(Effective October 1, 2002 through September 30, 2003)
Each fiscal year the Appalachian Regional Commission classifies the Region’s counties into one of four economic levels based on a comparison of county and national rates for three economic indicators: three-year average unemployment rates, per-capita market income rates, and poverty rates. See the methodology for a description of each economic level. In Fiscal Year 2003, one hundred twenty-one counties are classified as distressed, 259 are classified as transitional, 21 are classified as competitive, and 9 are classified as attainment. For a list of county classifications, see the downloadable Excel file.
