Income Inequality in the District of Columbia

[midwayer]

Revised July 23, 2004
Income Inequality in the District of Columbia
Is Wider than in Any Major U.S. City
By Angie Rodgers and Ed Lazere
Across the nation, income inequality — the gap between high-income and low-income
households — is substantial and has widened significantly over the past two decades. While this
phenomenon is national in scope, an analysis of data from the 2000 census shows that income
inequality is particularly serious in the District of Columbia.
• The average income of the top fifth of the District’s households —
$186,830 in 1999 — was 31 times higher than the average income of the
bottom fifth of households —$6,126.
• The gap between high-income and low-income households in the District
is as wide or wider than in any of the central cities of the nation's 40
largest metro areas. Two other cities — Atlanta and Miami — have
similar income gaps, but in most cities the gap is much smaller than in
DC. In the typical large city, the income of the top fifth of households is
18 times the income of the bottom fifth.
• Income inequality widened in the District in the 1990s, as the benefits of
its economic expansion went almost exclusively to its highest-income
residents. The average income for the top fifth of DC households grew 36
percent during this period, adjusting for inflation, while the average
income of the bottom fifth of households rose just three percent.
• The stagnant income for the District's lowest-income residents reflects a
variety of factors, including weak wage growth at the bottom of the
earnings scale and a significant reduction in the value of public assistance
benefits.
• The wide income gap in the District of Columbia also reflects the fact that
low-income households in the Washington metropolitan area are highly
concentrated in the city of DC. At the same time, the Washington metro
area is home to a substantial high-income population, and these
households are more likely to live in DC than are high-income households
in many other metro areas.

more...............


requires acrobat reader


http://www.dcfpi.org/7-22-04pov.pdf