General Overview Livingston County presents a mixed picture, but is generally faring well on many indicators. Population and median income have increased slightly, though the poverty rate also increased. Proportionately fewer residents depend on government support or emergency meals 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 intakes. 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 gained just 1% from 1990 to 2007. In 2007, there were 63,200 people living in the county. Livingston's growth rate is less than the region's 2% and the state's 7%. 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 adults 40 to 59 years old increased 43% from 1990 to 2007, making it the largest segment of the population. The number of county residents 85 and older increased 69%, less than the increases for the region and nation, but more than the state. 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.
Similar to other counties in the upstate region, Livingston County is experiencing substantial declines in its number of youths and younger adults. Since 1990, the number of residents between 20 and 39 years old fell 17% (or about 3,700 people), a greater decline than the state's decrease of 11% and counter to the nation's increase of 1%. The number of children and young adults under 20 in the county also declined by 15% since 1990, counter to increases in the nation (16%) and state (4%).
Livingston County experienced growth in its Asian and "two or more races" population, although it remains about 92% white. The number of Asian and self-reported "two or more race" residents each increased by 24% from 2000-2007, which means that there were approximately 100 to 150 more residents in each group.
In line with national and state trends, Livingston County had a decline in households of married couples with children and an increase in unmarried households with children from 1990 to 2000. In 2000, about 25% of households in the county were married couples with children living at home, down from 30% in 1990. In the same time period, unmarried households with children grew as a share of the total, from 7% to 9%.
Children and Youth Since 1997, Livingston County has had higher proportions of pregnant women receiving prenatal care than both the region and the state. In 2006, 80% of pregnant women received prenatal care in the first trimester of pregnancy. Livingston County has maintained this level of participation since 1997, averaging 81%. These rates vary greatly by racial or ethnic group, with 33% of black women, 73% of Hispanic women and 81% of white women receiving prenatal care in 2006.
In 2000, Livingston County had a smaller proportion of its children living in poverty than did most other area counties. In that year, just over 1,500 (10%) of Livingston's children lived in households with incomes below the poverty line, below the state rate of 20% and the national rate of 17%. Poverty rates vary with race and ethnic group; smaller proportions of black, white and Asian children lived in poverty compared to Hispanic and American Indian/Alaskan Native children.
The number of children living in single-parent households has increased in Livingston County. In 2000, 25% of children lived with one parent, compared to 17% in 1990. The proportion increased in the nation, state and other area counties, but Livingston's almost 50% jump is particularly high. The rate varied across race and ethnicity, with lower proportions of Asian and white households headed by single parents.
Foster-care admissions in Livingston County spiked in 2006. In 2006, Livingston County admitted 60 children to foster care, almost triple the 22 admitted in 2005. There was no such trend at the regional or state level. The annual average for the decade prior to 2006 was 33 children.
Teen pregnancies declined over the past decade, and in 2006 was less than half of regional and state rates. The number of pregnancies among 15- to 17-year-olds fell over the last decade from 39 in 1996 to 18 in 2006, with corresponding declines in the rate of teen pregnancies. Livingston's rate of 14 pregnancies per 1,000 15-to-17-year-old females was among the lowest in the region and well below the state rate of 36.
Livingston and Monroe are the only counties in the region where Persons In Need of Supervision intakes have increased since 2000. In 2007, Livingston had 24 PINS intakes for every 1,000 youth, a 20% increase from 2000. This means that since 2000, an average of 155 children each year were referred to the PINS process.
Photo provided by Bob Oswald/Livingston County Tourism |
Economy Livingston County is part of the larger transition from manufacturing to knowledge-based industry. The sectors with the largest growth since 2001 were Financial Activities (28%), Construction (30%) and Educational Services (45%). Farming and Manufacturing both contracted, generally consistent with trends in the larger economy.
Livingston County's average salary, adjusted for inflation, has been increasing slightly since 2004, though not keeping pace with the state or nation. In 2007, the average salary was roughly $31,800, below the regional average salary of $40,100, as well as state and national averages.
Education Livingston County's pre-kindergarten participation has steadily increased. When the state began funding pre-K in 1998, 76 (10%) of Livingston's children were enrolled. In 2007, 201 children were enrolled, for a participation rate of 33%. Despite the increase, Livingston's rate remains below the rates for the region (38%) and the state (41%).
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 2007, 55% of low-income eighth-graders in Livingston met or exceeded standards on the state math test, compared to 36% of students across the region. In 2007, 81% of Livingston students graduated on time, compared to 76% in the region and 70% statewide.
Livingston County adults have lower educational attainment levels than the region, state and nation, though they are higher than several other area counties. In 2000, 49% of Livingston residents had attended at least some college, below the regional rate of 57% and slightly below the state (51%) and nation (52%). In general, there were some improvements from 1990 to 2000. For example, the percent of residents with less than a ninth-grade education fell by half, while the proportion of residents with some college increased slightly.
