Persistent poverty county

A 2009 U.S. federal law defined a persistent poverty county as one in which "20 percent or more of its population [has lived] in poverty over the past 30 years" according to the Census, which is done every 10 years.

[1] The Economic Research Service (ERS) of the U.S. Department of Agriculture categorizes non-metropolitan counties by their dominant economic foundation and by characteristic policy type.

[2] In 2000, there were 386 such counties concentrated largely in the Delta South, Central Appalachia, Rio Grande Valley, the Northern Great Plains, and western Alaska.

[3] These counties are largely rural and predominantly located in the South.

Note: This data does not include unincorporated territories of the United States.