The Census Bureau’s 2009 American Community Survey came out today. In this survey, we can see the effects of the Great Recession clearly. Last year was quite challenging for most people, yet things felt much worse in some states, where the rich were getting richer and poor were getting poorer (see 2008 poverty rates by state). We at Insider Monkey compiled the aggregate household income in 2008 and 2009 by quintile, using the data from the American Community Survey. We then calculated the decline in share of the lowest quintile, or the poorest one, from 2008 to 2009 and the increase in the share of highest quintile, or the richest one, from 2008 to 2009 in each state. Then we added these two numbers and ranked each state. The states that are tied are ranked among one another using the gini coefficient.
Here are the 10 States where the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer:
10. New Jersey: The income share of the poor was constant at 3.3% in 2009, yet the income share of the rich increased 0.3 percentage points to 49.9%.
9. Arkansas: The income share of the poor dropped 0.1 points to 3.5% in 2009, yet the income share of the rich increased 0.3 percentage points to 49.7%.
8. Utah: The income share of the poor dropped 0.2 points to 4.3% in 2009, yet the income share of the rich increased 0.2 percentage points to 45.9%.
7. Alabama: The income share of the poor dropped 0.1 points to 3.2% in 2009, yet the income share of the rich increased 0.3 percentage points to 50.2%.
6. South Dakota: The income share of the poor dropped 0.1 points to 3.7% in 2009, yet the income share of the rich increased 0.5 percentage points to 48.9%.
5. Wisconsin: The income share of the poor dropped 0.2 points to 3.9% in 2009, yet the income share of the rich increased 0.5 percentage points to 47%.
4. Maryland: The income share of the poor dropped 0.2 points to 3.6% in 2009, yet the income share of the rich increased 0.7 percentage points to 48.4%.
3. West Virginia: The income share of poor actually increased by 0.1 points to 3.5% in 2009, but the income share of rich increased by a huge 1.3 percentage points to 49.8%, widening the gap between the rich and the poor by 1.2 points.
2. New Hampshire: The income share of the poor dropped 0.1 points to 4.0% in 2009, yet the income share of the rich increased 1.1 percentage points to 47.0%.
1. Nebraska: Warren Buffett‘s state. The income share of the poor dropped 0.2 points to 3.9% in 2009, yet the income share of the rich increased 1.1 percentage points to 47.9%.
You might have noticed that even though Nebraska is the worst place in terms of current trends in income distribution, it’s not the worst place in terms of the gap between the rich and the poor. To see the 10 States With the Largest Income Difference Between The Rich And The Poor, visit Insider Monkey. Insider Monkey is your source for free real-time insider trading data.