Feel richer? Utah just ranked No. 4 among the states for its increase in personal income between the first and second quarters of this year.
It increased by 6.9% in that time, well above the national average of 5.4%, according to estimates released Tuesday by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.
The only states where total personal income rose faster were Texas, 7.5%; Idaho, 7.4%; and Washington, 7.0%.
The states that ranked the worst were North Dakota, with no growth, and South Dakota at 1.3%.
The measure looks at the combined personal income of all residents in the state from all sources. In the second quarter of this year, that amounted to $154.8 billion in Utah, up by $2.6 billion. It includes income from wages, dividends, interest, rent and other sources.
Utah tied with New York for the largest increase from what the agency calls “property income” (rent, interest and dividends) at 10.5%, compared to a national average of 8.0%. The lowest in the nation for that measure was 4.75% in Alaska.
Utah tied with New Mexico for No. 2 for its increase in wages and salaries — up 6.3% compared to a national average of 4.4%. Only Texas was higher at 7.9%. The lowest was in North Dakota, where earnings actually decreased by 3.3%.
“Transfer receipts” in Utah from such things as Social Security, unemployment insurance or veterans benefits were up by 4.2% in the quarter, far below the national average of 6.1%.
Professional, scientific and technical services were the leading contributor to earnings increases in Utah, up at an annual rate of 0.76%. That was followed by finance and insurance, up 0.61%, and construction, 0.54%.
