Coloradans’ earnings dropped 22% in the second quarter of 2020, but personal incomes are up even more, thanks to the federal stimulus package passed by Congress earlier this year and intended to aid the economy.
The boosted personal incomes, up 26% in Colorado in the second quarter, come as the result of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act of 2020, which not only kept incomes from falling, but maintained and amplified the overall income growth trajectory in the state.
The effects are detailed in a Bureau of Economic Analysis report and data release from late September.
Although earnings dropped in the state by $14 billion, "declines were moderated by Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans to proprietors," the bureau's report states. Dividends, interest and rent earnings dropped by another $1.8 billion.
The added personal income came mostly in the form of an additional $600 per week in unemployment compensation, one-time $1,200 payments to most individuals, and relief funds directed to health care providers.
All told, $37.9 billion in new government social benefits flowed to Coloradans, a near tenfold increase from the first quarter of 2020.
Earnings dropped less in Colorado than in the rest of the country, with forestry, manufacturing, construction, wholesale and retail trades, real estate and other professional services industries outperforming other states in the second quarter.
Earnings from the accommodation and food services industries dropped the most in Colorado, with a 3.32% decline, or $2.7 billion, according to there report.
Also hit hard were earnings from the oil, gas and mining industries, with a 2.25% drop, representing $1.7 billion in lost earnings. Only Wyoming, Texas and North Dakota saw as big a decline in earnings for the sector.
Earning from arts, entertainment and recreation dropped $1.8 billion in the second quarter, down 2.24%, in Colorado, more than most other states, the report shows.
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