Lyon County is still growing, albeit a bit slower than in the past.
The county assessor's office has put the population at 54,436 as of July 1, 2006, up 8.1 percent from 2005, but less than the previous year's 10.7 percent increase.
The 2005 figure was the first time the county breached 50,000.
In figuring the county population, Assessor Michael Glass said he took the state demographer's estimate of people per household multiplied by the county occupancy rate.
The assessor's estimates are helpful to the county when it comes to getting increased state revenue, according to Commissioner Leroy Goodman.
"It helps with our consolidated tax receipts we get from the state," he said. Consolidated taxes come from sales, liquor, cigarette and other taxes, a portion of which are divided among the counties, based on population.
"The greater percentage you have of the state's population, you get a bigger piece of the pie," he said.
Goodman also said more people could mean a greater chance of success when applying for federal funding.
"It makes us the fourth-largest county in the state now," he said. "We're even larger than Douglas County now."
The largest counties are Clark, Washoe and Carson City, followed now by Lyon.
The largest population center in the county is Fernley, which grew by 1,900 residents in 2006 to 19,089.
The Dayton Valley area is next in size, with 8,011 residents in 2006, compared with 7,700 for 2005.
Mason Valley ranked third, with 6,171 residents, up 397 from the year before.
Glass said the Yerington and Mason Valley numbers were higher than expected because in 2006, he included figures from the area's Indian reservations that had not been included in the past.
Silver Springs continues to grow, with 5,883 residents in 2006, up from 5,661 in 2005.
The smallest community, excluding the 151 residents in the general taxing district, or those who don't live in a fire district, was Smith Valley, with 1,989 people in 2006. Smith Valley was home to 1,890 residents in 2005.
The Mark Twain/Carson Plains area grew from 4,150 residents in 2005 to 4,785 in 2006.
The City of Yerington, including the Yerington Paiute Tribe Colony, is at 3,158 residents in 2006, up from 3,024 in 2005, when the reservation was not included.
The Mound House/Silver City area grew from 2,032 in 2005 to 2,060 in 2006.
Another 509 residents lived in group quarters, what the state demographer calls hotels and motels.
• Contact reporter Karen Woodmansee at kwoodmansee@nevadaappeal.com or 882-2111 ext. 351.