Region beats state income average
Last updated Tuesday, August 26, 2008 10:34 PM CDT in News
By Don Dailey The Morning News
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SPRINGDALE — Northwest Arkansas is on the wrong side of national averages in median household income and poverty, according to data released Tuesday by the U.S. Census Bureau.
With a median — or midpoint — household income of $44,552 in 2007, Northwest Arkansas lagged behind the national median of $50,233, but beat the state median of $38,134.
Kathy Deck, director for the Center for Business and Economic Research at the University of Arkansas, said Northwest Arkansas’ typical spot on the economic spectrum is higher than state averages but lower than national averages.
Northwest Arkansas’ poverty rate was 14.1 percent, significantly below the state rate of 17.9 percent but above the national rate of 12.1 percent.
The regional poverty rate ticked up slightly over 2006 when it was 13.4 percent.
The released data came from the American Community Survey, an ongoing survey sent to a small sample of the population. Data from the survey is released each year.
Deck said the statistics released Tuesday do not take into account the consequences of the economic downturn that began late last year, but the current economic climate shouldn’t alter the averages by much.
“Even in an economic downturn like we’re in now, you’re not going to see dramatic shifts,” Deck said.
The median household income in the state ranked fourth lowest in the nation, with Mississippi having the lowest.
Deck said that Northwest Arkansas, which is defined as the metropolitan area covering Washington and Benton counties and part of Missouri, is viewed as having a dynamic economy, but while it performs above the state averages it stays below national levels by most measures.
“I think that gives some people pause,” Deck said.
The number of people lacking health insurance dropped nationally by more than 1 million in 2007, the first annual decline since the Bush administration took office.
The data show Arkansas’ uninsured rate at 17.5 percent over a three-year span. The national average was 15.4 percent.
Health care statistics on the local level weren’t provided.
Rich Huddleston, executive director of Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families, said children remain hard-hit by a lack of health insurance. Huddleston said one in 10 children in Arkansas still lack health care coverage, despite the state’s ARKids First program, which provides insurance for children in families earning up to twice the federal poverty level.
Part of the problem stems from families simply not applying for the benefits, Huddleston said, but others without insurance aren’t eligible for the program.
“We think most of the (uninsured) kids who are not currently eligible for ARKids First lie in that 200 to 300 percent of poverty range,” he said. “For families with those incomes, it’s increasingly difficult just to pay bills on a daily basis.”
The Census report was immediately swept up into presidential politics. Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama’s campaign fired off a statement blasting what it called the “failed record” of Bush’s economic policies and promising “bottom up economic growth” if the Illinois senator is elected.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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recross1 wrote on Aug 27, 2008 9:38 AM:
Not already registered?
BCR wrote on Aug 26, 2008 3:55 PM: