PORTLAND (AP) - Mirroring a national trend, Oregon's fastest growing demographic group comprising people well past retirement age.

The number of people in the 85-and-older age group increased by 14.9 percent from 2000 to 2003, according to estimates released today by the U.S Census Bureau.

Nationally, that age group jumped by 11 percent, from 4.2 million to 4.7 million, while some retirement hot spots in the southwest saw upswings of more than 20 percent.

Nevada topped the list at 30 percent.

Oregon's above-average rate could be due to an influx of retirees to central and southern Oregon, a trend that has been gathering momentum for more than a decade.

The Census Bureau released an overall state population estimate for 2003 last fall. It showed Oregon's population of 3.55 million is up 4 percent since 2000.

The latest release offers a more detailed breakdown by age groups. Some other highlights:

€ The population of 5- to 13-year-olds essentially remained flat in Oregon between 2000 and 2003 at roughly 428,000, partly because people are having fewer children or delaying childbirth until later in life.

Nationally, 5- to 13-year-olds were the only population that declined among the groups analyzed by the bureau.

€ The population of those 65 and older grew by 3.5 percent, to 453,568 Oregonians in 2003.

€ The population of 15- to 45-year-olds grew by 2.4 percent, to 1.5 million.

€ And the youngest Oregonians, those under 5, saw a tiny increase over the past three years: The bureau estimated 599 more toddlers lived in Oregon in 2003 compared to three years earlier, an increase of less than half a percent.

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On the Net:

Census Bureau: http://www.census.gov/