HEADWATERS ECONOMICS GEOGRAPHIC DATA LIBRARY DOCUMENTATION

TITLE: 	US Economic Stress Composite Index
Dataset Name: 		Composite Index
Dataset Type: 		ACCESS

GENERAL DESCRIPTION: 
This composite index was designed to measures of economic stress and factors that tend to be coincident with stress such as low education rates, a lack of working age adults, and a high share of total income coming from non-labor sources.  Metadata file names are in parenthesis for more information.  
* Percent of total personal income from welfare payments 1999 (TBL_Census.txt)
* Unemployment Rate in 2004 (US_BLS.txt)
* Income in 1999 below poverty level (TBL_Census.txt)
* Dependency ratio in 2000 (TBL_Census.txt)
* Age Related Share or Total Personal Income (TBL_REIS.txt) - Defined as: 
		“Old-age, survivors,& disability ins.(OASDI) benefits” 
			(Line 40 of REIS table CA35) + 
		“Medicare benefits” (Line 111 of REIS table CA25) 
* Percent of population with less than high school education	(TBL_Census.txt)
* % Nonlabor Income in 2004 (TBL_REIS.txt)

Steps:
1. Calculate standard deviations from the mean for the 175 counties in Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Montana.
2. Calculate the average of the 7 scores (equal weights).
3. Normalize the composite average in step 2.

 
DATA SOURCE(S): See above.
Date of Original Source Data:	See above.
DATASET EXTENT:  4 Northwestern States (Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Montana)

TABLES CODES AND VALUES: 

ITEM		ITEM DESCRIPTION
fips		5 digit county fips 
AGCompositeSTd	Normalized Composite Index

DATA LINEAGE SUMMARY: 
Calculated by Headwaters Economics.

          
HEADWATERS ECONOMICS CONTACT: 
Name:			Headwaters Economics Geographic Data Library
Abbr. Name:		HEGDL
Address:		Headwaters Economics
                       	Mail: P.O. Box 7059, 
				Bozeman MT 59771 
                        
Web site:		http://www.headwaterseconomics.org
Contact Person:  	Jeff van den Noort
Phone:   		(406)599-1653
Email:   		jeff at headwaterseconomics.org