Persistent child poverty counties are those where 20% or more of county related children under 18 were poor, measured in the 1980, 1990, 2000 censuses, and the 2007-11 American Community Survey.

Mining dependent counties are those where 13% or more of the county’s average annual labor and proprietors’ earning were derived from mining, or 8% or more of jobs were in mining, as measured by 2010-12 Bureau of Economic Analysis, Local Area Personal Income and Employment data.

Manufacturing dependent counties are those where 23% or more of the county’s average annual labor and proprietors’ earning were derived from manufacturing, or 16% or more of jobs were in manufacturing, as measured by 2010-12 Bureau of Economic Analysis, Local Area Personal Income and Employment data.

Government dependent counties are those where 14% or more of the county’s average annual labor and proprietors’ earning were derived from federal or state government, or 9% or more of jobs were in federal or state government, as measured by 2010-12 Bureau of Economic Analysis, Local Area Personal Income and Employment data.

Recreation dependent counties are determined by a weighted index of three measures: 1. Jobs; 2. Earnings in the following: entertainment, recreation, accommodations, eating/drinking places, and real estate; and 3. the share of vacant housing units intended for seasonal/occasional use. Recreation counties are those with a score of more than one deviation above the mean. Sourse: USDA, Economic Research Service using data from Bureau of Economic Analysis and U.S. Census Bureau

Non-specialized counties are those that did not meet the economic dependence threshold for any other type, as measured by 2010-12 Bureau of Economic Analysis, Local Area Personal Income and Employment data.

Low education counties are those where 20% or more of county residents age 25-64 did not have a high school diploma or equivalent, determined by the American Community Survey 5 Year average data for 2008-12.

Low employment counties are those where less than 65% of county residents age 25-64 were not employed, determined by the American Community Survey 5 Year average data for 2008-12.

Population loss counties are those where the number of county residents declined between the 1990 and 2000 censuses and also between the 2000 and 2010 censuses.

Retirement destination counties are those where the number of residents age 60 and older grew by 15% or more between the 2000 and 2010 censuses due to net migration.