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<b>States Where Incomes Are Booming (or Not)<br>
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</b><b></b>The combined sum of all income received by all Americans
was $12.2 trillion in 2010. It was the end of what many economists
consider the worst decade for the American economy since the 1930s.
During the Great Recession GDP growth slowed to a crawl, and
unemployment fell to levels not seen in decades. Starting in 2010
the nation began its long process of recovery. In 2015, personal
income amounted to $14.0 trillion, a 14.6% increase from five years
earlier.
<p>While all states have enjoyed some economic recovery, growth was
far from even. North Dakota led the nation with a 27.9% increase
in personal income, while Maine’s 4.2% personal income growth was
the slowest. To identify the states where income is booming, and
the states where it is not, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed personal income
data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis for each state over the
five years through 2015.</p>
<p>Personal income is the sum of the net earnings of all people from
all sources before taxes, the largest component of which is wages
and salaries. Most of the states where personal incomes grew the
fastest have strong, flourishing industries that helped weather
the recession and continue to aid the recovery. In an interview
with 24/7 Wall St., Chad Shearer, senior research analyst at the
Brookings Institution’s Metropolitan Policy Program, said, “The
biggest factor in explaining why some places have recovered faster
than others is really their industrial composition.”</p>
<b><br>
More of the story may be read at: <a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://tinyurl.com/hrjrnrh">http://tinyurl.com/hrjrnrh</a></b>
<p><strong><br>
16. Idaho<br>
> Personal income growth (2010-2015):</strong> 15.2%<br>
<strong>> Per capita personal income 2015:</strong> $36,991
(3rd lowest)<br>
<strong>> Unemployment rate:</strong> 4.1% (12th lowest)<br>
<strong>> Pct. change in labor force (2010-2015):</strong> 4.8%
(7th highest)</p>
<p>Three industries have been a drag on Idaho’s economy since 2010.
The mining, utilities, and information sectors all contracted by
at least 2.9%. Still, faster-than-average GDP gains in several
other industries such as manufacturing and government were enough
to drive personal income growth up 15.2% from 2010 through 2015.
Income per capita in Idaho, however, remains among the lowest in
the country. The average resident in the state earns only $36,991
per year, less than in all but two other states. (Those two states
are Arizona, and, at the bottom, Utah.)<br>
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Ken<br>
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