Michelle Singletary: It’s getting tougher to negotiate with the IRS. 2D
Business&Money
S U N D A Y , J U L Y 23, 2006
WWW.TUSCALOOSANEWS.COM
-TICKER Extreme makeover
Population
Lamar Sulligent
Fayette Fayette Berry
Vernon Millport Reform
Tuscaloosa
Gordo
Pickens
Northport
Brookwood
Tuscaloosa
Lakeview
Shifts
Woodstock
Aliceville
20
G Greene
Centreville
Brent
Moundville
Bibb
Greensboro
Livingston
H Hale
York
Marion
Demopolis
S Sumter
Perry
Uniontown
2005 West Alabama Population
Linden
Marengo
N
West Blocton
Coaling
59
Eutaw
Pop.
Source: Bureau of the Census, U.S. Dept. of Commerce
500-1,000
2,001-3,000
1,001-2,000
5,001-15,000
3,001-5,000
35,001 and up
15,001-35,000
Are you spending more time navigating through cables and cords than working at your desk? A desk of tangled wires not only hampers your work output but can be dangerous, too. “Whether in a home or a workplace setting, getting your office organized and under control is not only aesthetically pleasing, but also makes the environment safer and often helps people increase their productivity,” said Paul Holstein, cofounder and COO of Cable Organizer.com. Holstein offers a few tips to untangle yourself: ■ Cable control: Bundle cables and cords using translucent split tubes under your desk. Cable ties or Velcro can also gather unruly wires and cords behind computers and under tables. Invest in desk grommets, so cables, cords and wires can neatly thread through your desk to power outlets. ■ Outlets out-of-the-way: Keep power strips and surge protectors off the floor by using Velcro to attach them to the wall. Or, add a pop-up outlet to your desk to avoid stretching cables across the floor. ■ Label liberally: Labels are most often used for storage containers, folders and drawers. But labels on cords and cables can keep them from getting mixed up and can save time when you uncoil them.
SECTION D
Money sense 2000 2005 Change in population Brent Woodstock West Blocton Centreville
3,087 (33%) 4,129 982 1,012 1,373 1,418 2,461 2,507
1,238 1,226
Fayette
45 46 12,035 12,450
149 12,326 12,241
Eutaw
629 616
Akron Moundville* Greensboro
9,964 9,661
7,457 7,245
521 514
212
Hale County
7
1,584 1,857 2,728 2,616
18,314 18,316
273 112
13,481 13,329 152
Remainder Millport Vernon Sulligent
1,160 1,062 2,143 1,984 2,148 2,033
Remainder
Workers are feeling the gasoline pinch and are adjusting their leisure activities to compensate, according to one survey. Almost 65 percent of respondents are reducing their entertainment and hobby expenditures because of higher fuel costs. Sixty-four percent are dining out less and 29 percent are choosing fewer extracurricular activities for their children. More than half are cutting back on summer travel, while 29 percent are canceling summer travel plans altogether. Higher fuel prices may affect the workplace too. Nearly one-third of respondents said they’re considering switching to a job closer to home. Some employers are taking notice and are providing assistance to retain employees. Nearly one-quarter of employers allow their workers to telecommute, while 17 percent are subsidizing mass transit as an employee benefit. More than one out of five employers are organizing car pools or shared ride programs, whereas 10 percent offer discounted parking to car pool vehicles and motorcycles. The survey was sponsored by Manpower Inc., which polled 900 workers online between May and June.
