John Lettieri, President and CEO of Economic Innovation Group | Official Website
John Lettieri, President and CEO of Economic Innovation Group | Official Website
These payments—which include Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, and income maintenance—accounted for 27.7% of all personal income in the county, according to information from the Economic Innovation Group.
This marks a slight increase in the county’s reliance on government transfers compared to 2012, when such payments made up 27.2% of total income. Since then, the share has risen by 0.5%.
Government transfer payments are non-repayable funds provided by federal, state, or local governments to support individuals in need. These payments aim to stabilize economic conditions and provide financial support during hardships. Key programs include Social Security transfers (retirement benefits), Medicare transfers (healthcare for seniors), Medicaid transfers (healthcare for low-income individuals), and income maintenance transfers (financial assistance for basic needs).
In 2022, government transfers in Carroll County primarily focused on older adults—such as Social Security transfers, which totaled $44.9 million (31.9% of all transfer income), and Medicare, which accounted for $28.9 million (20.5%)—played a significant role in the county's overall income.
On a per capita basis, Social Security payments rose from $3,452 in 2012 and $1,010 in 1970 to $4,101 in 2022, reflecting a 18.8% increase over the past decade and a 306% shift since 1970.
In the meantime, Medicare transfers climbed from $2,802 in 2012 and $236 in 1970 to $2,638, marking -5.9% and 1,017.8% drops, respectively.
These increases in per capita payments align with shifts in the county’s age distribution. In 2022, residents aged 65 and older made up 16.4% of the total population, compared to 13.6% in 2012 and 11.7% in 1970. While the senior share of the population has increased, the rise in per capita Social Security and Medicare transfers suggests that these assistance programs for older adults now require a larger share of government funding—either due to growing needs, expanded eligibility, higher benefit levels, or increased enrollment.
According to the Economic Innovation Group, total income in Carroll County excluding public assistance amounted to $33,520 per capita in 2022, compared to $46,390 when government transfers were included.
Breaking down the other contributions in the county, Medicaid transfers made up $41.7 million, a 29.6% share of total income, while income maintenance programs, including assistance such as SNAP or TANF, added another $15.9 million, or 11.3% of the total.
Compared to the previous year, Carroll County's reliance on government transfers decreased by 5.8%.
Government transfers have long been a modest financial safety net, historically comprising only a small fraction of Americans' income. However, since the 1970s—sometimes dubbed the “Great Transfer-mation”—dependency has surged from 8.2% (or $2,016 per capita in inflation-adjusted 2022 dollars) in 1970 to 17.6% (or $11,529 per capita) in 2022 nationwide.
According to the Economic Innovation Group’s analysis, these trends are not merely short-term responses to economic pressures but rather reflect a profound, long-term transformation in how government support is integrated into American life. The study illustrates that structural shifts—from rising healthcare expenses and demographic changes to stagnant wages—have significantly increased dependency on government transfers.
