[California] Placer touts its low poverty, jobless rates

From The Sacramento Bee

It's the only non-Bay Area county to make the top-5 list for highest median incomes.
By Niesha Lofing -- Bee Staff Writer

Placer County has the lowest poverty rate of any county in the state, a distinction that local leaders attribute to good planning and innovative programs.

The rankings are being heralded by county officials, who say much of Placer's success in keeping unemployment rates down and bolstering the job market can be attributed to the county's approach to helping residents on welfare find jobs and to avidly recruiting large companies to the area.

"This is a great thing," county Supervisor Robert Weygandt said. "We've done well at taking advantage of some of the opportunities that have come our way. Job creation has generally evolved alongside population growth."

Among California's 58 counties, Placer had the lowest percentage of residents living in poverty, 5.9 percent, followed by San Mateo and Marin counties, at 6.8 percent and 7.3 percent, respectively, according to a recent U.S. Census Bureau report that analyzed 2003 data. The statewide poverty rate is 13.8 percent.

Placer also was the only county not in the Bay Area to make the top five list of counties with the highest median incomes, coming in at fifth with $61,474. Placer County also tied with San Luis Obispo County as having the third lowest unemployment rate, 4 percent, in November 2005.

Tom Miller, county executive officer, said that while the accolades are deserved, it's important to remember the 18,000 Placer County residents who remain unemployed.

"Yes, we are hugely successful, but we also need to ask ourselves, 'What are we doing as a community to address the needs of those 18,000?' " Miller said. "We still have 18,000 people to care about."

The county has taken an innovative approach to helping residents on welfare find jobs, which has helped the county keep poverty and unemployment rates low, officials said.

About six years ago, Placer County moved the job development program that traditionally is part of CalWORKS - which provides financial assistance and training to help low-income parents enter the work force - into the Economic Development Department.

The county then created the Business Advantage Network, a team of employers, welfare and county job-development employees who help welfare recipients find and retain jobs, said Ed Graves, the county's economic development director.

The network also provides job training programs, résumé writing workshops, interview seminars, internships, community college experience and even professional attire for job-seekers, he said.

Employers can qualify for financial incentives if they hire people through the network. The benefits include federal tax credits - up to $8,500 per person hired - reimbursement for on-the-job training, transportation and child-care assistance, Graves said.

"It's not only a huge advantage for the job-seekers, but also a huge advantage for our employers," Graves said.

In the coming year, the network will expand to help small businesses - those with fewer than 50 employees - avoid layoffs, thanks to an $89,000 grant from a local job-training agency.

County Executive Miller said the county's network program and its staff members have done an outstanding job of helping residents transition from being on welfare to finding meaningful occupations.

"There is a tremendous amount of resources provided to try to take care of their needs," Miller said. "It's why Placer County is so successful."

The success of the network program is mirrored in the county's welfare caseload, Graves said.

In 1995, before the network began, Placer County had 3,200 welfare cases. In 2000, that number dropped to 1,200. There are currently about 1,100 welfare cases, Graves said.

Another factor that has helped contribute to the county's low unemployment rate and high job-growth rate is the county's ambitious recruitment of employers whose jobs will be a primary source of wages for families. (For the 12-month period ending March 2003, Placer County ranked first in the nation with a job-growth rate of 4.9 percent.)

The low unemployment rate holds long-term benefits for residents and those looking to move to Placer County, Graves said.

Less money being budgeted for public assistance translates to more funding for other county services, he said.

"This means more money for parks, open space and services the county provides," he said.

But the county is not without criticism.

In an annual survey conducted by the county, employers cited higher education as the leading area where the county needs to improve.

Though the county has Sierra College, a two-year community college, and William Jessup University, a private, four-year religious university, more opportunities for higher education are needed, Graves said.

Two university projects have been proposed for South Placer County, but both have yet to be approved.

Employers like to be located near universities, Graves said.

"The No. 1 resource for any business is people," he said. "It's all about labor - well-trained and productive labor."

Universities also employ large numbers of people and could be a boon to the county's economy in that respect, he said.