|
Poverty
in Maine - 2006
Kennebec County Profile
|
-
Population growth
in Kennebec County from 2000 to 2005 (3.3%) was slightly below
the statewide rate (3.7%). The county is one of five in Maine
that reversed from being a net outmigration county in the
1990s to a net inmigration county in 2000-2004.
-
Kennebec County’s
individual poverty rate in 2003 was close to the state rate,
both for the population as a whole and for those under 18.
-
Median household
income in Kennebec County in 2003 was close to the state
median income. It was slightly above the 200% poverty level
for a four-person household.
-
The 2004 ‘livable
wage’ estimate for a four-person household (2 parents, both
wage earners, and 2 children) in Kennebec County was more than
twice as high as the
poverty level for a four-person household.
-
The proportion of
per-capita personal income in 2004 from net earnings was the
same in Kennebec County as in the state as a whole, while the
proportion from transfer payments was higher.
-
Kennebec County’s
monthly average unemployment rate for 2005 was almost the same
as the state rate.
-
Kennebec County
residents were about the same as the state average in
participation rates for food stamps in FY05.
-
The proportion of
the school-age population eligible for free and reduced school
lunch in FY06 was comparable to the state as a whole.
-
The proportion of
households receiving LIHEAP benefits in Kennebec County in
FY05 was comparable to the statewide level. Compared to LIHEAP
recipients statewide, a higher proportion in Kennebec County
received Medicaid, food stamps, or Supplemental Security
Income (SSI), and a somewhat smaller proportion were age 65 or
above.
-
A slightly lower
proportion of the Kennebec County population has college
degrees (associate or bachelor’s) than in the state as a
whole.
TREND HIGHLIGHTS
-
Over the most
recent four-year period for which county-level data are
available, the poverty rate trend in Kennebec County mirrors
that of the state as a whole. The estimated percentage of
individuals below poverty increased each year from 2000 to
2002, with
a slight decrease in 2003.
-
Over the four-year
period from FY02 to FY05, the number of Kennebec County
households receiving food stamps increased each year; the
number in FY05 was 52.7% greater than in FY02, which was
somewhat greater than the statewide increase of 49% in this
time period.
-
The number of
Kennebec County households receiving LIHEAP benefits declined
somewhat from FY02 to FY04, but increased in FY05.
-
From 2002-2005,
Kennebec County’s monthly average unemployment rate mirrored
that of the state as a whole, reaching a peak in 2003 and
declining slightly after that.
-
The percentage of
school-age children eligible for free and reduced school lunch
in Kennebec County increased from FY03 to FY06, showing a
generally similar pattern of increase as the state as a whole.
MAPS AND GRAPHS
|
|
Previous: Hancock
County
|
Table of
Contents
|
Next: Knox
County
|
|
