Office of Financial Management
Forecasting and Research Division
P.O. Box 43124
Olympia, WA 98504-3124
360-902-0599 -- Main Reception
360-586-1988 -- Fax

Census geographic files: TIGER/Line shapefiles for select Census 2000, 2010 and 2020 geographic areas. Includes a limited number of population and housing variables from the decennial census. Geographic crosswalks and map products are also available.

OFM produces annual population estimates for ‘special areas’ required by statue.  Special areas include highway urban areas, public transportation benefit areas, and the thermal electric generating facility area.  The special area estimates are based on data produced by the Small Area Estimate Program using GIS-based spatial interpolation procedures.

Updated annually in July

Updated annually in November.

The State Data Center (SDC) program is a cooperative program between the states and the Census Bureau created in 1978 to make data available locally to the public through a network of state agencies, universities, libraries, and regional and local governments. The Business and Industry Data Center (BIDC) program was added in 1988 to meet the needs of local business communities for economic data. The Office of Financial Management is the state agency responsible for administering these programs in Washington state.

Small Area Estimates Program (SAEP) estimates are meant to provide a consistent set of small area population and housing data for statewide applications. SAEP estimates are generated for census areas and other areas of statewide significance.

Population density is the average number of people per unit of land area. In the U.S., the most common unit of population density is persons per square mile. The land area measurement excludes lakes and other water areas within.