| County | State Rank (Per Capita Transfers) | Dependency on Transfers (%) | % Population 65+ | Social Security Transfers (%) | Medicare Transfers (%) | Medicaid Transfers (%) | Income Maintenance Transfers (%) | Per Capita Transfers ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Owsley County | 1 | 63.17% | 20.72% | 13.5% | 17.5% | 50.4% | 13.3% | $28,538 |
| Cumberland County | 2 | 48% | 22.78% | 21.2% | 22.8% | 42% | 8.4% | $23,787 |
| Wolfe County | 3 | 53.87% | 19.95% | 20.1% | 16.9% | 44.5% | 13.8% | $23,604 |
| Letcher County | 4 | 55.91% | 21% | 26.3% | 20% | 37.3% | 10.4% | $21,950 |
| Magoffin County | 5 | 52.78% | 19.14% | 22.4% | 17.3% | 43.2% | 12.9% | $21,818 |
| Leslie County | 6 | 55.99% | 19.74% | 24.1% | 18.5% | 42.2% | 11% | $21,778 |
| Harlan County | 7 | 57.29% | 19.58% | 24.2% | 18.6% | 37.6% | 11.8% | $21,605 |
| Knott County | 8 | 52.97% | 20.73% | 22.5% | 18.9% | 41.8% | 11.1% | $21,583 |
| Breathitt County | 9 | 56.1% | 18.87% | 19.7% | 17.4% | 45.6% | 12.8% | $21,501 |
| Bell County | 10 | 54.15% | 19.9% | 21.8% | 19.3% | 40.7% | 12.5% | $21,480 |
| Floyd County | 11 | 48.52% | 19.75% | 25% | 19.6% | 36.9% | 11.4% | $21,074 |
| Perry County | 12 | 48.74% | 18.26% | 21.9% | 19.6% | 39.6% | 11.5% | $21,011 |
| Clay County | 13 | 53.47% | 16% | 18.9% | 19.2% | 43.2% | 14.7% | $20,315 |
| Clinton County | 14 | 45.86% | 20.59% | 20.9% | 19.8% | 42.6% | 10.9% | $20,000 |
| Whitley County | 15 | 46.89% | 16% | 19.7% | 23.7% | 33.2% | 11.8% | $19,775 |
| Pike County | 16 | 44.82% | 20.34% | 28% | 22.4% | 31.8% | 9.7% | $19,526 |
| Martin County | 17 | 60.86% | 17.64% | 25.2% | 16.8% | 40% | 12.3% | $19,449 |
| McCreary County | 18 | 56% | 16.49% | 18.4% | 18.6% | 43.4% | 13.3% | $19,100 |
| Lee County | 19 | 55% | 19.35% | 19.9% | 18.1% | 43% | 12.9% | $18,993 |
| Pulaski County | 20 | 39.91% | 19.84% | 25.4% | 19.1% | 38.5% | 8.5% | $18,381 |
| Fulton County | 21 | 44.16% | 21.55% | 26.4% | 27% | 29% | 11.2% | $18,121 |
| Johnson County | 22 | 45.92% | 19.32% | 27% | 20.8% | 32.8% | 11.2% | $18,025 |
| Menifee County | 23 | 45% | 21.5% | 26.8% | 23.2% | 32.6% | 11.4% | $17,886 |
| Knox County | 24 | 47.44% | 17.77% | 22.3% | 16.3% | 40.5% | 15% | $17,645 |
| Hickman County | 25 | 30.9% | 26% | 30% | 21.6% | 34% | 7.7% | $17,459 |
| Lawrence County | 26 | 45.86% | 18.98% | 25.9% | 19.4% | 34.4% | 11.3% | $17,406 |
| Estill County | 27 | 42.56% | 19.32% | 24.3% | 21.3% | 32.4% | 12.4% | $16,596 |
| Monroe County | 28 | 37% | 19.3% | 22.8% | 24.9% | 35.8% | 10.3% | $16,535 |
| Green County | 29 | 40% | 21.37% | 25.4% | 26.2% | 33.7% | 8.8% | $16,310 |
| Union County | 30 | 33.35% | 20.52% | 31% | 23.6% | 28.6% | 8.5% | $16,290 |
| Wayne County | 31 | 44.24% | 22.34% | 26.4% | 19.6% | 35.1% | 12.4% | $16,268 |
| Rockcastle County | 32 | 41.12% | 19.45% | 25.8% | 19.7% | 37.1% | 10.9% | $16,257 |
| Livingston County | 33 | 35.32% | 22.66% | 35.4% | 26.6% | 22.3% | 7.2% | $16,172 |
| Lewis County | 34 | 42.24% | 19.67% | 22.8% | 23.7% | 32.6% | 12.6% | $16,131 |
| Carter County | 35 | 41.87% | 19.94% | 27.9% | 23.8% | 29.1% | 10.9% | $16,109 |
| Casey County | 36 | 40.37% | 20.79% | 25.1% | 22.8% | 35% | 10.5% | $15,974 |
| Russell County | 37 | 31.37% | 20.98% | 26.8% | 21.3% | 34.2% | 10.9% | $15,947 |
