South Central Indiana Economic Development Region

Counties include: Bartholomew, Clark, Decatur, Floyd, Harrison, Jackson, Jefferson, Jennings, Scott, Washington

Largest City: Columbus (2023 population: 51,522)

Population per Square Mile: 139.6

Square Miles: 3,735.4

Population over Time	Number	Rank in State	Percent of State	Indiana
Yesterday (2020)	509,665	1	7.5%	6,785,528
Today (2024)	521,621	1	7.5%	6,924,275
Tomorrow (2030 projection)*	528,759	1	7.5%	7,013,509
Percent Change 2020 to Today	2.3%	1		2.0%

*Projection based on 2020 Census population estimates.
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau; Indiana Business Research Center

Components of Population Change, 2023-2024	Number	Rank of 1	Percent of State	Indiana
Net Domestic Migration	3,056	1		4,268
Net International Migration	1,817	1		30,852
Natural Increase (births minus deaths)	-627	1	-6.8%	9,159

Source: U.S. Census Bureau

Population Estimates by Age, 2023	Number	Rank of 1	Pct Dist. in Region	Pct Dist. in State
Preschool (0 to 4)	29,813	1	5.8%	5.9%
School Age (5 to 17)	87,197	1	16.9%	17.2%
College Age (18 to 24)	41,028	1	7.9%	9.6%
Young Adult (25 to 44)	133,299	1	25.8%	25.8%
Older Adult (45 to 64)	132,875	1	25.7%	24.2%
Seniors (65 and older)	92,472	1	17.9%	17.2%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau; Indiana Business Research Center

Population Estimates by Race and Hispanic Origin, 2023	Number	Rank of 1	Pct Dist. in Region	Pct Dist. in State
American Indian or Alaska Native Alone	2,567	1	0.5%	0.5%
Asian Alone	11,761	1	2.3%	2.9%
Black Alone	20,694	1	4.0%	10.4%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pac. Isl. Alone	607	1	0.1%	0.1%
White	470,069	1	91.0%	83.7%
Two or More Race Groups	10,986	1	2.1%	2.5%
Hispanic or Latino Origin (can be of any race)
Non-Hispanic	484,643	1	93.8%	91.2%
Hispanic	32,041	1	6.2%	8.8%

Source: U.S. Census Bureau

Household Types	Number	Rank of 1	Pct Dist. in Region	Pct Dist. in State
Households in 2023 (includes detail not shown below)	200,848	1	100.0%	100.0%
Married With Children	36,094	2	18.0%	18.1%
Married Without Children	62,318	1	31.0%	29.3%
Single Parents	17,666	1	8.8%	8.9%
Living Alone	56,835	1	28.3%	29.6%

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates.

Housing	Number	Rank of 1	Pct Dist. in Region	Pct Dist. in State
Total Housing Units in 2023 (estimate)	225,159	1	100.0%	100.0%
Total Housing Units in 2023 (includes vacant units)	220,739	1	100.0%	100.0%
Owner Occupied (Pct. distribution based on all housing units)	149,773	1	67.9%	63.9%
Renter Occupied (Pct. distribution based on all housing units)	51,075	1	23.1%	26.9%

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates.

Education	Number	Rank of 1	Percent of State	Indiana
School Enrollment (2023/2024 Total Reported)	86,167	1	7.7%	1,124,877
Public	78,824	1	7.6%	1,032,265

Sources: Indiana Department of Education; U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates.

