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Fact check: Gov. Rick Scott and Chris King on Florida's economy
Florida state flag
November 29, 2017
By Sara Reynolds
In a recent campaign video, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Chris King characterized Florida as being "at the back of the pack" in major economic indicators, claiming, "Of the 10 most populated states in the country, Florida is last in wages, income, and per capita GDP."[1] According to Gov. Rick Scott and members of his administration, the state has flourished under his tenure. For example, a press release from the state’s Department of Economic Opportunity claimed, "Florida’s strong workforce and business-friendly environment allow our state’s economy to flourish. I am proud to see our state’s job growth rate soar past our nation’s other large states."[2]
Who is correct about Florida's economy?
King is correct in claiming that Florida ranks last among the 10 most populous states in wages, income, and per capita GDP.[3][4][5]
The Scott administration is correct that Florida's private-sector job growth is strong and unemployment rates are low compared to other large states. However, Florida posts the lowest labor force participation rate among the 10 most populous states.[6][7][8]
Background
Florida will hold Democratic and Republican primaries for governor and lieutenant governor on August 28, 2018. The winners will move on to the general election on November 6, 2018.
Chris King is one among six Democratic candidates for governor. He is president and chief executive officer of Elevation Financial Group, a property management and real estate investment company he founded in 2006.[9]
Gov. Rick Scott (R) cannot run for re-election due to term limits. (There are 12 Republican candidates vying in the primary.) Scott has served as governor of Florida since 2011.
Wages
King claimed that Florida ranks last among the 10 most populous states in wages and income.[1] A campaign spokesman told Ballotpedia that King was referring to median hourly wages and median household income.[10]
Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that Florida consistently had the lowest or second-to-lowest median hourly wage (adjusted) of the 10 most populous states between 2001 and 2016.[3][11]
Florida's median hourly wage (adjusted) grew 0.8 percent (from $15.65 to $15.77) between 2001 and 2016. Nationally, the median hourly wages rose 1.3 percent, from $17.59 to $17.81 (adjusted).[3][11]
Income
According to his campaign spokesman, King was referring to median household income data from the U.S. Census Bureau in his claim.[10]
Florida ranked last among the 10 most populous states in median household income (adjusted) from 1997 to 1999, in 2001, and from 2014 to 2016. The state also ranked second-from-last from 2000 to 2004, in 2007 and 2008, and in 2010 and 2011.[4]
Florida's median household income (adjusted) grew 5.7 percent (from $48,428 to $51,176) between 1997 and 2016. The nation’s median household income (adjusted) grew 6.9 percent (from $55,218 to $59,039) in the same period.[4]
Per capita GDP
King correctly claimed that Florida ranked last among the 10 most populous states in per capita GDP.[1]
Between 1997 and 2016, Florida's per capita GDP rose 11.8 percent (from $35,372 to $39,543), which was less than half the national per capita GDP growth of 24 percent (from $40,781 to $50,577).[12][5]
Private-sector job growth rate
As the Scott administration correctly claimed, Florida effectively tied with Georgia for the fastest private-sector job growth rate in 2016 among the 10 most populous states.[2][13]
Unemployment rate
On a year-to-date average for 2017, Florida’s unemployment rate of 4.3 percent ranked lowest among the 10 most populous states.[8]
Labor force participation rate
Florida’s labor force participation rate has fallen since 2008, ranking lowest among the 10 most populous states in 2017.[8]
At 59.8 percent, the 2017 rate was one of the state’s lowest in 20 years—2.5 percentage points below the lowest rate of the 2008 recession.[14][7][8]
The national labor force participation rate was 62.9 percent in 2017, also lower than the lowest rate of the recession (65.6 percent in March 2009).[15]
Conclusion
In a recent campaign video, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Chris King characterized Florida as being "at the back of the pack" in major economic indicators.[1] According to Gov. Rick Scott and members of his administration, the state has flourished under his tenure.[2]
King is correct in claiming that Florida is "at the back of the pack" in wages, income, and per capita GDP among the 10 most populous states.[3][4][5] The Scott administration is correct in claiming that Florida's private-sector job growth is strong and unemployment rates are low compared to other large states. However, Florida posts the lowest labor force participation rate among the 10 most populous states.[6][13][8]
See also
- Florida gubernatorial and lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2018
- Fact check: Phil Murphy and Kim Guadagno on New Jersey's economy
- Fact check: Ed Gillespie on Virginia's economy
Sources and Notes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Facebook, "Chris King," October 11, 2017
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Florida Department of Economic Opportunity, "Gov. Scott: Florida Job Growth Rate Continues to Outpace the Nation," August 2, 2017
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, "OES data," accessed November 21, 2017
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 United States Census Bureau, "Historical Income Tables: Households, Table H-8. Median Household Income by State," accessed November 21, 2017
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 United States Bureau of Economic Analysis, "Annual gross domestic product (GDP) by state: Per capita real GDP," accessed November 14, 2017
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, "Statewide, Total Private, All Employees, In Thousands, Seasonally Adjusted," accessed November 10, 2017
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, "Civilian Noninstitutional Population and Associated Rate and Ratio Measures for Model-Based Areas, Statewide data, Annual average series, Employment status of the civilian noninstitutional population, annual averages," accessed November 9, 2017
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, "Civilian Noninstitutional Population and Associated Rate and Ratio Measures for Model-Based Areas, Statewide data, Monthly series, Employment status of the civilian noninstitutional population, seasonally adjusted," accessed November 9, 2017
- ↑ Elevation Financial Group, "The Elevation Story," accessed November 9, 2017
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Sara Reynolds, "Email communication with Zachary Learner, Chris King campaign manager," November 20, 2017
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Numbers were adjusted for inflation using the United States Bureau of Labor Analysis, "CPI Inflation Calculator," accessed November 9, 2017
- ↑ The Bureau of Economic Analysis automatically generates inflation-adjusted per capita GDP in 2009 dollars.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, "Employed and Office of Employment and Unemployment Statistics: Total Private, All Employees, In Thousands, Seasonally Adjusted," accessed November 10, 2017
- ↑ Florida's labor force participation rate was 59.0 percent in 2015 and 59.2 percent in 2016.
- ↑ United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, "Labor Force Statistics, Top Picks: Civilian Labor Force Participation Rate - LNS11300000," accessed November 9, 2017
Launched in October 2015 and active through October 2018, Fact Check by Ballotpedia examined claims made by elected officials, political appointees, and political candidates at the federal, state, and local levels. We evaluated claims made by politicians of all backgrounds and affiliations, subjecting them to the same objective and neutral examination process. As of 2025, Ballotpedia staff periodically review these articles to revaluate and reaffirm our conclusions. Please email us with questions, comments, or concerns about these articles. To learn more about fact-checking, click here.
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