General Overview

Livingston County presents a mixed picture, but is generally faring well on many indicators. Population and median income have decreased slightly, and the poverty rate has increased. Proportionately fewer residents depend on government support than in other counties in the region. Livingston County is doing pretty well by its children: compared to the region and state, higher rates of mothers receive prenatal care, a smaller percentage of children live in poverty, teen pregnancy and juvenile delinquency rates are down, although there has been an increase in the rate of Persons In Need of Supervision petitions. Educational attainment for adults is on the higher end of the region, school spending is up and students are exceeding state performance levels.

Demographic Overview

Livingston County's population declined over the decade, falling by 2% from 2000 to 2009. In 2009, there were about 63,000 people living in the county, compared with 64,300 people in 2000. Livingston's rate of decline is less than the other counties surrounding Monroe, excluding Ontario which is the only county in the region to add residents. After Wyoming, Livingston is the least densely populated county in the area.

Livingston County's population is aging in line with regional, state and national trends. The number of younger residents has fallen, with the number of residents younger than 20 declining by 16% and adults 20-39 declining by 4%.  The number of adults 40 to 59 years old increased by 5% from 2000 to 2008 – making it the largest age group in the county and slightly edging out the number of adults 20-39. The number of county residents 85 and older increased 27%, less than the increases for the state and nation, but more than the region. Although this group represents less than 2% of the total county population, the dramatic increase highlights the growing need for sufficient elder care and support services.

Livingston County experienced growth in its Asian and "two or more races" population, although it remains about 94% white. The number of Asian residents increased by 23% and the number of residents of "two or more races" increased by 34%, though African American or black residents remain the largest minority group in the county, followed closely by Hispanic residents.

In line with national and state trends, Livingston County had a decline in households of married couples with children. In 2006-08, about 22% of households in the county were married couples with children living at home, down 3 points from 2000. Unlike all of the other counties in the region, the state and nation, Livingston experienced a decline in unmarried households with children. Unmarried households with children fell as a share of the total, from 9% to 8%, over the same time period.

Photo provided by Bob Oswald/Livingston County Tourism

Arts, Culture, and Leisure

Livingston County earned $630 per resident in tourism revenue in 2008, bringing nearly $40 million to the area. This figure is around half of the regional rate, and much lower than the state rate (excluding NYC) of $1,760. Livingston County also received $16 per resident in recreational spending by tourists, the lowest rate in the region.

Children and Youth

Throughout the decade, Livingston County has had higher proportions of mothers receiving prenatal care than both the region and the state. In 2008, the rate fell to 75% of mothers, its lowest rate in the decade and seven percentage points lower than in 2007.  The rates vary greatly by racial or ethnic group, with 20% of African American or black mothers, 63% of Hispanic mothers, and 76% of white mothers receiving prenatal care in 2008.

Despite increasing between 2000 and 2006-08, Livingston County had the smallest proportion of its children living in poverty than all other counties in the region. In 2006-08, slightly under 1,500 (13%) of Livingston's children lived in households with incomes below the poverty line, a 2 point increase from 2000, yet below the rates for the state (19%) and nation (18%). The number of children living in single-parent households decreased during this time to just under 2,700 (23%) children living with one parent in 2006-08, compared to 3,700 (25%) children in 2000, making it the lowest proportion in the area.

Foster-care admissions in Livingston County spiked in 2006 and have exceeded state and regional rates since that time. In 2008, Livingston County admitted 4 children per 1,000 to foster care, up from just over 2 children per 1,000 in 2000, and well above the rates for the region (2.5) and state (3.0).

Livingston County has the lowest teen pregnancy rate in the region. Teen pregnancies declined over the past decade, and in 2008 Livingston's rate was less than half of regional and state rates. The number of pregnancies among 15- to 19-year-olds in Livingston fell from 103 in 2000 to 71 in 2008, with corresponding declines in the rate of teen pregnancies.

Livingston County has the highest rate of Persons In Need of Supervision (PINS) petitions in the region. Despite a 15% decline since 2000, Livingston's rate of 6.4 PINS petitions per 1,000 youth in 2008 is about three times higher than the state rate of 2.2 and well above the rate for the region of 3.6.

Juvenile delinquency intakes have fallen 52% in Livingston County since 2000, the largest decline in the region. While most counties in the region experienced a decline in intakes, Livingston stands in contrast to the state and region, which saw slight increases over the decade.

