Lynchburg's comparatively low wages

This is in reference to an Associated Press story published in the Lynchburg News & Advance on November 30 under the headline for business on page A6 "Wages highest in eastern U.S."
Click here for text as also published in the Richmond Times Dispatch.

Note the commentary below which is published with the premission of its writer:
---------------------------------------------------------------------

Subj: Fwd: Todays Lynchburg News story on wages
Date: 11/30/05 6:34:34 PM Eastern Standard Time
From:
To: LburgAreaVA@aol.com

Isn't it amazing that the local paper never is able to show how poor we are. Reading in the Lynchburg paper one would think from the headline "Wages highest in eastern U.S." that the headline applies to Lynchburg citizens. And why go through all the trouble of that story and never mention Lynchburg's standings? Only because they attempt to portray us as wealthy while underfunding education or underpaying the teachers.

Jim Weigand
-----------------
Forwarded Message:
Subj: Todays Lynchburg News story on wages
Date: 11/30/05 5:18:35 PM Eastern Standard Time
From:
To: carl.hutcherson@lynchburgva.gov, bert.dodson@lynchburgva.gov, ceasor.johnson@lynchburgva.gov, joan@alliancecva.org, jeff@jeffhelgeson.com, joseph.seiffert@lynchburgva.gov, michael.gillette@lynchburgva.gov, rwimer@newsadvance.com

In case you missed it, a story in today's newspaper in the Business section about Virginia wages highest in eastern U. S. shows median family incomes (this isn't about wages). While it mentioned that the nations median family income was, for 2003, $43,318, it didn't list Virginia or specifically Lynchburg.

Nation - $43,318
Virginia - $50,028
Lynchburg - $31,877 - 63.7% of state average

It did mention that the state of Mississippi had the lowest in the nation at $32,397 so we are only $520 behind the lowest state in the nation.

This study parallels the State Net Taxable Incomes study for 2003, soon to be released, which also shows Lynchburg's incomes to be 63.5% of the state average.

Jim Weigand