This is the fourth in a series of reports that provide a comprehensive look at the external environment impacting Los Rios Community College District (LRCCD), California. It summarizes the social, economic, and political changes at the state and national levels in general, and in the Sacramento-Yolo Consolidated Metropolitan Statistical Area served by the LRCCD. The report also projects total enrollment into the next millennium at the district level and for each of the LRCCD colleges: American River College, Cosumnes River College, and Sacramento City College. The report contains these sections: (1) "Demographic TrendsGeneral Population, Special Population Groups, School-Age Population and High School Graduates"; (2) "Economic TrendsEmployment by Industry/Occupation, Sector Growth, Indicators of Poverty"; (3) "Education Performance TrendsEducation Attainment and K-12 Performance, Including Standardized Tests, Dropout Rates, UC/CSU Eligibility"; (4) "Political Trends Impacting the District"; (5) "Projected Enrollment Trends for the District"; and (6) "Summary ObservationsExternal Scan 2002." The population of the area is projected to continue to grow by 17.5% to 1.90 million by 2010 and to 2.04 million by 2015. The communities form which the bulk of this growth is likely are identified. It is also likely that the district will see growing numbers of students who speak a language other than English at home. Data are also provided about the occupations that will increase to the greatest degree in the projected future. (Contains 60 charts.) (SLD)