• Georgia had the 5th highest insecurity in the nation during 2008 - 2010, according to the Economic Security Index—a novel measure of economic instability in the United States.
• The Economic Security Index (ESI) tracks the share of Americans who see their available household income—their total income after subtracting out medical costs—decline by 25 percent or more from one year to the next. For the first time, the ESI is available for the American states.
• In addition to showing that about 1 in 4 Georgia residents experienced large losses in 2010, the ESI shows that on average insecurity in Georgia rose proportionally by 57 percent between 1986 and 2010.2
• This translates into roughly 1.7 million Georgia residents (out of a population of 7.4 million) who experienced large economic losses in 2010, as opposed to 623,000 in 1986, reflecting both a rise in insecurity and state population growth.

Prevalence of Large Economic Losses, 1986-2010

Across the nation, Americans experienced record levels of economic insecurity during and since the recent downturn. This report concerns economic insecurity in Georgia from 1986 to 2010.

The Economic Security Index

The ESI is a comprehensive measure of economic security, which tracks the proportion of Americans who see their "available household income"—their household income after paying for medical care and servicing their financial debts—decline by 25 percent or more from one year to the next and who lack sufficient financial wealth (such as savings) to replace this lost income.

Insecurity in Georgia

Figure 1 shows the ESI for Georgia between 1986 and 2010. Georgia experienced a record level of insecurity (22.8 percent) in 2009. Over the last quarter century, Georgia's ESI has increased at a rate of 3 percentage points per decade on average. It was 14.1 in 1986 and 22.5 in 2010. In terms of individuals affected, roughly 1.7 million Georgia residents experienced a 25 percent drop or greater in 2010, compared with 623,000 in 1986, reflecting higher insecurity as well as a larger state population.

Georgia’s Insecurity in National Perspective

The Georgia ESI may have been higher than the national average in 2010 for several reasons. Variation in state level ESIs are likely driven by a combination of state policies, exposure to macroeconomic shocks, and the demographic composition of the state. The Georgia ESI may be higher due to higher concentrations of individuals known to have higher exposure to economic risk at the national level. For example, large losses are more prevalent among individuals who reside in a household headed by someone who has less than a college degree, is Black or Hispanic, or is a single parent.

For more information on Georgia, visit: http://economicsecurityindex.org/assets/state_reports/GA_dated.pdf