Economic Trends Report: Pratt County

The use of data in economic development is important because it assists a community in "taking stock" and understanding its current situation across several different areas of economic and demographic performance. However, data alone do not lead to a well-founded understanding of the community. Data must be analyzed and interpreted, taking into account the intuition of those within the community about what the overall trends really mean. In other words, data serve as the foundation for an analysis which concludes: 1) what is happening in the community relative to other regions over time, and 2) what potential impacts or consequences can be inferred from the data. This report looks at the following demographic and economic variables: Population, employment, earnings and income, retail trade, agriculture, and education. Throughout the report, Pratt County's performance is compared with the performance of the State of Kansas and Comparative Counties and Surrounding Counties. It is by no means a comprehensive analysis of economic trends facing Pratt County but rather an overview of some key economic and demographic variables