WASHINGTON DC, March 28, 2012 - State personal income rose an average 5.1 percent in 2011 after rising 3.7 percent in 2010, according to estimates released today by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. State personal income growth ranged from 3.4 percent in Maine to 8.1 percent in North Dakota. Inflation, as measured by the national price index for personal consumption expenditures, increased to 2.5 percent in 2011 from 1.8 percent in 2010.

Earnings, which grew an average 4.4 percent in 2011, recovered their pre-recession levels and reached new peaks in 45 states. Earnings in Arizona, Florida, Michigan, Nevada, and Oklahoma are still below peaks reached in 2007 or 2008. The 3.0 percent earnings growth in Nevada in 2011 follows three consecutive years of decline.

Earnings increased in every private industry in 2011 and earnings growth accelerated in all private industries except administrative services and accommodations. In contrast, earnings fell 0.3 percent for state and local government employees, while earnings growth slowed for the civilian federal government to 0.6 percent from 7.2 percent in 2010 and for the military to 1.3 percent from 4.0 percent in 2010.

Per capita personal income. Per capita personal income (personal income divided by population) rose 4.3 percent nationally in 2011 after rising 2.8 percent in 2010. Across states, per capita personal income growth ranged from 2.9 percent in Alaska to 6.7 percent in North Dakota.

Fourth quarter personal income.¹ State personal income growth averaged 0.8 percent in the fourth quarter of 2011, the same as in the third quarter. Growth ranged from 0.5 percent in Wisconsin to 1.5 percent in North Dakota. The inflation rate fell to 0.3 percent in the fourth quarter of 2011 from 0.6 percent in the third quarter.

Private nonfarm earnings accounted for almost all of the growth in personal income in the fourth quarter in most states. Mining earnings grew 9.0 percent, faster than every other industry, and accounted for the bulk of the growth in the six fastest growing states: North Dakota, Wyoming, Oklahoma, Texas, Louisiana, and West Virginia.

¹NOTE.— Quarter-to-quarter percent changes are calculated from unrounded data and are not annualized. Quarterly estimates are expressed at seasonally adjusted annual rates, unless otherwise specified. Quarter-to-quarter dollar changes are differences between published estimates.

Personal income is the income received by all persons from all sources. Personal income is the sum of net earnings by place of residence, property income, and personal current transfer receipts. Property income is rental income of persons, personal dividend income, and personal interest income. Net earnings is earnings by place of work (the sum of wage and salary disbursements, supplements to wages and salaries, and proprietors income) less contributions for government social insurance, plus an adjustment to convert earnings by place of work to a place-of-residence basis. Personal income is measured before the deduction of personal income taxes and other personal taxes and is reported in current dollars (no adjustment is made for price changes).

Per capita personal income is calculated as the total personal income of the residents of a state divided by the population of the state. In computing per capita personal income, BEA uses the Census Bureaus annual midyear population estimates.

Disposable personal income is personal income less personal current taxes. It is the portion of personal income that is available for spending and saving.

The estimate of personal income in the United States is derived as the sum of the state estimates and the estimate for the District of Columbia; it differs from the estimate of personal income in the national income and product accounts (NIPAs) because of differences in coverage, in the methodologies used to prepare the estimates, and in the timing of the availability of source data.

BEA groups all 50 states and the District of Columbia into eight distinct regions for purposes of data collecting and analyses: New England (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont); Mideast (Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania); Great Lakes (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin); Plains (Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota); Southeast (Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia); Southwest (Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas); Rocky Mountain (Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Utah, and Wyoming); and Far West (Alaska, California, Hawaii, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington).

BEA's national, international, regional, and industry estimates; the Survey of Current Business; and BEA news releases are available without charge on BEA's Web site at www.bea.gov. By visiting the site, you can also subscribe to receive free e-mail summaries of BEA releases and announcements.

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Next state personal income release – June 27, 2012, at 8:30 A.M. for state personal income, first quarter 2012.