LINDSAY WHITEHURST and KEITH RIDLERThe Associated PressSALT LAKE CITY (AP) - Two Western states known for their rugged landscapes and wide-open spaces are bucking the trend of sluggish U.S. population growth, which dipped to the lowest level since the Great Depression, though different forces are powering the population booms in Utah and Idaho.In Utah, births largely drove the fastest growth in the country over the past decade. In neighboring Idaho, newcomers from California and other states helped it capture the second spot.“I don’t ever remember seeing anything like this,” Bill Rauer, executive officer of the Idaho Building Contractors Association in southwest Idaho, the state’s most populous area said. “(Builders) are running at a breakneck pace right now.”
