Household Income Before and After Taxes in Current and Constant (1996) Dollars statistics

[In dollars, except number of households in thousands. Numbers in thousands. Households as of March of the following year. Income in current and 1997 CPI-U-X1 adjusted dollars]


		Current dollars				Constant (1997) dollars
	Number
YEAR	of	Mean		Median		Mean		Median
	households
	(1,000)	Before	After	Before	After	Before	After	Before	After
		taxes	taxes	taxes	taxes	taxes	taxes	taxes	taxes

1980	82,368	21,063	16,272	17,710	14,551	41,077	31,733	34,538	28,377
1981	83,527	22,787	17,495	19,074	15,522	40,592	31,165	33,978	27,650
1982	83,918	24,309	18,926	20,171	16,532	40,812	31,774	33,864	27,755
1983	85,290	25,609	20,147	21,018	17,427	41,268	32,466	33,869	28,083
1984	86,789	27,464	21,564	22,415	18,530	42,425	33,311	34,626	28,624
1985 ¹	88,458	29,066	22,646	23,618	19,401	43,356	33,780	35,229	28,939
1986	89,479	30,759	23,683	24,897	20,354	45,044	34,682	36,460	29,807
1987 ²	91,124	32,410	25,110	26,061	21,540	45,791	35,477	36,820	30,433
1988	92,830	34,017	26,371	27,225	22,431	46,152	35,778	36,937	30,433
1989	93,347	36,520	28,156	28,906	23,774	47,270	36,444	37,415	30,772
1990	94,312	37,403	29,188	29,943	24,546	45,931	35,843	36,770	30,143
1991	95,669	37,922	29,640	30,126	24,955	44,688	34,928	35,501	29,407
1992 ³	96,426	38,840	30,425	30,636	25,474	44,432	34,806	35,047	29,142
1993 ⁴	97,107	41,428	32,092	31,241	26,112	46,015	35,645	34,700	29,003
1994 ⁵	98,990	43,133	33,315	32,264	26,973	46,713	36,080	34,942	29,212
1995 ⁶	99,627	44,938	34,592	34,076	28,249	47,326	36,431	35,887	29,750
1996	101,018	47,123	36,008	35,492	29,312	48,204	36,834	36,306	29,985
1997	102,528	49,692	37,656	37,005	30,648	49,692	37,656	37,005	30,648

PERCENT CHANGE
FROM PRIOR YEAR
SHOWN

1981	1.4	8.2	7.5	7.7	6.7	-1.2	-1.8	-1.6	-2.6
1982	0.5	6.7	8.2	5.8	6.5	0.5	2.0	-0.3	0.4
1983	1.6	5.3	6.5	4.2	5.4	1.1	2.2	0.0	1.2
1984	1.8	7.2	7.0	6.6	6.3	2.8	2.6	2.2	1.9
1985 ¹	1.9	5.8	5.0	5.4	4.7	2.2	1.4	1.7	1.1
1986	1.2	5.8	4.6	5.4	4.9	3.9	2.7	3.5	3.0
1987 ²	1.8	5.4	6.0	4.7	5.8	1.7	2.3	1.0	2.1
1988	1.9	5.0	5.0	4.5	4.1	0.8	0.8	0.3	0.0
1989	0.6	7.4	6.8	6.2	6.0	2.4	1.9	1.3	1.1
1990	1.0	2.4	3.7	3.6	3.2	-2.8	-1.6	-1.7	-2.0
1991	1.4	1.4	1.5	0.6	1.7	-2.7	-2.6	-3.5	-2.4
1992 ³	0.8	2.4	2.6	1.7	2.1	-0.6	-0.3	-1.3	-0.9
1993 ⁴	0.7	6.7	5.5	2.0	2.5	3.6	2.4	-1.0	-0.5
1994 ⁵	1.9	4.1	3.8	3.3	3.3	1.5	1.2	0.7	0.7
1995 ⁶	0.6	4.2	3.8	5.6	4.7	1.3	1.0	2.7	1.8
1996	1.4	4.9	4.1	4.2	3.8	1.9	1.1	1.2	0.8
1997	1.5	5.5	4.6	4.3	4.6	3.1	2.2	1.9	2.2

