Census Bureau Releases New Data on Idaho Cities, Towns from 2013-2017

American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates

Idaho’s slight increase in the workforce, a rise in median household income, an increase in median gross rent and a decrease in the number of persons living below the poverty level are just a few of the many statistics released this week by the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Census Bureau’s 2013–2017 American Community Survey produces a rolling sample of estimates on more than 40 social, economic and housing characteristics for U.S. cities, towns, counties and other geographies, regardless of their population size. It is the only source for comprehensive data for 38 of Idaho’s 44 counties and 198 incorporated cities.

Narrative profiles offering short analytic reports on all 40 sets of data for the nation, states, counties, places and census tracts can be accessed from the U.S. Census website at https://www.census.gov/acs/www/data/data-tables-and-tools/narrative-profiles/2017/

A sample of Idaho statistics released and published on the Census website in this release include:

Workforce

Fifty-nine percent of Idaho’s population age 16 and older were employed, while 37.5 percent were not currently in the labor force. Of the employed, 77.3 percent were working for private establishments, slightly more than 16.6 percent worked for government employers and 6.1 percent were self-employed.

Language Spoken at Home and English-Speaking Ability

According to the 2013-2017 data, 10.6 percent of Idaho’s population age 5 and older spoke a language other than English at home. Of those, 62.7 percent also spoke English.

• Clark County had the highest percentage that spoke a language other than English – 39.5 percent – with 25.1 percent speaking English less than very well.
• Butte County had the smallest percentage that spoke a language other than English – 0.5 percent – with 0.1 percent of those also speaking English less than very well.
• Canyon County had the largest number of persons 5 years or older speaking Spanish in the home (16.4 percent), and 62.9 percent also spoke English.
• Overall, 8 percent of Idaho’s population spoke Spanish at home – the largest percentage of all languages other than English.

Median Gross Rent

Idahoans who don’t own their homes saw a $28 increase in median gross rent from $764 in 2012-2016 (adjusted for inflation) to $792 in 2013-2017.

• The highest median gross rent was in Blaine County at $984 in 2013-2017, up from $964 in 2012-2016.
• The lowest median gross rent was in Caribou County at $563 in 2013-2017, down from $581 in 2012-2016.
• Nine counties experienced a median gross rent decrease: Camas, Gem, Gooding, Butte, Franklin, Caribou, Boundary, Custer and Lewis. Bingham County experienced no change.
• Camas County experienced the largest decrease with $573 in 2013-2017, down $86 from $659 in 2012-2016.
• Clark County experienced the largest increase with $575 in 2013-2017, up $200 from $375 in 2012-2016.

Income

Idaho’s median household income increased $1,811 from the 2013-2017 survey period to $50,985.

• Six counties experienced a decrease: Camas, Teton, Custer, Clark Madison and Washington counties.
• The largest decrease was $6,041 in Camas County to $36,667.
• The largest increase was $5,373 in Boise County to $49,964.
• Ada County had the highest median household income at $60,151.
• Clark County had the smallest median household income at $31,927.

Poverty

The latest data indicates 15.2 percent of Idaho’s population was below the poverty level. Nearly three-fourths – 31 of Idaho’s 44 counties – experienced a decrease in the number of people living below the poverty rate.

• The largest decrease was in Teton County at 4 percent, from 12.3 percent to 8.3 percent.
• The largest increase was in Camas County at 2.5 percent, from 19.8 percent to 22.3 percent.
• Madison County had the highest poverty rate at 31.8 percent. Madison County is home to BYU-Idaho, a private university where 34.5 percent of the population is between the ages of 15 and 24.
• Teton County had the lowest poverty rate at 8.3 percent.

Veterans

Of Idaho’s population 18 years and older, 9.5 percent were veterans. The largest number were veterans of the Vietnam era — 44,706 or 38.7 percent.

• Elmore County had the largest percentage of its population who were veterans at 25.4 percent. The county is home to Mountain Home Air Force Base.
• Ada County had the largest number of veterans at 28,945.
• Only 2.9 percent of Madison County’s population were veterans.
• Clark County was estimated to have only 24 veterans, but only had a total population 18 and over of 701.
• Blaine County had the highest percentage of veterans with a bachelor’s degree or higher at 45.4 percent.
• Power County had the highest percentage of veterans who were high school graduates at 55.3 percent.
• Benewah County had the highest unemployment rate among veterans at 18.4 percent.

These and many other statistics can be found on the U.S. Census American Community Survey website.

– Idaho Department of Labor