Community Engagement

Voter registration in Livingston County is slightly below the regional rate but exceeds the state rate. In 2009, 80% of voting age adults were registered, compared to 82% in the region and 77% in the state. In the 2008 presidential election, 59% of the voting age residents voted, below the regional rate of 62%, but exceeding the state rate of 51% and the national rate of 57%.

Following the regional trend, average charitable giving in Livingston County decreased from 2002 to 2006. Average charitable giving was about $2,400, below the regional average of $3,000 and the state average of $5,000, and a decline of $1,000 from 2002 levels.     

Economy

Livingston County is part of the larger transition from manufacturing to knowledge-based industry. The sectors with the largest growth from 2001 to 2007 were Financial Activities (23%), Construction (29%) and Educational Services (36%). Professional and Business Services declined by 34%, the largest decline for that sector in the region.

Livingston County has felt the repercussions of the economic crisis of 2007-09. The unemployment rate in Livingston hit a decade high of 8.3% in 2009, up from the low of 4.0% in 2000, and slightly above the regional rate.

Livingston County's average salary, adjusted for inflation, has been increasing slightly through the decade. In 2008, the average salary was roughly $33,000, below the regional average salary of $41,000, as well as state and national averages. Livingston's average wage is the second lowest in the region, just above the average wage in Genesee.

Education

Livingston County's pre-kindergarten participation has steadily increased. During the 2000-01 school year, 128 children or 18% of its 4-year-olds were enrolled. In the 2008-09 year, 257 children were enrolled for a participation rate of 37%. Despite the increase, Livingston County's participation rate remains below the state rate of 40%.

Education is an area of strength for Livingston County. Similar to students throughout our region, students in Livingston County outperform those across the state on most key state tests and graduate at higher rates. In recent years, Livingston has outperformed students in area counties in the performance of low-income students on several state tests. For example, in 2009, 77% of low-income eighth-graders in Livingston met or exceeded standards on the state math test, compared to 66% of students across the region and 70% of students statewide. In 2009, 84% of Livingston students graduated on time, compared to 76% in the region and 80% statewide.

Livingston County ranks third in the region for educational attainment levels, behind Monroe and Ontario counties. In 2006-08, 52% of Livingston residents had attended at least some college, below the regional rate of 59% and slightly below the state (55%) and nation (55%). In general, there were some improvements from 2000 to 2006-08. For example, the percent of residents with less than a ninth-grade education fell from 18% to 12%, while the proportion of residents with some college increased slightly.

Spending on education has increased since 2000. Livingston County spent 28% more per pupil in 2008 than it did in 2000. The $15,980 spent per student is slightly below the regional rate of around $16,000 and well below the state rate of $18,300.

Environment

Total emissions per resident have fallen 19% between 2002 and 2005 in Livingston County. Despite this decrease, Livingston still has higher emissions than the state and region. Livingston County has also reduced its use of pesticides by 20% from 2003 to 2005. In 2005, 2.44 pounds of pesticides per resident were used, below the regional rate of 2.7 pounds per resident.

Livingston County is home to 6 of the 119 hazardous waste (Superfund) sites in our region. While many are in the process of being cleaned up, Livingston does have one site on the Environmental Protection Agency's National Priority List, a list of the most hazardous sites in the nation. As a whole, our region has five such sites.

Financial Self-Sufficiency

Livingston County's median household income fell by 4% from 2000 to 2006-08, after adjusting for inflation. The median income in 2006-08 was $51,864 — down from $54,170 in 2000. In the same period, the median income fell by 9% in the region and 1% in the state.

Livingston County's poverty rate increased from 2000 to 2006-08. Roughly 6,900 residents (12% of Livingston's population) lived below the poverty line in 2006-08, up from 6,000 residents in 2000. Despite the increase, Livingston's poverty rate is slightly below the rates for the region, state, and nation. All counties in the region experienced similar increases during this time period.

Despite the increase in poor residents, Livingston has not had high rates of participation in government programs to help the needy compared to the region, state and nation. In 2009, 15 residents per 1,000 received public assistance, compared to 30 in the region and 27 in the state. Despite the lower participation, Livingston has the highest approval rate of public assistance application in the region, with 71% of applications approved compared to just 25% for the region. The rate of Children Receiving Temporary Assistance fell from 36 (per 1,000 children under 18) to 28 in 2008. While the rate for Children Receiving Subsidized Child Care remained relatively constant over the decade, the number of children receiving the care dropped from 354 in 2003 to 262 in 2008.

