Tracking migration with driver’s license data

Ranked by the number of previously licensed drivers who immigrated to Snohomish County from these other states or countries in the five years from 2008 to 2012.

	State of origin	Five years ending in 2012
1	California	10,747
2	Oregon	4,187
3	Texas	3,315
4	Arizona	2,835
5	Florida	2,831
	Other countries	2,369
6	Michigan	1,692
7	Colorado	1,570
8	Nevada	1,570
9	Idaho	1,518
10	North Carolina	1,442
11	Utah	1,120
12	Illinois	1,110
13	Hawaii	1,090
14	Alaska	1,071
15	Kansas	1,006
16	Georgia	1,001
17	Virginia	977
18	New York	918
19	Montana	910
20	Minnesota	721
21	Ohio	709
22	Missouri	694
23	Pennsylvania	674
24	Wisconsin	674
25	Tennessee	547
26	New Mexico	487
27	Maryland	451
28	Oklahoma	449
29	Indiana	445
30	South Carolina	422
31	Alabama	419
32	New Jersey	414
33	Massachusetts	367
34	Louisiana	336
35	Iowa	319
36	Arkansas	312
37	Nebraska	271
38	Kentucky	237
39	Connecticut	212
40	Wyoming	188
41	North Dakota	178
42	Missippi	175
43	South Dakota	154
44	Maine	138
45	New Hampshire	110
46	West Virginia	70
47	Delaware	67
48	Rhode Island	65
49	Vermont	63
50	District of Columbia	50

Every month, the state Department of Licensing releases data on the issuance of driver’s licenses to new residents. The numbers are broken down by the county in which the newly arrived person lives, but the more interesting figures show where these residents came from. Here’s a look at the states of origin for immigrants to Snohomish County.

When someone obtains a Washington driver’s license, they must surrender the license issued by the jurisdiction from which they came. In Snohomish County, in the five years from 2008 to 2012, 77,277 previously licensed people were issued a Washington license.

The State Patrol also tries to track Washingtonians who move elsewhere and surrender their licenses in other states, but that data is hard to obtain, so a true measure of net in- or out-migration is not possible.

SOURCE: State Department of Licensing