Poverty in Maine - 2006
Knox County Profile

• Population growth in Knox County from 2000 to 2005 (4%) was above the state average (3.7%). Knox’s population in 2005 was somewhat older than the state as a whole, with a greater proportion age 65 and over than
  in the state as a whole.

• Knox County’s individual poverty rate in 2003 was about the same as the state rate, both for the population as a whole and for those under 18.

• Median household income in Knox County in 2003 was almost the same as the state median income. It was slightly higher than 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 Knox County was more 2.5 times higher than the poverty level for a four-person household.

• The proportion of per-capita personal income in 2004 from net earnings was lower in Knox County than in the state as a whole, while the proportion from dividends, interest and rent was considerably higher and from transfer payments was somewhat lower. This personal income distribution may reflect the recent influx of relatively well-off retirees.

• Knox County’s monthly average unemployment rate for 2005 was somewhat lower than the state average.

• Knox County residents were slightly under 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 slightly under that in the state as a whole.

• The proportion of households receiving LIHEAP benefits in FY05 was somewhat under the statewide level.

• A higher proportion of the Knox County population has bachelor’s degrees than in the state as a whole, and a smaller proportion lacks high school degrees.

• Over the most recent four-year period for which county-level data are available, the poverty rate trend in Knox County mirrors that of the state as a whole, and the county’s rate was almost identical to the statewide rate each year from 2000 to 2003. The estimated percentage of individuals below poverty increased each year from 2000 to 2002, with a decrease in 2003.

• Over the four-year period from FY02 to FY05, the number of Knox County households receiving food stamps increased each year; the number in FY05 was 63.3% greater than in FY02, considerably greater than the statewide increase of 49% in this time period, and the highest rate of increase
  of any county.

• The number of Knox County households receiving LIHEAP benefits remained relatively stable from FY02 to FY04, and decreased in FY05.

• From 2002 to 2005, Knox County’s monthly average unemployment rate trend generally mirrored that of the state as a whole; however, the 2005 county rate was the highest in this four-year period.

• The percentage of school-age children eligible for free and reduced school lunch in Knox County decreased slightly from FY03 to FY05, but increased to a higher level in FY06.

MAPS AND GRAPHS

• Households Receiving LIHEAP Benefits

• Income, Poverty, Employment, Unemployment

• Benefits trends

• Per-capita Personal Income

• Poverty and Livable Wages

• Food Stamps and LIHEAP Benefits

• Poverty, Food Stamps, LIHEAP

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