evidence: Growing Hispanic populations are also reshaping the demographics of states. In the last decade, Hispanics became the largest racial or ethnic group in California for the first time. California joins New Mexico as the two U.S. states where Hispanics are the largest racial or ethnic group. And the future demographics of many states are poised to be further shaped by Hispanics. In 2000, in eight states, 20% or more of kindergartners were Hispanics. By 2017, that number had grown to 18 states plus the District of Columbia. [...] English proficiency is rising among U.S. Latinos. In 2019, the most recent available data from the U.S. Census Bureau, 72% of all Latinos ages 5 and older indicated they spoke English proficiently, up from 59% in 1980. Many of the gains in English proficiency for the group have come since 2000, reflecting the slowdown in Latin American immigration this century. At the same time, the share of Latinos who speak Spanish at home is falling. In 2019, seven-in-ten Latinos ages 5 and older spoke Spanish at home, down from a peak of 78% in 2000.