Blacks earn 54% of whites in Jacksonville

Income levels for African-Americans are a bit more than half of those for whites in metro Jacksonville, according to analysis of new U.S. Census Bureau data by a sister publication of the Jacksonville Business Journal.

The per capita income of whites in metro Jacksonville was $30,528 in 2009. Per capita income is defined as the average amount of money received by residents of a given area in a given year, encompassing such diverse sources of income as salaries, interest payments, dividends, rental income and government checks.

By comparison, African-Americans in metro Jacksonville made 54.3 percent of that, or $16,570, which ranks Jacksonville 53rd out of 101 metros for black per capita income.

Hispanics in Jacksonville made 55 percent of white per capita income, or $16,765. That ranks Jacksonville 17th for Hispanic per capita income.

The per capita income of local Asians was $25,794, or 85 percent of white PCI. That ranks Jacksonville 46th for Asian per capita income.

Income levels of African-Americans were less than half the income levels of whites in 31 major metropolitan areas, according to analysis by Business First of Buffalo.

The largest disparity exists in Bridgeport-Stamford, Conn., where the per capita income for black residents is $20,368, which is 35.9 percent of the comparable figure for whites, $56,729.