In Cassia County, Idaho, benefit checks make up only 18 cents of every dollar of income
In Cassia County, 17.5% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is lower than in 86% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 71% of U.S. counties.
What drives Cassia County's score
In Cassia County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 47.1. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 26.6. Rent on a two-bedroom takes 18.4% of the typical household's income (fiscal year 2027), lower than in 74% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Cassia County: 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, Cassia County is worse off than most counties on people without health insurance (11.7%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 47.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector20.5% · August 202539th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people136.2 · 202554th percentile
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- 45.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line12.9% · 202447th percentile
- Children below the poverty line13.5% · 202430th percentile
- People with a disability14.0% · 2020 to 202430th percentile
- People without health insurance11.7% · 2020 to 202476th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$70,494 · 202440th percentile
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- 44.1 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.3% · August 202528th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.0% · August 202561st percentile
- People with a subprime credit score38.2% · second quarter of 202642nd percentile
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- 26.8 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.4% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202625th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working17.1% · 2020 to 202427th percentile
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- 26.6 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 rent14.2% · 2020 to 202427th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.4% · fiscal year 202725th percentile
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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 Cassia County 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 Cassia County, 14.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Cassia County
Idaho
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Cassia County had its largest drop, from 19.8% in 2009 to 15.2% in 2014.
In Cassia County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 17.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about four times as much as benefit checks
In Cassia County, Idaho, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 17.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Cassia County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 10.3% in 2019 to 7.4% in 2020.
The share of households in Cassia County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 and has since fallen to 9.2%
Low on the chart: 7.3% in 2021. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Cassia County, Idaho.
How Cassia County has changed
Cassia County's population rose by about half to 25,976, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2019 to 2024, reaching 25,976. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Cassia County, Idaho.
The number of jobs located in Cassia County had its largest rise, from 6,772 in 1990 to 7,992 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Cassia County doubled from 1990 to 2025, reaching 12,609, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2000 to 2005, reaching 8,800. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Cassia County, Idaho.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.2% | 2025 3.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 15.4% | 2024 12.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $25,424 | 2024 $70,494 |
The table uses 3.2% for 2025; the score uses 3.4% 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 Cassia County's history
1879
Created February 20, 1879 from Owyhee County with Albion as the initial county seat. Wikipedia
1984
1984 Lower Goose Creek Reservoir came close to overtopping dam after historic rain and snowfall. Wikipedia
1988
A thunderstorm in August 1988 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1996
Lightning in July 1996 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1996
A flash flood in July 1996 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2003
Simplot potato-processing plant closed in 2003 after operating since 1960. Wikipedia
2017
A flood in February 2017 did $5.24 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 24,655, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1964
5 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Cassia County, 2 of them for flooding. FEMA
Cassia County beside its neighbors
Of the eight counties that border Cassia County, in Idaho, Nevada and Utah, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Cassia County ranks 6th of the nine; Oneida County is highest, at 25.1%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Twin Falls County, ID | 37 | 10.9% | 22.2% |
| Power County, ID | 35 | 13.0% | 22.1% |
| Jerome County, ID | 32 | 11.1% | 19.5% |
| Cassia County, ID | 28 | 12.9% | 17.5% |
| Minidoka County, ID | 28 | 10.0% | 21.0% |
| Elko County, NV | 27 | 9.5% | 15.7% |
| Box Elder County, UT | 15 | 6.8% | 17.3% |
| Oneida County, ID | 2 | 10.4% | 25.1% |
| Blaine County, ID | 0 | 6.7% | 5.7% |
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 Cassia County the poorest county in Idaho?
No, Cassia County's poverty rate was 12.9% in 2024, 13th highest of 44 in Idaho (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Madison County, at 24.3%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Cassia County ranks 22nd of 44 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Cassia County
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.
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Idaho Legal Aid Services, Inc.
Legal aid
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Idaho Volunteer Lawyers Program
Legal aid
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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 Cassia County · 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 Cassia County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.