populations correspond with weak tax bases and low median household incomes, Eschbach said.

Tax base and income numbers, which the Census Bureau will soon release for 2007, are used to determine where government tax dollars are most needed, but the population numbers help provide a snapshot of demographic trends in the United States.

There is a perception that the United States is dominated by European or Anglo-Saxon cultures, Eschbach said, but "with every passing year, that becomes less and less so."

It is difficult to tell the exact diversity of a county, Eschbach said. Some populations are harder to find, others may experience language barriers or mobility issues, and still more -- namely illegal immigrants -- may be reluctant to voluntarily participate in government surveys.

Interracial marriages also make categorizing people difficult. For instance, one in four Hispanics marries a non-Hispanic partner, Eschbach said.

Although numbers like those released Thursday lack pinpoint accuracy, they do help show how certain pockets of the United States are diversifying.

"Overall numbers don't tell us what's happening," Eschbach said, but with Thursday's annual snapshot "you can see the future pretty much laid out. You can see a majority-minority in the future for many parts of the nation."

Other findings in Thursday's report:

• La Paz County, Arizona, had the oldest population, with 32 percent of its residents age 65 or older.

• Webb County, Texas, had the youngest population, with children under 5 making up 12.8 percent of its population.

• There are 46 majority-Hispanic counties, and all but two of them -- Seward, Kansas, and Bronx, New York -- were in the South or West.

• Cook County, Illinois, had the largest African-American population, with 1.4 million residents.

• Orleans Parish, Louisiana, experienced the largest numerical growth in its African-American population between 2006 and 2007 (20,800), while neighboring St. Bernard Parish had the highest percentage increase in that time period (97.3 percent).

• Claiborne County, Mississippi, had the highest percentage of African-American residents (84.5 percent). Of 82 majority-black counties, only St. Louis, Missouri, was not located in the South.

• Honolulu County, Hawaii, had the largest percentage of Asian residents, with 58.8 percent.

• Shannon County, South Dakota, had the largest percentage of residents who were Native American (87 percent).

• Magoffin County, Kentucky, is 98.9 percent white, giving it the highest proportion of "non-Hispanic single-race white" residents in the U.S.

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