Annual Commuting Trends

Based on the annual IT-40 tax returns, these data provide insight into the residence and work patterns among and between counties.

Geographic coverage

Indiana and Indiana counties

Frequency

Annual

Timespan

1997 forward

Revisions

The Indiana Department of Revenue works with us each year to obtain these data as soon as possible after “closing the books” on the previous year’s tax returns.  Occasionally, we receive an updated file (not revised, just more comprehensive) that may include late returns.  We will always provide information about such new files on this page.

Variables

• Implied resident labor force
• Implied workforce
• Number of people who life and work in same county
• Number of people who commute into the county
• Number of people who commute out of the county

Data source

Indiana Department of Revenue, using data tabulated from the annual IT-40 tax returns and translated into the STATS Indiana commuting profiles.

Important Notes

• Since this is based on tax returns, only those people who file tax returns are included in the "population" universe. These figures are provided as a reflection of commuting patterns into and out of a specific county. They should not be used as a proxy for employment patterns, and will not match labor force or employment numbers from sources such as the Bureau of Labor Statistics.  Rather, they provide guidance on the flows of workers and the potential labor supply within a region.

• When filling out the IT-40, retired persons, homemakers and unemployed individuals are instructed to record the county where they live as the county where they work as well. This serves to artificially inflate both the implied resident labor force and the number of people who live and work in the same county.

• The residency rules for filing the IT-40 or the forms where the state has reciprocal agreements can affect the commuting data we use from the tax forms.
  
  For example, if you were an Indiana resident at the time you enlisted in the military service, Indiana will be your home of record and you are considered to be a full-year Indiana resident for state income tax purposes during your enlistment regardless of where you are stationed, and all of your income will be taxed by Indiana. If the Indiana resident was stationed in a state beyond Indiana's neighboring states, then the commuting patterns data set would show this resident as living in an Indiana county and commuting to work "Out of State." For information on residency status, please review all of the associated IT-40 forms.