These Regional Asset Indicators are calculated by the Center for the Study of Rural America at the Federal Reserve Board of Kansas City. Regional asset indicators are designed as “forward-looking metrics” that may “influence both migration and business location decisions.” Each county’s measurement is reported along with Oregon’s county average, and the county average for the United States. Next to each indicator’s title is the year for which it is calculated. Click on the indicator’s title to read the Federal Reserve Board of Kansas City's full description.

HUMAN AMENITIES (2006)

The Human Amenities indicator reflects the desirability to live in a county based on recreational opportunities, healthcare access, and technological innovativeness. The motivation for this indicator is that people are more willing to locate to places with a pleasing environment. High levels of Human Amenities are correlated with population increases and income growth in most counties. The indicator is based on a scale of 0 to 100, and gives equal weight to Healthcare professionals as a percentage of labor force, Patents per capita, Distance to a national park, Restaurants per capita, and the USDA Natural Amenity Index.

INFRASTRUCTURE (2006)

The Infrastructure indicator measures a county’s level of transportation and telecommunication development. The idea is that high infrastructure attracts business investment and increases the demand for goods and services, thereby creating jobs. The indicator is based on a scale of 0 to 100, and gives equal weight to Highway operation expenditures, Commercial aircraft take-offs per capita, and Average number of high-speed internet providers in the county.

WEALTH (2005)

The Wealth indicators are long-term measurements of economic well-being based on Median home value, Agricultural land value, and Dividend, Interest and Rental Income. The wealth indicators are thought to be a bigger and more stable measure of individual wealth than income levels alone, and may represent untapped resources in a struggling community.

FINANCIAL (2002)

The Financial indicators gauge the ability for local banks to finance local entrepreneurs who may stimulate the regional economy. Bank deposit depth is the ratio of local deposits per population, to the per capita income. Bank deposit evolution is the percentage change in local deposits between 1980 and 2002.

UNDEREMPLOYMENT (2000)

The Underemployment indicator measures how well local communities are capitalizing on the supply of high-skilled workers. The indicator is the difference in the percentage of the work force with college degrees and the percentage of jobs requiring a college degree. A negative Underemployment indicator suggests that the county has more high-skilled jobs available than it has high-skilled workers. A positive Underemployment indicator suggests a surplus of high-skilled workers in the county.

ENTREPRENEURSHIP (2003)

The Entrepreneurship indicators measure the “breadth and depth” of entrepreneurs in a county. The Breadth indicator is the percentage of non-farm proprietor employment in the county. Income is the average income from self-employment for individuals in the county. Value Added is the share of proprietor income from sales resulting from self-employment, or the measure of the proprietor’s contribution to the product or service.