Since 1965, the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) has monitored the poverty rates of counties throughout Appalachia – which includes Hall and a number of others in north Georgia – to measure their economic wellbeing and target resources to high-poverty communities with the greatest need for our investment.
ARC defines high-poverty counties as those with poverty rates that are at least 1.5 times (150% or more) the national average. A new report issued Thursday says the number of such counties in the ARC region has been reduced by nearly 60% from 297, including Hall and all adjacent counties, to 119 today.
Of those 119 counties only Elbert, Franklin, Madison, Polk and Chattooga are inGeorgia.
There’s more on this report here: High-Poverty Counties in Appalachia, 1960 and 2019-2023 – Appalachian Regional Commission