Uniontown Marion
115 10,463 9,883
2,424 2,336
1,641 1,520 3,511 3,428
Carrolton Gordo Reform Aliceville
318 12,265 11,988
662 646 990 956 1,677 1,596 1,977 1,858 2,567 2,465
Livingston
243
Pickens County
16
20,922 20,178
34 81 119 102
13,049 12,657 392
2,854 2,625 3,297 3,048
Vance* Coker Coaling Brookwood Lakeview
16
Sumpter County 14,749 13,819
34 8,598 8,146
Remainder
277 11,818 11,371
83 6,666 6,423
22,562 21,879
Perry County
121
Remainder York
580
Marengo County
88 7,873 7,555
Remainder Pickensville
15,914 14,962
159
Demopolis
Gas woes
Lamar County
98
Remainder Linden
R
ural West Alabama’s population is shrinking, according to mid-decade estimates released recently by the U.S. Census Bureau. Bad for business? Not necessarily, say the region’s economic development leaders. “Economic health and population growth are not synonymous,” said Annette Watters, manager of the State Data Center at the University of Alabama’s Center for Business and Economic Research. More people do not equal prosperity, Watters said. In fact, it can mean the opposite. A population increase can be a source of growing pains, while a decrease can sometimes be an opportunity to concentrate on improvement, she said. “New people coming in, if they aren’t earning a good wage when they get here, they’re not going to improve the quality of life,” Watters said. The Census Bureau updates population estimates every year using the most recent decennial census — in this case, the 2000 figures — as a baseline. Countywide estimates are figured using vital records such as birth and death certificates; administrative records from the IRS, Medicare and other governmental agencies; and data collected on the foreign-born
85
78
Remainder
Staff Writer
Greene County
13
1,878 1,800
By April Wortham
18,474 18,228
Remainder Forkland
415
Fayette County
12 4,910 4,761
19,938 21,516
30
Remainder Berry
What the latest census estimates say about business in West Alabama
Bibb County
1,042
459 506 806 789 1,120 1,103 1,488 1,466 1,361 1,674
Northport
47
81
Tuscaloosa County
17
STAFF ILLUSTRATION & GRAPHICS | ANTHONY BRATINA
Even though Generation X women understand the importance of saving for the future, most are still battling debt, according to one survey. More than two-thirds of female respondents said they live paycheck to paycheck, while 40 percent carry a credit card balance of $5,000 or more. One in five owe more than $10,000 in credit card debt. “It’s very difficult for Gen Xers to start to think seriously about saving and investing when excessive debt is a pressing issue for them,” said Lauren Coulston, an assistant vice president at OppenheimerFunds Inc. While saving for retirement ranked higher than finding a spouse, buying a home or having nice clothes, 62 percent of Gen X females have not bought any investment products. Part of their reluctance could stem from their lack of information. Six out of ten don’t feel knowledgeable about investing, and 65 percent said they don’t understand how a mutual fund works. “There is a tremendous opportunity for financial advisers to work with this demographic to develop a financial plan to promote good spending and saving habits,” Coulston said. The sur vey was conducted in March by OppenheimerFunds, which polled 215 female and 85 male investors between the ages of 26 and 39.
“New people coming in, if they aren’t earning a good wage when they get here, they’re not going to improve the quality of life.”
165,069 168,908
Annette Watters, manager of the State Data Center at the University of Alabama
17 22 286 (21%) 19,715 21,216
1,501 77,834
Tuscaloosa 62,286 60,796
Remainder Source: Bureau of the Census, U.S. Dept. of Commerce
population. Once a county’s estimates are established, the bureau divides the information into sub-portions based on housing unit estimates, from mobile home shipments to residential building permits to demolitions. The estimates are just that, and they are not always an accurate reflection of growth. For example, 2005 population estimates show the city of Brent in Bibb County as growing by 1,042 people since the 2000 census. That would account for nearly two-thirds of the county’s overall growth. Watters guessed that census workers counted inmates at the Bibb County Correctional Facility, located within the Brent city limits, when calculating the city’s population. Opened in 1997, the facility has a capacity of 1,896 inmates, many of whom were not incarcerated there until after the 2000 census, according to the facility’s Web site. Even discounting Brent’s population estimates, Bibb County undoubtedly has grown in the last five years. In fact, it is the only county in West Alabama in which every town or city showed an increase in population. The number of people living in unincorporated parts of Bibb County also grew, from 11,950 in 2000 to 12,401 in 2005, census estimates show. The only other West Alabama county that showed overall growth was Tuscaloosa SEE CENSUS | 3D
*denotes only the part of the city that lies withen the county
1,490
81,358 3,524