Understanding Rural America
County Types
Federal Lands Counties
Land use, property rights, and protection and use of natural resources are
issues of great importance to the Federal lands counties--counties in which 30
percent or more of the land is owned by the Federal Government. In 1987, there
were 270 such counties, located primarily in the West. The amount of federally
owned acreage in these counties ranged from 30 to 99 percent.
Because the Federal Government owns much of the land, these counties are
significantly affected by Federal policies and regulations dealing with land,
the environment, tourism, and recreational activities. The debate on such
policies and regulations is often couched in terms of economic development
versus environmental protection. In reality, the debate is primarily about who
has the right to use and benefit from Federal lands, how those lands can be
used, and who pays for those benefits. A wide range of people and activities
compete for that right. Ranchers, miners, loggers, recreational users, and those
concerned with the preservation of wilderness all have a stake in the governance
of Federal lands. And as the West grows, its population changes, and the demand
on its natural resources increases, the level of debate will likely rise, often
pitting recent urban emigres against long-time local residents.
Map: Concentrated in the West, Federal lands
counties are affected by policies on land and resource use.
Economically, Federal lands counties fared slightly better as a group than
other nonmetro counties in the 1980s. Median family income was higher than the
nonmetro figure, although still well below metro levels, and the average poverty
rate (15.8 percent) was the lowest of all county types.
Job growth in these counties was also strong. The average growth rate in
services jobs in Federal lands counties outpaced even the average total job
growth rate in metro areas, and the overall job growth rate in these counties
was faster than the nonmetro rate. However, earnings per job declined over the
decade by nearly 11 percent, significantly more than the 6.5-percent decline for
nonmetro counties as a group.
Nearly 70 percent of jobs in the average Federal lands county were in the
services or government sectors (hence the fact that 60 Federal lands counties
were also services counties). Of the 554,000 new jobs created in these counties,
429,000 (77 percent) were in the services sector.
The success of the services sector in these counties is, in part, associated
with the growth in tourism and recreation that these areas have experienced. As
the American public becomes increasingly mobile and recreation-minded, the
demand for services in these counties increases. The accompanying jobs range
from seasonal jobs serving tourists to full-time government land managers. Thus
the pay scale varies widely also.
Chart: Family income in Federal lands counties
was nearly 8 percent higher than the nonmetro average.
Chart: Total job growth nearly matched the metro
rate.
Population also grew in these counties, significantly outpacing the nonmetro
average (9 percent versus 0.6 percent). This population growth was due in part
to tourism and retiree attraction (58 Federal lands counties--22 percent--are also
retirement-destination counties). Reflecting the overlap with the retirement
counties, the number of people age 65 and over grew by 33 percent. The number of
working age people also grew.
Population density in these counties is low, averaging only 15.4 persons per
square mile. This fact is not surprising given the relative lack of development
and small populations in the large western counties. Only farming counties, with
11.8 persons, had lower average density. This does not mean, however, that
population is spread evenly and thinly across the counties. About 14 percent of
the counties had towns and cities of 20,000 to 50,000 people.
The issues facing Federal lands counties are inseparably intertwined with
Federal policies and regulations regarding the use of those lands. The degree to
which particular groups of people benefit from growth in these counties depends,
in part, on their relationship to the natural resource base and how those
relationships are affected by policies and regulations. However, as the income
and job situation suggests, these counties are, in the aggregate, doing well,
even while some in the counties are not.
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Updated: February 11, 1997
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