Celebrating Alabama Veterans by the Numbers

• July 24th, 2019

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — In honor of Veteran’s Day, UA’s Center for Business and Economic Research  compiled some interesting statistics about veterans in Alabama. Veterans make up a significant portion of Alabama’s population, with about 9.8 percent of Alabama’s population identifying as a veteran,  according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2011‐2015 American Community Survey estimates. Data from the  U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs estimates about 370,000 veterans live in Alabama as of September  30, 2017. By examining the demographic characteristics, educational attainment, and entrepreneurship  of veterans in Alabama, we can appreciate the diversity of veterans and the impact they have on their  local communities.

Alabama veterans live throughout the state, but there are several counties that seem to be favorites for  those who served in the armed forces. According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2011‐2015 American  community Survey (ACS) estimates, Dale County has the highest percentage population of veterans at  18.3 percent. Coffee County follows closely, with 17.7 percent of its population identifying as veterans.  Russell, Autauga, and Baldwin counties all have veteran populations larger than 12.0 percent of their  total population.

Looking at the number of veterans living in a county, we see many veterans living in the more populated  counties. According to the same ACS data set, Jefferson County has the largest population of veterans in the state, with about 42,000 veterans calling the county their home. Madison County also has a  significant population of veterans (33,094), as does Mobile County (30,686). Baldwin and Montgomery  counties both have large veteran populations at 19,608 and 18,656, respectively.

Demographic Characteristics 

About a fifth of Alabama veteran population in 2017 are 17 to 44 years old, according to the U.S.  Department of Veteran Affairs. More than a third or 36.3 percent are 45 to 64 years old, 37.2 percent are 65 to 84 years old, and 6.4 percent are 85 and over. Most of veteran population in the state are men  (89.4 percent) while 10.6 percent are women.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s ACS data, 21.4 percent of Alabama veterans identify as Black or  African American; 0.7 percent identify as American Indian or Alaska Native alone; and a 75.9 percent majority of veterans living in Alabama identify as White alone. Additionally, 1.5 percent of Alabama  veterans identify as Hispanic or Latino of any race.

Educational Attainment

In Alabama, veterans tend to be more educated than nonveterans. Using estimates from the U.S. Census  Bureau, you can see that a greater percentage of veterans than Alabama’s nonveteran population have  at least a bachelor’s degree, and a larger portion of the veteran community has some college or  associate’s degree than the nonveteran population. Additionally, a smaller percentage of veterans have  less than a high school graduate’s level of education than the nonveteran population.

Entrepreneurship 

According to the most recent U.S. Census Bureau’s Annual Survey of Entrepreneurs (2015), among  66,691 Alabama firms, 9.6 percent or 6,425 were veteran‐owned and 3.3 percent or 2,201 firms were  equally veteran‐/nonveteran‐owned. Veteran‐owned firms employed 68,669 people and had an annual  payroll of almost $2.5 billion. Firms that were equally veteran‐ and nonveteran‐owned employed 20,946  people and had an annual payroll of $562.2 million.

Firms in educational services had the largest share of veteran‐owned firms: 16.4 percent or 117 out of  713 firms. The largest share of equally veteran‐/nonveteran‐owned firms was in mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction sector, with 14.3 percent or 17 out of 119 firms. Retail trade industry had the  largest number of veteran‐owned firms: 1,103 companies. The largest number of equally veteran‐ /nonveteran‐owned firms was also in retail trade, with 362 companies.

More data on veteran population are available for all Alabama counties from the Census Bureau’s 2011‐ 2015 American Community Survey.

Contact: Viktoria Riiman, Socioeconomic Analyst, Culverhouse College of Commerce, Center for Business  and Economic Research (CBER), 205‐348‐3757, vriiman@cba.ua.edu; Susannah Robichaux,  Socioeconomic Analyst, Culverhouse College of Commerce, CBER, 205‐348‐3781,  scrobichaux@cba.ua.edu

Business Executives Reported Education and Workforce Training Remains the Top Issue in Alabama

• July 24th, 2019

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama business executives believe education and workforce training remains the top issue currently facing the state.

Business executives are surveyed annually by the Center for Business and Economic Research (CBER) in The University of Alabama’s Culverhouse College of Commerce on various topics related to issues facing the state and their respective companies.

Education and workforce training also ranked first in the 2016 survey. Infrastructure improvement ranked second in the 2017 survey, up from sharing the third and fourth place a year before, one of the most significant shifts in rankings from the previous year. Almost 80 business executives participated in the latest survey in November 2017. The survey has been conducted since 2013 and asks for opinions of the Alabama Business Confidence Index™ (ABCI) panelists.

In issues affecting companies directly, business executives expressed similar concerns and ranked workforce their top issue, up from the third place in the 2016 survey.

“Business leaders expressed concern in their comments over the lack of skilled and educated workers,” said Viktoria Riiman, socieoeconomic analyst at CBER.

Riiman noted that government regulations and taxes remained the second top issue impacting companies. The economy in general and company finances and development were the third and fourth-ranked issues.

While education and workforce training as well as infrastructure top the issues facing the state, economic and business development, dissatisfaction with government, and job growth rounded out the top five issues facing Alabama.

Each quarter, business executives across the state take the ABCI survey. Almost 77 percent of ABCI panelists use the confidence index as a general indicator of local or regional economic outlook. About 57 percent of business executives also compare personal projections to others’ viewpoints and 44 percent use the ABCI results as a background information for estimating future trends. Additionally, 35 percent of business executives share results with others and 18 percent use the ABCI results in short-term planning.

The ABCI panel is open to business executives across the state. Registration and current and historical results are available on the ABCI website. Newsletters with results are provided for Alabama and for the Birmingham-Hoover, Huntsville, Mobile, and Montgomery metro areas. Panelists can take the Q2 2018 survey until March 15.

CONTACT: Viktoria Riiman, Socioeconomic Analyst, 205-348-3757, vriiman@cba.ua.edu