Total personal income in state falls 0.4% in 1Q

Total personal income in Washington fell by 0.4 percent in the first quarter of this year from the previous quarter, but that was still better than 31 other states, including neighboring Oregon and Idaho.

The federal Bureau of Economic Analysis ranked Washington 19th in first-quarter personal income change in a report released today.

Overall personal income — which includes wages, self-employment earnings, dividends, interest, rent received and transfer payments, such as Social Security and unemployment benefits — in Washington amounted to $276.4 billion in the first quarter, down from $277.5 billion in the fourth quarter of 2008. That was the second quarterly decline in a row.

Nationwide, total personal income fell 0.5 percent. Only 13 states, mostly in the Southeast, and the District of Columbia recorded gains in the quarter.

Hawaii had the fastest quarterly income growth, 0.8 percent. Alaska's 3.2 percent decrease was the nation's steepest, although much of that reflected a larger than normal dividend from the Alaska Permanent Fund.