United States - Income: State government

Personal income is calculated as the income of all in a geographical area from all sources. This includes the income received by persons from participation in production, from government and business in the form of transfers, and from government in the form of interest (which is treated like a transfer receipt).

Person income is also defined as sum of wage and salary disbursements, supplements to wages and salaries, proprietors’ income, dividends, interest, and rent, and personal current transfer receipts, less contributions for government social insurance. Because the personal income of an area represents the income that is received by, or on behalf of, all the persons who live in that area, and because the estimates of some components of personal income (wage and salary disbursements, supplements to wages and salaries, and contributions for government social insurance) are made on a place-of-work basis, state and county personal income includes an adjustment for residence. The residence adjustment represents the net flow of compensation (less contributions for government social insurance) of intercounty commuters. Persons consists of individuals, nonprofit institutions that primarily serve individuals, private noninsured welfare funds, and private trust funds. The last three categories are referred to as “quasi-individuals.”

The county estimates of personal income are designed to be conceptually and statistically consistent with the national estimates of personal income in the National Income and Product Accounts (NIPA). County estimates sum to state totals which, in turn, together with the District of Columbia, sum to a national total which is very similar to the NIPA estimate except for some minor differences in the treatment of U.S. residents working abroad and the income of foreign residents working in the U.S.

Major Components of Income

Wage and Salary Disbursements

Wage and salary disbursements are measured before deductions, such as social security contributions, union dues, and voluntary employee contributions to defined contribution pension plans such as 401(k) plans and they reflect the amount of wages and salaries disbursed, but not necessarily earned, during the year. The estimates are prepared, with a few exceptions, at the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) three-digit industry level. Wage and salary disbursements accounted for almost 55 percent of total personal income at the national level in 2006.

Supplements to Wages and Salaries

Supplements to wages and salaries consist of employer contributions for employee pensions and insurance funds (previously called other labor income) and employer contributions for government social insurance. Supplements amounted to 19 percent of compensation at the national level in 2006.

Proprietors' Income

Proprietors’ income with inventory valuation and capital consumption adjustments is the current-production income of sole proprietorships and partnerships and of tax-exempt cooperatives. A sole proprietorship is an unincorporated business required to file Schedule C of IRS Form 1040 (Profit or Loss from Business) or Schedule F (Profit or Loss from Farming). A partnership is an unincorporated business association required to file Form 1065 (U.S. Return of Partnership Income). A tax-exempt cooperative is a nonprofit business organization that is collectively owned by its customer-members. Proprietors’ income includes corporate directors’ fees and excludes the dividends and the monetary interest received by nonfinancial business, the nonfarm rental income received by persons not primarily engaged in the real estate business, and the imputed net rental income of owner-occupied housing.

Dividends, Interest, and Rent

Personal dividend income includes the dividends received by individuals, by employee retirement plans, and by quasi-individuals—nonprofit institutions and fiduciaries. This income consists of payments in cash and in other assets, excluding the corporation’s own stock, made by corporations located in the United States or abroad to persons who are U.S. residents. Personal dividend income accounted for 6.4 percent of personal income at the national level in 2006.

Personal Current Transfer Receipts

In personal income, transfer receipts are benefits received by persons for which no current services are performed. They are payments by government and business to individuals and nonprofit institutions.1 Transfer receipts accounted for almost 15 percent of total personal income at the national level in 2006.

Contributions for Government Social Insurance

Contributions for government social insurance consist of employer contributions for government social insurance and employee and self-employed contributions for government social insurance (formerly called personal contributions for social insurance). It is deducted in the calculation of personal income.

Resident Adjustment

Personal income is a measure of income by place of residence. The place of residence of individuals is the state and county in which they live. The place of residence of quasi-individuals is the state and county in which the individuals reside who benefit from the activities of the quasi-individuals or on whose behalf quasi-individuals receive income.

Farm Income and Expenses - Table CA45

Farm Income and Expenses provides detailed estimates of gross farm income and production expenses. Gross farm income consists of estimates for the following items: cash receipts for marketing of crops and livestock; income from other farm-related activities, including recreational services and the sale of forest products; government payments to farmers; value of food and fuel produced and consumed on farms; gross rental value of farm dwellings; and the value of the net change in the physical volume of farm inventories of crops and livestock.

Personal Current Tax Payments - Table SA50

Personal current taxes are measured on a payments basis (that is, when paid) except for withheld taxes (largely taxes on wages and salaries) which are measured on an accrual basis.

Advance Metropolitan Area Personal Income

Accelerated MSA personal income are released 7 months ahead of the previous publication schedule. According to past schedules, personal income for 2005 would not have been published until April 2007 as part of local area personal income. This acceleration has been a major goal for the regional program in accordance with BEA’s strategic plan. It was accomplished by preparing MSA personal income in less detail than the local area personal income estimates and by extrapolating various components of income for which source data were lacking. Nevertheless, the amount of published detail is substantial and comparable to that of the quarterly state personal income estimates (table D). The personal income estimates for 2005 are entirely consistent with estimates for earlier years released last April.

State Disposable Income

Disposable personal income is the income that is available to persons for spending and saving. It is calculated as personal income less the sum of personal tax payments and personal nontax payments to Federal, State, and local governments.

Other

Employer contributions for government social insurance are included in earnings by industry and earnings by place of work, but they are excluded from net earnings by place of residence and personal income. Employee and self-employed contributions are subtractions in the calculation of net earnings by place of residence and all of the income measures.

Revisions

Revisions to the data are made each August and are based on more reliable state estimates. The annual estimates are further revised for several succeeding years, as additional data become available. After that, the estimates are revised only to incorporate a comprehensive revision of the NIPAs, which take place approximately every five years.