U.S. teen birth rates fell dramatically during the past two decades, dropping a surprising 57% and saving taxpayers billions of dollars, according to a new government report.

Researchers from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that an estimated 4 million fewer births occurred among teenagers as a result of the decline, according to WebMD.

"We know, for instance, that only about 40% of teen mothers ever graduate from high school. Translate that number - 4 million fewer births - into a much, much lower high school graduation rate, and think about the prospects for those young women in this day and age and in this economy. It's pretty sobering," stated Bill Albert, chief program officer of The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy.

The decline in teen birth rates has occurred in all 50 states, with all race and ethnic groups experiencing a reduction in teenage parenthood, according to report author Stephanie Ventura, a senior demographer for the CDC's National Center for Health Statistics.

Teenagers' caution regarding sex reportedly might be connected to the federal government's investment in more extensive sex education programs. Now that we are living in a period where HIV has created caution as well, boys have become more cautious towards sex too, according to Albert.

The record high for birth rates was in 1957 with 96.3 births per 1,000 teenagers compared with 2013 preliminary data showing 26.6 births per 1,000 teens, according to USA Today.

Overall, teenage birth rates have been on the decline except for a few periodic increases.

"These historic declines in teen pregnancy and births truly represent one of the nation's great success stories over the past two decades," Albert stated.