Economy

Per Capita Personal Income

Description: Per capita personal income is a commonly used, broad measure of individual economic well-being. It is calculated by dividing personal income by population. Personal income includes earnings (consisting of wages and salaries of workers, other labor income, and proprietors’ income); dividends, interest, and rent; and transfer payments (such as retirement benefits, food stamps, and unemployment compensation).

Annual data are presented on the dashboard for 1969 through 2005 for the United States, Arizona, and the state’s 15 counties. Unadjusted and inflation-adjusted dollars are presented, as well as the inflation-adjusted percent change and the percentage of the national average. The data are inflation adjusted using the gross domestic product (GDP) implicit price deflator. The inflation-adjusted dollars are expressed in terms of the latest year of data available.

Data Sources: U. S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) through the Regional Economic Information System. Total personal income, population, and per capita personal income are available from Table CA1-3 http://www.bea.gov/regional/reis/default.cfm?catable=CA1-3&section=2. The GDP implicit price deflator is available from the U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis http://www.bea.gov/national/nipaweb/SelectTable.asp?Selected=Y (Table 1.1.9).

Comments on the Quality of the Data: The BEA must estimate state and local figures from national data for various components of personal income. Some evidence exists that personal income for Arizona is being underestimated.