Regional Earning Patterns: Note

A noticeable feature of the U.S. economy in recent years has been the shift in employment and population among regions. The underlying causes may be attributed to many factors operating individually or in combination. These factors include changes in demand for certain manufacturing and agricultural products, energy resources, and services, in domestic as well as international markets. The introduction of new technologies tends to favor location of economic activity in some regions rather than in others. Furthermore, government expenditures and taxes have differential regional impacts. These changes influence the reallocation of employment and population, and of total regional income and earnings. A booming region registers a higher growth in earning than an economically stagnant region (Gamick 1984, 1985, 1986). Gamick was concerned with the differentials in growth rates of population, total income and earnings in MSA and nonMSA that typify urbanized and less-urbanized regions. The time period of his study 1959 to 1984, was disaggregated into three segments- 1959-69, 1969-79, and 1979-84. The purpose of this study is to present a supplementary examination of the findings of Garnick using a portion of his 1986 data. The concern here, however, pertains to regional differentials in total income and earnings in MSA areas across the three time segments and four city sizes.