Useful Stats: State Personal Income and Per Capita Income 2005-2010

After declining last year for the first time since 1949, U.S. personal income rose three percent in 2010 to more than $12.5 trillion, according to a release from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA). U.S. per capital personal income, which had also dipped in 2009, rose 14.6 percent to $40,584 last year. Both U.S. total and per capita personal income, however, remained below their peak levels in 2008. The largest percentage increases in personal income came in the Southwest region (Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas) and the Mideast region (Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania.

Only ten states posted income levels in 2010 that exceeded the pre-recession level in 2008. That group includes Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, New Mexico, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Virginia and West Virginia. Alaska also surpassed its 2008 level, though the BEA report notes that Alaska experienced only a marginal decline in 2009, unlike most of the rest of the country. New Mexico's personal income grew by 4.2 percent over the previous year, the largest percentage increase in the country.

While California had the highest personal income overall, the District of Columbia continues to have the highest per capita income in the country. In 2010, the D.C. had an average per capita income of $71,044, 75.1 percent higher than the U.S. average. Other top states for per capita income include Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Maryland. The largest one-year increase in per capita income happened in Arizona, where the average income grew by 5.3 percent. Despite that growth, Arizona continues to rank 41st in per capita income.

Read the BEA release at: http://www.bea.gov/newsreleases/regional/spi/spi_newsrelease.htm

SSTI has put together tables of personal income and per capita personal income by state for the years 2005-2010. Since 2005, U.S. personal income has grown by 19.6 percent and per capita income has grown by 14.57 percent. Wyoming, which ranks 50th in personal income, nonetheless had the greatest percentage increase in income during the 2005-2010 period. Average income grew by 35.1 percent to $27 billion in Wyoming. The District of Columbia had the greatest growth in per capita income since 2005, with an increase of 29.4 percent. Other top states for per capita income increases include Louisiana, North Dakota, West Virginia and Wyoming.

View the personal income table at: http://www.ssti.org/Digest/Tables/033011t.htm. View the per capita personal income table at: http://www.ssti.org/Digest/Tables/033011ta.htm