Rush County leads other 91 in the state in per capita income growth, BLS says

The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) is an agency in the United States Department of Commerce that provides important economic statistics including the gross domestic product of the United States. BEA is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System. Its stated mission is to “promote a better understanding of the U.S. economy by providing the most timely, relevant, and accurate economic data in an objective and cost-effective manner.”

“This is great news for Rush County as a whole,” Rushville Mayor Mike Pavey said. “We have seen fantastic expansions of local industry, and at the same time, there has definitely been an uptick in job creation among small business in the Rush County community. All of our employers and our hard working citizens deserve the credit for moving our county in the right direction.”

Pavey said the reasons for the high growth rate include expansions by some of the county’s biggest employers. INTAT Precision, which makes automotive components, added a casting line in 2013. DuPont Pioneer Hi-Bred also expanded its operations in 2013.

John McCane, Rush County Economic & Community Development Corp. director, also believes that the county is moving squarely in a positive course. According to McCane, Rush County’s September’s unemployment rate is at 4.4 percent, ranking it best in the Sixth Indiana Economic Growth Region, and 74th in the state in regards to unemployment. At the same time, Indiana’s unemployment rate was 5.7 percent while the U.S. rate was 5.9 percent.

“Rush County is one of the best agricultural counties in the nation and we certainly can’t overlook the contributions that our agricultural community has made to building our county’s economic well-being,” McCane said. “Rush County is consistently in the top 10 counties in the state in regard to corn and soybean production. That is a point of pride.”

Rush County Commissioner Kenny Masters believes that all of the elected officials in Rush County have been dedicated to creating a pro-business environment that encourages and supports local businesses within Rush County. According to Commissioner Masters, elected officials have utilized tax abatement, tax increment financing, small business loan programs, and other tools to help local business and industry.

“We will use whatever economic development tools we have to entice new business to Rush County, while reaching out to our current business and industries to help them to grow,” Masters said. “Rushville city and the county have invested wisely in infrastructure, such as a robust fiber network. Through these partnerships, we can be a pro-business county, while best using the taxpayer’s money.”

“There is just not one easy variable to give as to why we have seen this growth,” Mayor Pavey said. “The fact is, it takes an entire county community working together to produce results like this, and to make this county prosper. But we still have much work ahead of us. We need more people, especially young people, deciding that they want to live in Rush County. We need to build community. We need to continually improve the local quality of life.”

According to Pavey, INTAT Precision will begin production on its new line of automotive parts very soon. When fully built out, INTAT will have made an investment of $23 million and will have created as many as 40 new jobs.

“They could have gone anywhere in the country,” said Pavey. “But they selected Rushville.”

The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) is an agency in the United States Department of Commerce that provides important economic statistics including the gross domestic product of the United States. BEA is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System. Its stated mission is to “promote a better understanding of the U.S. economy by providing the most timely, relevant, and accurate economic data in an objective and cost-effective manner.”