Income and Poverty	Number	Rank of 1	Percent of State	Indiana
Per Capita Personal Income (annual) in 2023	$58,080	1	94.8%	$61,243
Welfare (TANF) Monthly Average Families in 2024	364	1	7.6%	4,813
Food Stamp Recipients in 2024	38,186	1	6.3%	608,295
Free and Reduced Fee Lunch Recipients in 2023/2024	39,042	1	7.9%	497,203

Sources: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis; U.S. Census Bureau; Indiana Family Social Services Administration; Indiana Department of Education

Health and Vital Statistics	Number	Rank of 1	Percent of State	Indiana
Births, 2021	5,832	1	7.3%	79,946
Births to Teens, 2021	293	1	7.6%	3,845
Deaths, 2019	5,505	1	8.3%	66,005

Source: Indiana State Department of Health

Labor Force, 2023	Number	Rank of 1	Percent of State	Indiana
Total Resident Labor Force	261,064	1	7.7%	3,410,605
Employed	253,362	1	7.7%	3,293,068
Unemployed	7,702	1	6.6%	117,537
Annual Unemployment Rate	3.0	1	88.2%	3.4
January 2025 Unemployment Rate	4.3	1	95.6%	4.5

Source: STATS Indiana, using data from the Indiana Department of Workforce Development

Employment and Earnings by Industry, 2023	Employment	Pct Dist. in Region	Earnings ($000)	Pct Dist. In Region	Avg. Earnings Per Job
Total by place of work	292,418	100.0%	$18,269,102	100.0%	$62,476
Wage and Salary	234,973	80.4%	$13,534,387	74.1%	$57,600
Farm Proprietors	4,967	1.7%	$228,883	1.3%	$46,081
Nonfarm Proprietors	52,478	17.9%	$1,527,709	8.4%	$29,111
Farm	5,697	1.9%	$277,842	1.5%	$48,770
Nonfarm	286,721	98.1%	$17,991,260	98.5%	$62,748
Private	256,383	87.7%	$15,980,427	87.5%	$62,330
Accommodation, Food Serv.	21,281	7.3%	$654,672	3.6%	$30,763
Arts, Ent., Recreation	3,445	1.2%	$59,427	0.3%	$17,250
Construction	15,852	5.4%	$1,061,621	5.8%	$66,971
Health Care, Social Serv.	23,368*	8.0%*	$1,717,668*	9.4%*	$73,505*
Information	1,548*	0.5%*	$104,015*	0.6%*	$67,193*
Manufacturing	57,000	19.5%	$5,264,409	28.8%	$92,358
Professional, Tech. Serv.	9,889*	3.4%*	$640,639*	3.5%*	$64,783*
Retail Trade	29,770	10.2%	$1,188,946	6.5%	$39,938
Trans., Warehousing	20,288	6.9%	$1,150,852	6.3%	$56,726
Wholesale Trade	8,043*	2.8%*	$971,430*	5.3%*	$120,780*
Other Private (not above)	59,058*	20.2%*	$2,730,080*	14.9%*	$46,227*
Government	30,338	10.4%	$2,010,833	11.0%	$66,281

Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis
* These totals do not include county data that are not available due to BEA non-disclosure requirements.

Residential Building Permits, 2023	Units	Pct Dist. in Region	Pct Dist. in State	Cost ($000)	State Cost ($000)
Total Permits Filed	2,348	100.0%	100.0%	$550,779	$7,695,489
Single-Family	1,433	61.0%	63.0%	$426,165	$5,961,199
2-Family	12	0.5%	2.0%	$1,997	$99,053
3- and 4-Family	0	0.0%	0.9%	$0	$40,460
5+ Family	903	38.5%	34.2%	$122,617	$1,594,777

Notes: Detail cost may not sum to total due to rounding. Greene County does not currently issue building permits, so it is excluded.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau

Largest Cities and Towns in South Central Indiana Economic Development Region

Name	Population in 2023	Percent of Region
Charlestown	8,460	1.6%
Clarksville	22,208	4.3%
Columbus	51,522	10.0%
Greensburg	12,363	2.4%
Jeffersonville	51,235	9.9%
Madison	12,208	2.4%
New Albany	37,329	7.2%
Scottsburg	7,373	1.4%
Sellersburg	10,058	1.9%
Seymour	21,666	4.2%

Source: U.S. Census Bureau annual population estimates