Rogue Valley Local Area Personal Income in 2021
December 21, 2022New figures published from the Bureau of Economic Analysis show healthy gains in Oregon and Rogue Valley per capita personal income (PCPI) between 2020 and 2021. PCPI is just one of the figures recently released in the State and Local Area Personal Income series available now for 2021 at www.bea.gov.
PCPI is one of the most often cited figures to measure an area’s overall economic health and prosperity. But there are a few factors that make this an imperfect yardstick to compare local areas and economies. Since the data use total income – earnings from work; personal current transfer receipts; and dividends, interest, and rent – and divide that by total population, areas with a higher concentration of older residents can show lower PCPI. Older residents are less likely to be working, meaning they have less contribution to the net earnings component of income. Remember PCPI represents income, rather than wealth. Older residents may have substantial wealth, but not have as much relative income, and this wealth would not be captured in PCPI figures, unless it was income-generating investments that would show up in the “dividends, interest, and rent” portion of PCPI.
Also, differences in cost-of-living among local areas are not captured in PCPI. Places with lower costs of living and lower PCPI can be relatively as well-off as areas with higher costs of living and higher PCPI. Knowing the limitations of the data can help you understand how to view the figures in a clearer context. All that being said, lets forge ahead and look at the new figures for 2021.
Jackson County
In 2021, Jackson County’s PCPI was $56,842, the 886th highest PCPI among 3,114 U.S. counties. Jackson County’s PCPI rose by 8.5% from 2020, slightly faster growth than for Oregon statewide (8.1%) and surpassing the U.S. increase (7.3%). Jackson County’s PCPI was 92.3% of the statewide PCPI and 88.6% of the U.S. average per capita personal income.
In Jackson County, 50.4% of PCPI is from net earnings, which includes wage and salary income, farm and non-farm proprietor income. Jackson’s net earnings share of personal income was lower than for the United States (59.9%) or Oregon statewide (57.9%). Average earnings per job in Jackson County were $58,120 compared with $69,850 for Oregon as a whole. Average nonfarm proprietor income in Jackson County trailed the Oregon average, at $36,713 versus the state’s $38,118.
Per capita personal current transfer receipts made up about 21.7% of U.S. PCPI and 31.2% in Jackson County. About 84% of Jackson County personal current transfer receipts were from “retirement and other income,” reflecting our slightly older population with more retirees than the state overall. Jackson County had higher per capita retirement and other income ($14,962) than Oregon ($12,533). Jackson County also has about $250 greater per capita “income maintenance” than the Oregon average.
Dividends, interest, and rent income accounted for about 18.4% of Jackson’s personal income in 2021, equaling the share for the U.S. In the early 2000s the gap between Oregon and Jackson County’s PCPI hovered around 4.0% to 4.5%, its narrowest gap since the series started in 1969. During the past decade, the difference has ranged between about 7% to 9% percent and most recently in 2021 Jackson County’s PCPI was 7.7% below the Oregon figure, or -$4,754.
Josephine County’s PCPI has trailed Jackson’s over the years, but the gap with Jackson County has been narrowing the past five years.
Josephine County
In 2021, Josephine County’s PCPI was $54,466, the 1,095th highest PCPI among 3,114 U.S. counties. Josephine County’s PCPI rose by 11% from 2020, faster growth than for Oregon statewide (8.1%) and surpassing the U.S. increase (7.3%). Josephine County’s PCPI was 88.4% of the statewide PCPI and 84.9% of the U.S. average per capita personal income.
In Josephine County, 45.7% of PCPI is from net earnings, which includes wage and salary income, farm and non-farm proprietor income. Josephine’s net earnings share of personal income was lower than for the United States (59.9%) or Oregon statewide (57.9%). Average earnings per job in Josephine County were $57,825 compared with $69,850 for Oregon as a whole. Average nonfarm proprietor income in Josephine County exceeded the Oregon average, at $60,742 versus the state’s $38,118.
Per capita personal current transfer receipts made up about 21.7% of U.S. PCPI and 38.1% in Josephine County. About 84% of Josephine County personal current transfer receipts were from “retirement and other income,” reflecting our slightly older population with more retirees than the state overall. Josephine County had higher per capita retirement and other income ($17,536) than Oregon ($12,533). Josephine County also had $484 greater per capita “income maintenance” than the Oregon average.
Dividends, interest, and rent income accounted for about 16.2% of Josephine’s personal income in 2021, slightly less than the share for the U.S. The gap between Oregon and Josephine County’s PCPI has varied between about 16% and 23% since 1969. In 2021, the county had narrowest gap with Oregon overall since the series started at -11.6%, or -$7,130 below the statewide figure.
Find additional statistics from the State and Local Personal Income series published by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. For more information, visit the website and explore the interactive tables listed.