St. Joseph Community Partnership Fund

12 An Equity Profile of Orange County: Summary $258.1 $341.3 Equity Dividend: $83.2 billion Racial and economic inclusion would strengthen the regional economy Orange County stands to gain a great deal from addressing racial inequities. The county's economy could have been nearly $83 billion stronger (a 32 percent increase) in 2016 if its racial gaps in income had been closed. The dollar value of this equity dividend is the 10 th largest of any metropolitan region in the country and ranks 15 th as a percentage of GDP. We examined how much of the region's racial income gap was due to differences in wages and how much was due to differences in employment (measured by hours worked). Nationally, 33 percent of the racial income gap is due to differences in employment. In Orange County, that share is only 23 percent, with the remaining 77 percent due to differences in hourly wages. These persistent inequalities are a threat to future prosperity. A thriving community is also an engaged community Equitable regions are places where all residents can participate in civic life. In Orange County, data show that growth in the number of both Latino and Asian American voters outpaced the growth in the number of total voters who cast ballots during recent elections. The number of Latino voters increased 131 percent, or by about 100,000 people, from the 2014 to 2018 midterm elections. The number of Asian American voters increased 82 percent, or by over 60,000 people, between these two recent elections as well. In comparison, the change in the number of total voters was about 54 percent between these two elections. Latinos accounted for 17 percent of the total votes cast in 2018 while Asian Americans accounted for 13 percent of votes. Meanwhile nearly 180,000 adult immigrants in Orange County are eligible to naturalize, which could lead to an increasing electorate composed of a larger proportion of people of color. Orange County's GDP would have been $83 billion higher if there were no racial gaps in income Actual GDP and Estimated GDP without Racial Gaps in Income, 2016 (in 2016 dollars) Sources: Bureau of Economic Analysis; Integrated Public Use Microdata Series. Note: The "equity dividend" is calculated using data from IPUMS for 2012 through 2016 and is then applied to estimated GDP in 2016. See the "Data and methods" section in the full profile for details. GDP in 2016 (billions) GDP if racial gaps in income were eliminated (billions)

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