One year does not a decade make

 / Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis
/ Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis

Last week’s release of the change in personal income by state for 2013-14 placed Rhode Island pretty high on the list, No. 16, with a one-year gain of 4.3 percent. But that doesn’t quite tell the entire story.

In the last decade, the Ocean State had a cumulative gain of 35.1 percent, the smallest in all of New England save the 34.3 percent registered by Maine. In fact, New England lagged the entire nation, as the United States saw a total gain for the decade of 46.5 percent, ahead of even the allegedly high-flying Massachusetts juggernaut, which had 45.8 percent personal-income growth.

So where were the most gains made in the last decade? The energy boom helped North Dakota, Wyoming and Texas see gains of 111.2, 76.4 and 75.9 percent respectively. And despite congressional gridlock, Washington, D.C., saw a gain of 71.8 percent.

At the bottom of the ranking was Michigan, with a gain of 24.4 percent. But Maine and Rhode Island took the 50th and 49th spots on the list, respectively. They were preceded by Indiana, Ohio and Nevada, at total gains of 35.4, 35.6 and 35.9 percent respectively. •

- Advertisement -

No posts to display