Orange County Benchmarking and Target Industry Analysis: Spotlight

Figure 28: PCPI, Casino Peers, 2000 to 2009
2009 PCPI Value
$40,000
$35,000
$30,000
$25,000
$20,000
$15,000
$10,000
$5,000
$-
Source: Bureau of Economic Analysis
La Paz, AZ, which is similar to Orange County in population, has the highest poverty rate with over a
quarter of its residents in poverty (see Table 14). In comparison, Orange County had roughly 17 percent
of its population in poverty in 2009. Over the past nine years, the poverty rate grew most quickly in
Ohio, IN , followed by Mille Lacs, MN. Interestingly, during the recession, two counties lowered their
poverty rate—Tama, IA, and Menominee, MI—while some other counties experienced large surges in
poverty rates, notably Mille Lacs, Switzerland, and Orange County.
Table 14: Poverty Rates, Casino Peers, 2000 and 2007‐2009
Casino Peer
Poverty Rate Average Annual Rate of Change
2000 2007 2008 2009 2007-2009 2000-2009
La Paz, AZ 20.7% 23.8% 26.1% 25.4% 3.4% 2.5%
Allen, LA 21.4% 21.6% 20.7% 23.1% 3.5% 0.9%
Switzerland, IN 11.4% 14.4% 16.3% 17.2% 9.7% 5.7%
Orange, IN 12.0% 14.2% 15.9% 16.9% 9.5% 4.5%
Mille Lacs, MN 8.9% 9.5% 12.3% 13.4% 20.5% 5.6%
Menominee, MI 10.0% 14.0% 15.7% 12.9% -3.9% 3.2%
Tama, IA 8.4% 10.8% 10.7% 10.5% -1.4% 2.8%
Ohio, IN 6.7% 9.1% 9.0% 10.2% 6.0% 5.8%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
2009 PCPI (left axis) Rate of Change (right axis)
The strong increase in poverty within Mille Lacs County may be a result of the high unemployment rate
it had in 2010, which has persisted at the 10.7 percent mark (see Figure 29). Orange County had the
second‐highest average unemployment rate in 2010 of the peers; however, its rate has dropped into the
low 9 percent range during 2011. Thus far in 2011, only one county has had increasing unemployment
rates—La Paz, AZ, with its July rate of 11.3 percent. Tama, IA, has had the lowest unemployment rate of
44
8%
7%
6%
5%
4%
3%
2%
1%
0%
Average Annual Rate of
Change, 2000 to 2009