Cost of Living Index: Cost of living in the Tri-Cities is above (97 CLI) both Spokane and Boise metropolitan areas.
Median Household Income: Benton & Franklin Median Household income is slightly higher ($63,677) than the national median ($60,366) and less than Washington State ($70,979).
Top 5 Employment Sectors: Admin & Waste Services, Government, Retail Trade, Agriculture, and Health Care and Social Assistance.
Unemployment Rate: Benton & Franklin unemployment rate was at 5.7% in 2017, which is higher than the national rate of 4.4%.
Jobs by Education: There is a 17-year diminishing trend of jobs with Bachelors or Advanced Degrees; There is a 17-year growing trend of jobs with High School, Some College or Associate of Arts attainment.
Total Poverty: Benton & Franklin Counties had 36,332 people in poverty which are 12.7% of the population. The nation had 13.4% and Washington State had 11% of the population living in poverty.
Seniors in Poverty: Benton & Franklin Counties had 10.5% of the senior population in poverty. B&F Senior Poverty is above both Washington State (8%) and the Nation (9.3%).
Children in Poverty: Six percent of Benton & Franklin County Children (ages 0-17) receive Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) benefits. This is higher than both the national (3.8%) and state (5.6%) rates.
Economic trends presentation: video on January 28, 2019, by Dr. Patrick Jones, director for the Institute for Public Policy and Economic Analysis at Eastern Washington University.