Hidalgo, Cameron poorest in nation

Hidalgo, Cameron poorest in nation
By JUAN A. LOZANO
Associated Press
HOUSTON - Information from the 2005 American Community Survey, which gives a measure of
the country's economic well-being, showed that Cameron and Hidalgo counties had the lowest
median household incomes for counties and places with populations of 250,000 or more.
Cameron County's median household income was $24,684, while Hidalgo County's median
household income was $24,501. The median household income for the United States was
$46,242.
Cameron County Judge Gilberto Hinojosa said the Rio Grande Valley is handicapped when trying
to attract industries and high-paying employers.
"I think that this being a border community, with a large immigrant population, we don't have the
high skills that industries look for," the judge said. "The lower-income people don't have the high
skills they need in today's job market. We don't have an interstate highway connection and there
is a lack of water."
The area has a low tax base, which hampers development of good schools, Hinojosa said.
But efforts are being made on all those fronts, he said.
"Eventually you're going to see higher paying jobs," he said. "There is a major effort to improve
highway infrastructure, the educational system is being built up and we're focusing more on trade
issues. A lot of things are falling into place."
The Valley's tourist trade is beginning to increase, Hinojosa said. "We're getting more big-name
hotels and condos; we're starting to generate a bigger tax base."
Poverty brings health care issues along with it, which hurts work productivity, he said.
Harlingen Mayor Rick Rodriguez said the region has a willing work force.
"If we get the word out, we can get manufacturing businesses to locate on the border," he said.
Texas State Technical College, one of the premier technical schools in the nation, is a regional
asset to produce more skilled workers, Rodriguez said.
Marie McDermott, president of the Harlingen Area Chamber of Commerce, said education is the
key to improving the region's future prospects.
San Benito Mayor Joe Hernandez said the federal government can do more to help the Valley's
economy.
"I very much believe the government could bring in more industry," he said. "They should do more
funding for small cities like San Benito, to help us attract more industry. There are grants and
other funding. They should let the small cities know about those programs."
State demographer Steve Murdock said income, poverty and health insurance coverage
information released Tuesday by the Census in two reports - the 2005 American Community
Survey and the Current Population Survey - did not yield many surprises about Texas.
"Among the larger counties, Cameron and Hidalgo had the highest poverty rates at about 41
percent, which is consistent with their low position on the ranking by median household income,"
said David Johnson, chief of the U.S. Census Bureau's Housing and Household Economic
Statistics Division.
Texas has some of the poorest counties in the nation and continues to have the highest rate of
uninsured individuals. But it also has cities with some of the largest household incomes in the
country, according to figures released Tuesday by the U.S. Census.
"We're pretty much where we were on these parameters in 2000," he said. "As we've been for a
number of years, we had the highest percentage in the country of uninsured" at 24.6 percent.
Texas was the fifth poorest state, eighth in poverty among the elderly, 49th on the percent of
people with a high school diploma and the state's median household income of $42,139 ranked
35th, Murdock said.
Other Texas counties that made the survey's top 10 list of U.S. counties with the lowest median
household incomes that had 250,000 or more people were El Paso at $30,968 and Lubbock at
$35,189. In this same population category, the city of El Paso ranked 10th in lowest median
income and was fourth in the highest poverty rate at 27.2 percent.
For U.S. counties and cities with populations of between 65,000 and 249,999 people, Brownsville
had the fifth lowest median income with $24,207 while College Station came in sixth with
$24,218. In this same population category, Webb County in South Texas had the fifth highest
poverty rate while Brazos County, located about 100 miles northwest of Houston, came in sixth.
Murdock said College Station's ranking might be misleading due to Texas A&M University.
"When you have a city with that large of a student population, you are going to get low incomes.
Parental income does not show up," he said. "But Brownsville has usually been in that category."
While there were no major surprises in the two Census reports, Murdock said some income
figures did catch his eye.
The Dallas suburb of Plano had the highest median income - $71,560 - for a U.S. city with a
population of 250,000 or more. Plano also had the nation's lowest poverty rate for a city in its
population category at 6.3 percent.
Frisco, which is about 19 miles northwest of Plano, had the second lowest poverty rate at 2.1
percent for U.S. cities and counties with between 65,000 and 249,999 residents. In this same
population category, the Houston suburb of Sugar Land had the 9th largest median household
income with $86,231.
"We're quite similar to the rest of the country, in that it is the suburban areas that have the most
superior socio-economic characteristics," Murdock said.
The Center for Public Policy Priorities, an Austin-based advocacy group for poor and low income
Texans, was dismayed by the latest Census figures.
"Even with job growth and high rates of employment, Texas is plagued by poverty," said Eva
Deluna Castro, senior budget analyst at the center. "Texas continues to be a low-wage, lowbenefits state, and our high poverty rates and lack of health insurance reflect that."
Valley Morning Star reporter Allen Essex contributed to this report.
On the Net:
U.S. Census Bureau: http://www.census.gov
State Data Center: http://www.txsdc.utsa.edu