Income in Dane County fell in 2009 and Milwaukee is now the fourth poorest city in the country, according to United States Census data released Tuesday.
The new data is part of the 2009 American Community Survey, which is part of the information gathered in the last census.
The income of residents of both Dane County and Madison dropped by more than twice the national average in 2009, according to the new data.
Milwaukee also made census news, but not the good kind, as it climbed the ranks of the nation’s poorest cities.
While Milwaukee was ranked 11th poorest in 2008, the new data showed the city’s poverty level reached 27 percent as of 2009, trailing only Detroit, Cleveland and Buffalo, N.Y., respectively.
Still, no other state experienced any significant decline in the poverty level, the survey data showed.
While general results for Wisconsin were not positive, the state is still in good company as national income fell by 2.9 percent overall between 2008 and 2009.
The rate of children living in poverty in Wisconsin increased at a higher rate than the national average, though Wisconsin’s child poverty rate still remains lower than the national average, according to survey data.
Survey data also showed that while household income in Wisconsin fell by more than the national average, 34 other states also experienced a decrease in household income.
In fact, median household income increased in only one state nationwide: North Dakota.
Many point to the recession as the cause for the downturn in Wisconsin incomes during the last census cycle.
“The recession has hit Wisconsin’s children and families very hard,” Ken Taylor, executive director of the Wisconsin Council on Children and Families, said in a statement. “These numbers highlight the need to maintain our commitment to policies that help folks weather the storm and move the economy forward.”
The survey also tracked the number of people in Wisconsin without insurance and those who depend on the state’s low-income health care Medicaid program, BadgerCare Plus.
According to the census, 9.4 percent of Wisconsinites lacked health insurance, which was actually the seventh lowest rate in the country.
Although the gathering of the data released Tuesday was orchestrated by the U.S. Census Bureau, it does not include general Census information.
While the 2010 Census is used to show how many people live in the U.S. and where they live, the American Community Survey shows how people live based on social, economic and housing characteristics, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
The survey and the census are both used as part of the nation’s information infrastructure, Census Bureau director Robert Groves said in a statement.
“ACS data are required by numerous federal programs and for planning and decision making at the state and federal level,” Groves said. “ACS data help communities and businesses create jobs, plan for the future, establish new businesses and improve our economy.”
The bureau said the general census results, such as the current U.S. population and congressional apportionment figures, will be released at the end of 2010 as required by law.