| Boyd County | 38 | 34% | 20.3% | 30.2% | 23.7% | 25.7% | 9.3% | $15,653 |
| Jackson County | 39 | 42.55% | 18.31% | 24.6% | 21.2% | 34.4% | 13.8% | $15,649 |
| Greenup County | 40 | 32.49% | 22.2% | 30.1% | 24.6% | 22.6% | 8.1% | $15,475 |
| Metcalfe County | 41 | 42% | 19.81% | 27.2% | 23% | 32.3% | 10.7% | $15,380 |
| Powell County | 42 | 41% | 16.46% | 27.5% | 20.1% | 31.4% | 13.5% | $15,353 |
| Adair County | 43 | 37.54% | 19.69% | 25.7% | 21.2% | 35% | 9.6% | $15,220 |
| McLean County | 44 | 29.59% | 20.12% | 32.7% | 27% | 24% | 8% | $15,208 |
| Graves County | 45 | 30.12% | 18.95% | 29.2% | 24.9% | 28.7% | 9% | $15,119 |
| Caldwell County | 46 | 33.81% | 21.3% | 31% | 25.1% | 25.9% | 8.9% | $15,101 |
| Hopkins County | 47 | 32% | 19.23% | 31.6% | 23.6% | 25% | 9.3% | $14,987 |
| Muhlenberg County | 48 | 36.94% | 20.38% | 31.8% | 24.9% | 25.1% | 9.2% | $14,844 |
| Butler County | 49 | 34.23% | 19.13% | 29.4% | 20.4% | 31.1% | 10.1% | $14,753 |
| Robertson County | 50 | 37.45% | 23.68% | 25.6% | 19.4% | 39% | 10% | $14,734 |
| Ohio County | 51 | 36.45% | 18.69% | 31.1% | 22.9% | 27.1% | 9.9% | $14,612 |
| Crittenden County | 52 | 35% | 21.71% | 32.9% | 24.2% | 26.5% | 7.5% | $14,580 |
| Taylor County | 53 | 36.55% | 18.24% | 28.6% | 24.7% | 28% | 9.8% | $14,555 |
| Lincoln County | 54 | 36.33% | 18.58% | 28.2% | 24.8% | 26% | 11.7% | $14,534 |
| Trigg County | 55 | 32.62% | 23.17% | 36.6% | 26.9% | 13.6% | 7.5% | $14,503 |
| Carlisle County | 56 | 26.92% | 20.19% | 34.6% | 23% | 25% | 8.6% | $14,471 |
| Grayson County | 57 | 34.36% | 18.51% | 29.9% | 25.2% | 25.5% | 10.3% | $14,287 |
| Marshall County | 58 | 29.48% | 22.72% | 38.5% | 25.8% | 19% | 7% | $14,279 |
| Bath County | 59 | 38.33% | 17.31% | 26.3% | 24.4% | 29.2% | 12.7% | $14,247 |
| Morgan County | 60 | 44.92% | 17.5% | 25.4% | 23.4% | 34.5% | 11.5% | $14,244 |
| Webster County | 61 | 28.76% | 18.46% | 34.5% | 24.8% | 23.5% | 9.1% | $14,213 |
| Henderson County | 62 | 28.75% | 19.44% | 33.2% | 25.1% | 24.1% | 9.4% | $14,061 |
| Elliott County | 63 | 51.29% | 21.32% | 26.7% | 15.9% | 38.8% | 13.3% | $14,055 |
| Nicholas County | 64 | 35.64% | 16.48% | 27.4% | 20.8% | 34.9% | 9.9% | $14,020 |
| McCracken County | 65 | 24% | 20.63% | 33.9% | 23.2% | 24.4% | 8.5% | $14,020 |
| Ballard County | 66 | 28% | 22.18% | 36.2% | 20.3% | 26.3% | 8.5% | $13,959 |
| Mason County | 67 | 29% | 19.33% | 32.2% | 24.9% | 22.5% | 11.1% | $13,957 |
| Franklin County | 68 | 27.83% | 18.69% | 35.3% | 30.6% | 17.7% | 8.7% | $13,770 |
| Lyon County | 69 | 34.46% | 23.69% | 38.4% | 27.5% | 18.6% | 5.2% | $13,685 |
| Logan County | 70 | 30.5% | 18.94% | 30.9% | 25.3% | 25.9% | 9.3% | $13,501 |
| Washington County | 71 | 29.81% | 19.32% | 31.5% | 24% | 28.6% | 9% | $13,470 |
| Laurel County | 72 | 33.26% | 17.19% | 29.2% | 20.6% | 30% | 11.8% | $13,437 |
| Breckinridge County | 73 | 32.34% | 20.2% | 32.4% | 24.9% | 23.1% | 9.6% | $13,425 |
| Barren County | 74 | 31.34% | 18.25% | 31% | 24% | 26.5% | 9.9% | $13,406 |
| Bracken County | 75 | 30.59% | 18.27% | 33.3% | 25.8% | 22.2% | 10.8% | $13,361 |
| Daviess County | 76 | 26.9% | 17.81% | 32.2% | 23.8% | 26% | 8.8% | $13,229 |
| Henry County | 77 | 26.64% | 18.71% | 33.4% | 28.1% | 21.6% | 9.1% | $13,190 |
| Marion County | 78 | 30.24% | 17.43% | 28.5% | 22.5% | 31.9% | 10.4% | $13,172 |
| Rowan County | 79 | 35.16% | 14.96% | 26.6% | 21.8% | 29.6% | 10.8% | $13,151 |
