Agenda Packet 5-13-19 Joint Work Session

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Data from this study and other sources suggests that the persistence of the county’s single adult homeless population is due in part to demographic variables and rental stock realities over which the county has limited, if any, control. 1. WHAT DEMOGRAPHIC DATA TELLS US ABOUT THE LANE COUNTY POPULATION’S NEED FOR HOUSING Lane County demographic data describes a county population that is older, more disabled, and less employed than other parts of the state. Perhaps in part because of these characteristics, the data paints Lane County as strikingly poorer than several other Oregon counties, the rest of Oregon, and the United States as a whole.12 TABLE 3: ESTIMATED POVERTY RATES, U.S. CENSUS Geographic Area Poverty Rate Lane County 18.3% United States 12.7% State of Oregon 13.3% Marion County, OR 13.6% Multnomah County, OR 14.2% Portland, OR 16.9% The county has more people over the age of 65 compared to the United States as a whole or to the State of Oregon (See Table 4 below). TABLE 4: PERCENTAGE OF POPULATION AGE 65 YEARS AND OLDER, U.S. CENSUS Geographic Area Percent of Persons 65 Years of Age and Older Lane County 18.7% United States 15.6% State of Oregon 17.1% Marion County, OR 15.3% Multnomah County, OR 13% Portland, OR 11.6% TABLE 5: PERCENTAGE OF POPULATION AGE 16 OR OLDER IN CIVILIAN LABOR FORCE, U.S. CENSUS Geographic Area Percent of Persons Age 16 or Older in the Civilian Labor Force Lane County 59.2% United States 63.1% State of Oregon 61.9% Marion County, OR 61.8% Multnomah County, OR 68.7% Portland, OR 69.5% The county has fewer people age 16 and older employed in the civilian labor force. In September 2018, the State of Oregon reported an unemployment rate of 4.2 percent for Lane County, compared to 3.2-3.5 percent in the tri-county area surrounding Portland, and 3.8 percent for the state as a whole. Lastly, Lane County has a higher percentage of people with disabilities under age 65. 12 The Census indicates limitations to comparing poverty data across geographies. EXTERNAL CHALLENGES IN LANE COUNTY PAGE 10 May 13, 2019, Joint Work Session – Item 1