About one in nine people in Lake and Peninsula Borough, Alaska, has a disability
In Lake and Peninsula Borough, 11.5% of people reported a disability. That is lower than in 89% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 61% of U.S. counties.
What drives Lake and Peninsula Borough's score
In Lake and Peninsula Borough, income and the safety net is the highest-scoring part, at 71.3. Collections and bankruptcy is the lowest part, at 18.6.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Lake and Peninsula Borough: jobs, late payments on loans, income and the safety net, collections and bankruptcy, and housing costs. Each part is scored from 0 to 100, and a higher score means worse off than other counties.
Even so, Lake and Peninsula Borough is worse off than most counties on unemployment rate, average over the latest year (7.4%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026) and people without health insurance (32.2%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 71.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line20.2% · 202487th percentile
- Children below the poverty line29.9% · 202491st percentile
- People with a disability11.5% · 2020 to 202411th percentile
- People without health insurance32.2% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$59,966 · 202470th percentile
-
- 55.4 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year7.4% · Oct 2025 to Sep 2026top 5%
- Adults 25 to 54 not working15.0% · 2020 to 202415th percentile
-
- 41.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202525th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 20258th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score55.3% · second quarter of 202689th percentile
-
- 29.4 of 100
Housing costs
Renters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent0.9% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.0% · fiscal year 202753rd percentile
-
- 18.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collectornot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202532nd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 peoplenot published for this county; scored at the state median · 20255th or lower percentile
-
Sources: Urban Institute, Debt in America; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey; U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Fair Market Rents and Census income; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics; Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. County Distress Index by American Default Research, from data through Sep 2026.
Where the money in Lake and Peninsula Borough comes from
Benefit checks are Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid paid on people's behalf, veterans' benefits, and food and income support, so a high share usually means an older population, low pay, or both. In Lake and Peninsula Borough, 10.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Lake and Peninsula Borough
Alaska
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Lake and Peninsula Borough had its largest rise, from 20.6% in 2016 to 28.3% in 2021.
In Lake and Peninsula Borough, benefit checks' share of income has grown since 1991, reaching 25.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Lake and Peninsula Borough, Alaska, benefit checks' share of income rose from 1991 to 2024, reaching 25.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Lake and Peninsula Borough getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 19.1% in 2015 to 24.4% in 2016.
The share of households in Lake and Peninsula Borough getting SNAP food aid grew to about four times its 2009 level in 2024, reaching 29.3%
High on the chart: 30.7% in 2022. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Lake and Peninsula Borough, Alaska.
How Lake and Peninsula Borough has changed
Lake and Peninsula Borough's population had its largest drop, from 1,577 in 2016 to 1,421 in 2021.
Lake and Peninsula Borough's population fell by about a quarter to 1,315, the lowest on the chart
High on the chart: 1,818 in 1996. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Lake and Peninsula Borough, Alaska.
The number of jobs located in Lake and Peninsula Borough had its largest rise, from 631 in 2001 to 719 in 2006.
The number of jobs located in Lake and Peninsula Borough rose by more than half from 1991 to 2025, reaching 817
High on the chart: 828 in 2016. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Lake and Peninsula Borough, Alaska.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.2% | 2025 5.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1993 25.7% | 2024 20.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1993 $31,775 | 2024 $59,966 |
The table uses 5.8% for 2025; the score uses 7.4% for the latest year (Oct 2025 to Sep 2026), both from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Lake and Peninsula Borough's history
1941
Air Force base established in World War II at King Salmon. Wikipedia
1989
Incorporated April 24, 1989. Wikipedia
2000
The county's largest recorded population was the 2000 Census count of 1,823. The 2020 Census counted 1,476, 81% of the peak. Census Bureau
-
Since 2000
3 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Lake and Peninsula Borough. FEMA
Lake and Peninsula Borough beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Lake and Peninsula Borough, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Lake and Peninsula Borough ranks 2nd of the seven; Bethel Census Area is highest, at 37.6%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bethel Census Area, AK | 65 | 28.4% | 37.6% |
| Dillingham Census Area, AK | 62 | 23.6% | 24.7% |
| Lake and Peninsula Borough, AK | 38 | 20.2% | 25.4% |
| Kenai Peninsula Borough, AK | 32 | 10.6% | 24.7% |
| Bristol Bay Borough, AK | 27 | 11.4% | 10.1% |
| Aleutians East Borough, AK | 25 | 20.5% | 8.1% |
| Kodiak Island Borough, AK | 10 | 8.3% | 19.6% |
Distress score: American Default Research, County Distress Index, data through Sep 2026; each county scored against all 3,144. Poverty rate: Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates, 2024. Benefit checks: Bureau of Economic Analysis, 2024. Neighbors share a border, from Census county maps.
Is Lake and Peninsula Borough the poorest county in Alaska?
No, Lake and Peninsula Borough's poverty rate was 20.2% in 2024, 7th highest of 30 in Alaska (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Kusilvak Census Area, at 34.9%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Lake and Peninsula Borough ranks 9th of 30 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Lake and Peninsula Borough
Housing counselors approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development work at nonprofit agencies. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau describes free foreclosure-avoidance counseling, including help with mortgage-company conversations and available options Source CFPB.
-
Alaska Legal Services Corporation (ALSC)
Legal aid
-
HUD-approved housing counselors
Our help directory lists 1,010 agencies approved for foreclosure counseling, by state.
The score, its 14 measures and their sources, in one file. Free to use with credit to American Default Research.
Download the CSV for Lake and Peninsula Borough · Every U.S. county (CSV)
Sources and method
- American Default Research · County Distress Index Data through Sep 2026, built from Urban Institute, Debt in America; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; Census Bureau, American Community Survey; HUD Fair Market Rents and Census income; Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics; Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. The County Distress Index is American Default Research's own calculation; the Urban Institute does not produce or endorse it. Our methodology
- Urban Institute · Debt in America Breno Braga, Signe-Mary McKernan, Samantha Atherton, and Kassandra Martinchek, "Debt in America," last updated November 20, 2025, https://datacatalog.urban.org/dataset/debt-america-2025. Licensed under ODC-By 1.0.
- Rent on a two-bedroom and household income The rent share compares HUD fair market rent for fiscal year 2027 with Census Bureau median household income for 2024. The page calls this the typical household's income.
- U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Accounts (CAINC4) · income shares Where the money in Lake and Peninsula Borough comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.