Health

Livingston County has a relatively low proportion of residents lacking health insurance compared to the state and nation. In 2006, 14% of the population under 65 was without health insurance, below the state (16%) and national (18%) rates. The rate is unchanged from 2005 and is consistent with most of the region excluding Monroe County, which had the lowest rate in the region at 12%. Additionally, more people are enrolling in the Medicaid health insurance program for the poor and disabled. Livingston County's 12% enrollment rate, a 61% increase from 2000 to 2008, is still below regional and state rates, with 15% and 21% respectively.

Livingston County had fewer doctors per resident than several area counties. In 2007, Livingston had roughly 11 doctors for every 10,000 residents, up from nearly 9 in 2002. Only two regional counties had a lower ratio, and Livingston's ratio is one-third the state ratio.

Similar to other counties in the region, mortality rates in Livingston County have been steadily decreasing since 2000, only to begin slightly increasing in the most recent years. Overall mortality declined by 10% since 2000, with the mortality rates for heart disease (-24%), stroke (-30%), and cancer (-17%) dropping substantially, while mortality from respiratory disease increased by 32%.

All counties in the region have seen a substantial increase in reported cases of Chlamydia, including Livingston with its rate growing by 149% since 2001. Despite the large increase, Livingston has the second lowest rate of Chlamydia infections in the region with 159 per 100,000 residents in 2008.  

The number of people living with HIV and AIDS in Livingston County has increased since 2000. The rate of people living with HIV almost doubled from 17 per 100,000 residents in 2000 to 33 in 2007. Although this represents a relatively small number of people with HIV (21 residents in 2007), it is a larger rate of increase than in many other counties, the state or nation. The rate of those living with AIDS has also increased by 50% over the same time period.

Housing

Between 2000 and 2006-08, the median home value in Livingston County increased by 3% in inflation-adjusted dollars to $111,000, the third highest in the region. Only Monroe and Ontario had higher median home values, although Livingston was well below the state and nation. The median value varied by racial and ethnic groups, ranging from $84,000 for Hispanic residents to $115,000 for Asian residents in 2000.

Livingston County provides affordable living for homeowners. Livingston's affordability ratio for homeowners (home value to income) was 1.83 in 2006-08, which makes it more affordable than the state (4.12), nation (2.96) and region (1.84).  Conversely, Livingston is less affordable for renters who on average spend 33% of their income on rent, above the 30% threshold that is considered affordable. 

Livingston, Ontario and Wayne are the only regional counties with more than a quarter of their housing stock built since 1980. In 2006-08, Livingston's rate of 31% was less than the nation (40%), but more than the region (18%).

Livingston County had the highest homeownership rate in the region. In 2006-08, 77% of all occupied housing units in Livingston were owner-occupied, higher than the rates for the region (70%), state (56%) and nation (67%).

Public Safety

While violent crimes in Livingston County have declined since 2000, property crimes rose 30% from 2000 to 2006 before falling in 2007. The violent crime rate fluctuated from 2000 to 2009 but ended 21% lower, consistent with the statewide trend but counter to the 19% increase for the region. The property crime rate, on the other hand, had a general upward trend through 2006 and has fallen since 2007. In 2009, the property crime rate was 146 (per 10,000 residents), 36% lower than the 2000 level, and surpassing the declines seen at the state and regional levels.

Technology

Livingston County has not experienced growth in high-tech jobs. High-tech jobs have been consistently less than 1% of total jobs in the county throughout the decade, compared to just under 11% for the region.

Livingston had more technology teachers in public schools per 10,000 students than the region and state. Since 2000, Livingston County has had the highest or second highest rate of full-time technology teachers in public schools in the region. In 2009, there were 15.4 teachers (full-time equivalent) per 10,000 students. This was down 13% from the 17.7 in 2001, but still above the region's rate of 11.9 and well above the state's rate of 9.2.

Transportation

Livingston County residents use public transit and carpool or walk more than residents of other counties in the area. While over 90% of workers in 2006-08 relied on cars for their transportation to work, 7% of Livingston residents reported using other means such as walking or carpooling as their primary means of transportation. This was the highest in the region and exceeded the nation (5%), but not the state (8%). Livingston County residents consistently have the highest number of public transit trips per resident (4.3 in 2008-09) of any county in the region except Monroe.

Similar to increases in all counties in the region, alcohol-related crashes have increased in Livingston County.  From 2000 to 2008, Livingston's rate increased 75% from 5.0 alcohol-related crashes per 10,000 residents to 8.7, well above the state's rate of 4.7.