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Poverty
in Maine - 2006
Oxford County Profile
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Population growth
in Oxford County from 2000 to 2005 (3.4%) was close to the
state average (3.7%). The county’s population age profile
was very similar to the state as
a whole.
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Oxford County’s
individual poverty rate in 2003 was slightly higher than the
state rate, both for the population as a whole and for those
under 18.
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Median household
income in Oxford County in 2003 was 10.2% lower than the state
median income. It was 6.6% below the 200% poverty level for a
four-person household.
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The 2004 ‘livable
wage’ estimate for a four-person household (2 parents, both
wage earners, and 2 children) in Oxford County was more than
twice as high as the poverty level for a four-person
household.
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The proportion of
per-capita personal income in 2004 from net earnings was
considerably lower in Oxford County than in the state as a
whole, and the proportion from transfer payments was
considerably higher.
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Oxford County’s
monthly average unemployment rate for 2005 was almost a full
percentage point higher than the state average.
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Oxford County
residents were higher than the state average in participation
rates for food stamps in FY05.
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The proportion of
the school-age population eligible for free and reduced school
lunch in FY06 was considerably higher than in the state as a
whole.
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The proportion of
households receiving LIHEAP benefits in FY05 was higher than
in the state as a whole.
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A considerably
smaller proportion of the Oxford County population has college
degrees (associate or bachelor’s) than in the state as a
whole.
TREND HIGHLIGHTS
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Over the most
recent four-year period for which county-level data are
available, the poverty rate trend in Oxford County generally
mirrors that of the state as a whole. The estimated percentage
of individuals below poverty increased each year from 2000 to
2002, with a decrease in 2003. The county poverty rate in 2003
was the lowest of this four-year period
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Over the four-year
period from FY02 to FY05, the number of Oxford County
households receiving food stamps increased each year; the
number in FY05 was 41.6% greater than in FY02, which was
somewhat less than the statewide increase of 49% in this time
period.
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The number of
Oxford County households receiving LIHEAP benefits remained
fairly stable from FY02 to FY05, ranging from a high of 2,897
households in FY02 to a low of 2,673 in FY04.
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From 2002 to 2005,
Oxford County’s monthly average unemployment rate reached a
peak in 2003, declined by more than a full percentage point in
2004, and remained about the same in 2005.
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The percentage of
school-age children eligible for free and reduced school lunch
in Oxford County increased from FY03 to FY06, showing a
similar pattern of increase as the state as a whole.
MAPS AND GRAPHS
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County
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