Marion County ranks No. 1 in Mississippi in one measure of income growth, according to recently released data. The average resident’s earnings increased from $29,970 in 2016 to $32,535 in 2017.
That was an 8.6 percent annual gain, the highest among the state’s 82 counties. And it nearly doubled the overall United States growth rate of 4.4 percent.
That’s according to numbers for per capita personal income released Nov. 15 by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.
In a region that’s been thumped with bad economic news for the better part of a decade, that’s great to hear. It’s rare for a rural county like Marion to lead the state in anything related to the economy, and that’s something the community should take pride in.
But if you’re like me, you’re asking why. Is it real or a fluke? I took a dive into the numbers, and what I concluded is that it is a substantial, legitimate rise that bodes well for the area’s economic future.
First of all, a short explanation about what we’re talking about with “personal income.” It’s defined as all incomes received by people from all sources. That includes from working a job, owning a business or government handouts, among other things. It’s also based on where a person lives, not where they work.
Furthermore, the Bureau of Economic Analysis breaks the numbers down by each employment sector. And the biggest surges in Marion County came in places that form the backbone of an economy: Manufacturing, oil and gas extraction and construction. Those are the large forces at the bottom of the food chain that everyone else feeds off. If they are robust, your community tends to be strong.
For example, manufacturing wages in Marion County rose from $26.9 million in 2016 to $33.3 million in 2017. That’s up nearly 25 percent and is a $6 million boost to the local economy.
It’s particularly noteworthy that the largest percentage growth came in wood product manufacturing. It expanded from $9.7 million to $14.9 million, a 52 percent hike. The data doesn’t show which companies are included in that data, but I’d be interested in seeing it for that subcategory.
Also, “mining, quarrying and oil and gas extraction” income jumped about 30 percent. Since there’s not much mining or quarrying going on around here, I’m guessing that’s mainly men working in the oil fields (someone whose home is in Marion County but works offshore would be counted with Marion County). Obviously that is a field where there are great income opportunities that don’t require a lot of expensive education for those willing to work hard and make personal sacrifices to be away from home. The county’s economy certainly benefits greatly from those who do that.
Other areas of growth included “professional, scientific and technical services,” “management of companies and enterprises” and “heavy and civil engineering construction.”
Interestingly, government employee incomes fell by about 2 percent. In a state and country that have become too dependent on government jobs (about 20 percent of the jobs in Mississippi are government work), it’s probably a good thing that the local growth is in private industry.
In a more disturbing change, income from retail trade fell by about 4 percent. That says to me that local stores are still being hurt by online sales and competition from soulless chain stores in the Hattiesburg area.
That re-emphasizes the important of shopping local this Christmas season at places in Columbia that contribute so much to the social fabric of our community. Also, it will be interesting to see the 2018 numbers when they’re released to tell if the addition of an online sales tax makes a difference or not.
Despite those challenges, having a strong industrial base gives Marion County good reason to believe its economy will be strong heading into 2019.
Charlie Smith is editor and publisher of The Columbian-Progress. Reach him at csmith@columbianprogress.com or (601) 736-2611.