1 Recording of amounts for earnings from longest job increased to $299,999. Full implementation of 1980 census-based sample design.
2 Implementation of a new March CPS processsing system.
3 Implementation of 1990 census population controls.
4 Data collection method changed from paper and pencil to computer assisted interviewing. In addition, the March 1994 income supplement was revised to allow for the coding of different income amounts on selected questionnaire items. Limits either increased or decreased in the following categories: earnings increased to $999,999; social security increased to $49,999; supplemental security income and public assistance increased to $24,999; veterans' benefits increased to $99,999; child support and alimony decreased to $49,999.
5 Introduction of 1990 census sample design.
6 Full implementation of the 1990 census-based sample design and metropolitan definitions, 7,000 household sample reduction, and revised race edits.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Internet site http://WWW.CENSUS.GOV/hhes/income/histinc/rdi02.html (accessed 8 June 1999). Note: 1997 is the latest information available. http://WWW.CENSUS.GOV/hhes/income/histinc/incexper.html

* Definitions

Households

Households consist of all people who occupy a housing unit. The Census Bureau regards a house, an apartment or other group of rooms, or a single room as a housing unit when it is occupied or intended for occupancy as separate living quarters: the occupants do not live and eat with any other people in the structure and there is direct access from the outside or through a common hall.

A household includes the related family members and all unrelated people, if any, such as lodgers, foster children, wards, or employees who share the housing unit. The Census Bureau also counts a person living alone in a housing unit or a group of unrelated people sharing a housing unit as partners as a household. The count of households excludes group quarters.

Householder

The householder refers to the person (or one of the people) who owns or rents (maintains) the housing unit. If a married couple owns the housing unit jointly, the interviewer may list either as the householder. The person listed first is the householder and is the "reference person" to whom the Census Bureau designates the relationship of all other household members. The number of householders is equal to the number of households. Also, the number of family householders is equal to the number of families.

Income

For each person in the sample 15 years old and over, the CPS asks questions on the amount of money income received in the preceding calendar year from each of the following sources:

1. Earnings 2. Unemployment compensation 3. Workers' compensation 4. Social security 5. Supplemental security income 6. Public assistance 7. Veterans' payments 8. Survivor benefits 9. Disability benefits 10. Pension or retirement income 11. Interest 12. Dividends 13. Rents, royalties, and estates and trusts 14. Educational assistance 15. Alimony 16. Child support 17. Financial assistance from outside of the household 18. Other income

It should be noted that although the income statistics refer to receipts during the preceding calendar year, the demographic characteristics, such as age, labor force status, and family or household composition, are as of the survey date. The income of the family/household does not include amounts received by people who were members during all or part of the income year if these people no longer resided in the family/household at the time of interview. However, the CPS collects income data for people who are current residents but did not reside in the household during the income year.

Data on consumer income collected in the CPS by the Census Bureau cover money income received (exclusive of certain money receipts such as capital gains) before payments for personal income taxes, social security, union dues, medicare deductions, etc. Therefore, money income does not reflect the fact that some families receive part of their income in the form of noncash benefits, such as food stamps, health benefits, rent-free housing, and goods produced and consumed on the farm. In addition, money income does not reflect the fact that noncash benefits are also received by some nonfarm residents which often take the form of the use of business transportation and facilities, full or partial payments by business for retirement programs, medical and educational expenses, etc. Data users should consider these elements when comparing income levels. Moreover, readers should be aware that for many different reasons there is a tendency in household surveys for respondents to underreport their income. Based on an analysis of independently derived income estimates, the Census Bureau determined that respondents report income earned from wages or salaries much better than other sources of income and that the reported wage and salary income is nearly equal to independent estimates of aggregate income.

Median income

Median income is the amount which divides the income distribution into two equal groups, half having incomes above the median, half having incomes below the median. The medians for households, families, and unrelated individuals are based on all households, families, and unrelated individuals, respectively. The medians for people are based on people 15 years old and over with income.

*

http://www.allcountries.org/uscensus/739_household_income_before_and_after_taxes.html

These tables are based on figures supplied by the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Department of Commerce and are subject to revision by the Census Bureau.

Copyright © 2006 Photius Coutsoukis and Information Technology Associates, all rights reserved.