Spending on education has increased since 2000. Livingston County spent 22% more per pupil in 2006 than it did in 2000. The $14,700 spent per student in 2006 was above the regional average but below the state level of $16,700.
Financial Self-Sufficiency Livingston County's median household income increased slightly from 1990 to 2000, even after adjusting for inflation. The median income in 2000 (the last year for which data were available) was $52,400 — up from $51,800 in 1990. In the same period, the median income declined 4% in the region and 2% in the state.
Livingston County's poverty rate increased from 1990 to 2000. In 2000, only Monroe and Orleans within the region had higher percentages of residents living in poverty. Roughly 6,000 residents (10% of Livingston's population) lived below the poverty line in 2000, up from 4,800 in 1990. On the other hand, this was well below the state's rate (15%) and the nation's (12%). Poverty rates varied among racial and ethnic groups. The poverty rate for American Indians, Asians and residents of two or more races was about triple the rate for white residents.
Despite the increase in poor residents, Livingston did not have high rates of participation in government programs to help the needy. In 2007, just 10 residents per 1,000 received public assistance, compared to 30 in the region and 28 in the state. The county's rate of 24 children per 1,000 receiving public assistance in 2007 was one of the lowest in the region. Livingston also had low proportions of residents claiming the Earned Income Tax Credit and receiving emergency meals.
Health Livingston County had a relatively low proportion of residents lacking health insurance compared to the region, state and nation. Only 9.5% were uninsured in 2005, below the regional (10.5%), state (13%) and national (15%) rates. Additionally, more people are enrolling in the Medicaid health insurance program for the poor and disabled. Livingston County's 11% enrollment rate, a 55% increase from 2000 to 2007, is still below regional and state rates.
Livingston County had fewer doctors per capita than several area counties. In 2006, Livingston had 11 doctors for every 10,000 residents, up from 9 in 2002. Only two regional counties had a lower ratio, and Livingston's rate is one-third the state's.
Mortality rates have declined steadily in every county in the region since 2000, but Livingston's rate increased in one category. Livingston's mortality rates for heart disease (-34%), stroke (-25%), and cancer (-27%) all fell, while mortality from respiratory disease increased by 24%.
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 2006. Although this represents a relatively small number of people with HIV (101 in 2006), 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 1990 and 2000, the median home value in Livingston County fell by 10% in inflation-adjusted dollars to $104,000, the third highest in the region. Only Monroe and Ontario had higher median values, although Livingston was well below the state and nation. The median value varied by racial and ethnic groups, ranging from $81,000 for Hispanic residents to $135,500 for residents of two or more races in 2000. Livingston's affordability ratio (home value to income) was 2.04, which makes it more affordable than the state (3.32), nation (2.76) and region (2.09).
Livingston, Ontario and Wayne are the only regional counties that in 2000 had more than a quarter of their housing stock built since 1980. Livingston's rate of 26% was less than the nation's (33%), but more than the region's (20%).
Livingston County had a relatively high homeownership rate in 2000, the latest year for which data was available. In 2000, 75% of all occupied housing units in Livingston County were owner-occupied. This was higher than the national rate of 66% and the state rate of 53%.
Public Safety
While violent crimes in Livingston County have declined since 2000, property crimes rose 28% from 2000 to 2006 before falling in 2007. The violent crime rate fluctuated from 2000 to 2007 but ended 30% lower, consistent with the statewide trend. The property crime rate, on the other hand, had a general upward trend through 2006 and then fell in 2007 to the 2000 level, counter to steady declines at the national, state and regional levels. Juvenile delinquency intakes have fallen 33% in Livingston County, more than the regional decline of 13%.
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, compared to about 7% for the region.
Livingston had more technology teachers in public schools than the state or other area counties. Since 2000, Livingston County has had the highest or second highest ratio (after Orleans) of full-time technology teachers in public school students. In 2006, there were 16.7 teachers (full-time equivalent) per 10,000 students, above the region's rate of 12.2, and well above the state's rate of 9.7.
Transportation Livingston County residents walk and use public transit more than residents of other counties in the area. While over 90% of workers in 2000 relied on cars for transportation to work, 7% of Livingston residents reported walking as their primary means of transportation. This was the highest in the region and exceeded the nation (3%) and state (6%). Livingston County residents have increased their use of public transportation since 2000 by almost 75%, and consistently have the highest number of transit trips per resident (4 in 2007-08) of any county in the region except Monroe.
Note: Data research and analysis conducted by the Center for Governmental Research.
Banner photo provided by Adrian "Bud" Prince/Livingston County Tourism