Family Life

04.13.10 | FL News Team

The personal income for most Americans has dropped by more than three-percent since President Obama took office. The Commerce Department's Bureau of Economic Analysis says income, excluding government payouts such as Social Security, has fallen by three-point-two-percent since January of 2009. The "Washington Times" reports, by comparison, real personal income during the first 15 months in office for President George W. Bush, dropped zero-point-four-percent.

 The bureau's statistics show per capita income dropped in 47 states during 2009, with only modest gains reported in West Virginia, Maine and Maryland. Most of those increases, the report says, were attributed to rising income from the government, such as Medicare and unemployment benefits. The most dramatic declines were reported in California and New York. Per capita income in the Golden State dropped three-point-five-percent, while New York saw a decline of three-point-eight-percent.

 Douglas Holtz-Eakin, an economist and former director of the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, wasn't surprised by the findings. He says under President Obama only federal spending is going up, while jobs, business startups, and incomes are all down. It is, he says, quote, "proof that the government can't spend its way to prosperity." So far, the White House hasn't commented on the personal income decline.