GSA Daily Staff Report
Published April 23, 2010

Per capita income growth in Greenville County continues to lose ground on the rest of the nation, according to data released Thursday by the Bureau of Economic Analysis.

In response to the report, the Greater Greenville Chamber of Commerce again asked businesses to support an effort to improve per capita income in the region.

County-level data released by the BEA show that per capita income in Greenville slipped to 92% of the U.S. average in 2008, falling from a high of 101% a decade earlier. If Greenville mirrored the national average in per capital income, the community would have an additional $1.44 billion of personal income available for various uses.

“Per capita income is one of the best measures of a community’s overall prosperity and economic health,” said Ben Haskew, President and CEO of the Greenville Chamber. “Declining relative income impacts every resident, every business and every public service entity in our community. With less income, there is less capacity to build the future we all envision for our community.”

Per capita income continues to increase in the county, growing 1.2% to $36,905 in 2008. However, Greenville’s rate of growth is significantly slower than the nation as a whole and even lags other areas of the state. Both Florence and Richland counties experienced per capita income growth of more than 2% in 2008, the Chamber noted.

To see a listing of per capita income by county in South Carolina, click here.

The Greenville Chamber recently launched the five-year Accelerate initiative to increase its legislative advocacy efforts, its education-related endeavors and its efforts in assisting startup companies at the Next Innovation Center in downtown Greenville. The goal is to add 15,000 jobs and $800 million in annual payroll to the Greenville economy in five years.

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“It’s time for Greenville to address its declining income competitiveness,” said Hank Hyatt, vice president of economic development at the chamber. “Recently, Clemson University published the 2010 Greater Greenville Regional Economic Scorecard. This report identified Greenville’s competitiveness issues and three of the major drivers of increasing income – education, innovation, and entrepreneurship. With a focused community effort through the Greenville Chamber’s Accelerate initiative, we look to begin affecting these downward trends.”