| Hardin County | 80 | 24.64% | 15.14% | 26.5% | 20.8% | 18.7% | 9.5% | $12,992 |
| Fleming County | 81 | 32% | 18.84% | 31.6% | 24.9% | 25.5% | 10.5% | $12,935 |
| Trimble County | 82 | 26.76% | 18.42% | 34.2% | 24.6% | 24.2% | 9.6% | $12,933 |
| Owen County | 83 | 32.62% | 20.4% | 32.3% | 27.8% | 24.5% | 10.1% | $12,891 |
| Carroll County | 84 | 27.74% | 16.44% | 31.9% | 20.5% | 29.6% | 11.3% | $12,869 |
| Larue County | 85 | 30% | 17.92% | 32% | 22.5% | 26.4% | 9.7% | $12,747 |
| Hart County | 86 | 31.88% | 17.47% | 29.2% | 20.4% | 30.2% | 11.4% | $12,644 |
| Grant County | 87 | 27.75% | 14.43% | 31.9% | 27.1% | 21.7% | 11.2% | $12,639 |
| Edmonson County | 88 | 31.5% | 21.35% | 33.6% | 17.7% | 29.3% | 9.9% | $12,539 |
| Allen County | 89 | 30.51% | 18% | 31.9% | 24.1% | 25% | 10.1% | $12,476 |
| Garrard County | 90 | 28.65% | 19.21% | 34.3% | 26.1% | 20% | 10.7% | $12,476 |
| Harrison County | 91 | 29.23% | 18.58% | 34.2% | 26.7% | 21.3% | 10.2% | $12,446 |
| Boyle County | 92 | 27.18% | 19.15% | 34.7% | 24.7% | 21.8% | 9.6% | $12,309 |
| Clark County | 93 | 25.87% | 18.43% | 34.7% | 23.7% | 22.8% | 10.4% | $12,304 |
| Mercer County | 94 | 27.57% | 19% | 37.2% | 24.6% | 19.8% | 9.6% | $12,210 |
| Hancock County | 95 | 22.42% | 18.74% | 37.9% | 27.3% | 17.4% | 8.9% | $12,094 |
| Montgomery County | 96 | 28.48% | 16.82% | 32.7% | 24.3% | 23% | 11.7% | $12,077 |
| Jefferson County | 97 | 18.82% | 17.31% | 32% | 23.4% | 25.5% | 10.3% | $12,061 |
| Bourbon County | 98 | 21% | 20.23% | 35.5% | 23.7% | 22.6% | 10.5% | $12,035 |
| Calloway County | 99 | 27% | 17.25% | 34.4% | 24.8% | 19.7% | 7.9% | $11,910 |
| Todd County | 100 | 25.19% | 16.69% | 30.2% | 20.3% | 28% | 10.9% | $11,904 |
| Pendleton County | 101 | 23% | 17.62% | 35.1% | 25.2% | 19.7% | 10.5% | $11,889 |
| Christian County | 102 | 27.66% | 12.91% | 24.2% | 19.9% | 26% | 12.7% | $11,863 |
| Simpson County | 103 | 26.97% | 16.99% | 34.8% | 26% | 19.8% | 10% | $11,642 |
| Nelson County | 104 | 21.77% | 17.21% | 36.3% | 27.2% | 18.2% | 9.1% | $11,610 |
| Gallatin County | 105 | 26% | 15.4% | 23.1% | 22.8% | 35% | 11.3% | $11,197 |
| Campbell County | 106 | 17.52% | 17.6% | 35.3% | 26.1% | 21.1% | 7.5% | $10,796 |
| Woodford County | 107 | 17.23% | 20.75% | 43.8% | 27% | 11.9% | 7.3% | $10,763 |
| Madison County | 108 | 24% | 14.72% | 32.5% | 22.4% | 21% | 10.1% | $10,653 |
| Anderson County | 109 | 22.69% | 16.73% | 39.2% | 26.2% | 14.8% | 9.2% | $10,338 |
| Kenton County | 110 | 14.79% | 15.79% | 34.3% | 25.7% | 21.4% | 9.3% | $10,281 |
| Spencer County | 111 | 17.95% | 15.83% | 37% | 29.1% | 17.7% | 6.5% | $10,099 |
| Warren County | 112 | 21.74% | 13.41% | 29.5% | 22.4% | 24.2% | 11.3% | $10,027 |
| Meade County | 113 | 21.39% | 15.68% | 35.3% | 19.8% | 16.4% | 9.9% | $10,014 |
| Jessamine County | 114 | 16.92% | 16.54% | 37.9% | 25.4% | 15.7% | 11.3% | $9,841 |
| Bullitt County | 115 | 19.2% | 17.44% | 41% | 25.1% | 15.3% | 8.3% | $9,832 |
| Fayette County | 116 | 15.76% | 14.92% | 34.1% | 23.3% | 21.7% | 9.9% | $9,400 |
| Shelby County | 117 | 16.57% | 17% | 40.7% | 25.8% | 15.3% | 9% | $9,361 |
| Boone County | 118 | 14.52% | 14.8% | 39.4% | 28.6% | 11.1% | 8.2% | $8,527 |
| Scott County | 119 | 15.21% | 13% | 39.3% | 23% | 15.4% | 10.6% | $8,006 |
| Oldham County | 120 | 10.16% | 14.64% | 42.7% | 23.5% | 16.2% | 5.2% | $7,819 |
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