The Economic Health Indicators are under construction. Please check back soon for a final determination on the calculation of this index.
Indicator 1: Per Capita Market Income Index
Market Income (MI) is defined as total income minus transfers. This indicator compares a state or county’s per capita market income to that of the U.S. as a whole. This index is normalized to the U.S. value such that low numbers are an indicator of distress. Therefore the U.S. per capita market income is in the denominator and state/county PCMI in the numerator such that a county with a higher PCMI than the U.S. average has a high score.
(County Total Income – County Transfers) / County Population
PCMI =
(U.S. Total Income – U.S. Transfers) / U.S. Population
Indicator 1 = PCMI * 100
Indicator 2: Unemployment Rate Index
This indicator compares a county’s unemployment rate to that of the nation. Thus a county with a lower rate of unemployment than the U.S. average should have a low score.
County Unemployment Rate
UNEMPRAT Ratio =
U.S. Unemployment Rate
Indicator 2 = UNEMPRAT Ratio * 100
Indicator 3: Labor Force-to-Total Population Ratio Index
This indicator is meant to measure the dependant population or in other words, the share of the population that depends on the labor of others.
(Total Population - Civilian Labor Force)
LFTP =
Total Population
Indicator 3 = State/County LFTP / U.S. LFTP * 100
Indicator 4: Per Capita Transfer Payment-to-Per Capita Market Income Ratio Index
Indicator 4 measures the extent to which the population depends on external sources of unearned income (e.g., transfer payments). High amounts of unearned income are an indicator of economic distress and therefore result in a higher score.
Per Capita Transfer Payments
TPMI Ratio =
Per Capita Market Income
(as calculated in Index 1)
Indicator 4 = State/County TPMI Ratio / U.S. TPMI Ratio * 100
Indicator 5: Population Change
Calculation in progress....
Economic Health Index
The overall Economic Health Index is the average of the five indicators giving each equal weight.
less than 85
Very Poor Economic Health
85-95
Poor Economic Health
95-105
Average Economic Health
105-115
Good Economic Health
greater than 115
Very Good Economic Health
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