About three in ten adults aged 25 to 54 in East Feliciana Parish, Louisiana, are not working
In East Feliciana Parish, 28.3% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is higher than in 85% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 64% of U.S. counties.
What drives East Feliciana Parish's score
In East Feliciana Parish, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 73.3. Income and the safety net comes next, at 62.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in East Feliciana Parish: 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.
East Feliciana Parish does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (9.7%, 2020 to 2024) and people without health insurance (4.8%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 73.3 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202661st percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working28.3% · 2020 to 202485th percentile
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- 62.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line18.4% · 202481st percentile
- Children below the poverty line22.8% · 202475th percentile
- People with a disability18.0% · 2020 to 202467th percentile
- People without health insurance4.8% · 2020 to 202416th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$59,862 · 202470th percentile
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- 61.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector32.9% · August 202581st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people109.2 · 202540th percentile
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- 57.1 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.2% · August 202528th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.2% · August 202564th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score49.5% · second quarter of 202678th percentile
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- 41.5 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 rent9.7% · 2020 to 202411th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income23.0% · fiscal year 202771st 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 East Feliciana Parish 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 East Feliciana Parish, 20.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
East Feliciana Parish
Louisiana
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In East Feliciana Parish, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 31.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In East Feliciana Parish, Louisiana, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 31.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in East Feliciana Parish getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 14.6% in 2019 to 11.8% in 2020.
The share of households in East Feliciana Parish getting SNAP food aid fell by about a quarter from 2009 to 2024, reaching 14.5%, with its low point on the chart in 2020
Low on the chart: 11.8% in 2020. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, East Feliciana Parish, Louisiana.
How East Feliciana Parish has changed
East Feliciana Parish's population had its largest rise, from 19,463 in 1989 to 20,470 in 1994.
East Feliciana Parish's population was at its highest on the chart in 1999 and is down 10% since
High on the chart: 21,272 in 1999. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, East Feliciana Parish, Louisiana.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in East Feliciana Parish rose by about a quarter from 1990 to 2025, reaching 5,235, with most of the change between 1990 and 1995
High on the chart: 5,312 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, East Feliciana Parish, Louisiana.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.1% | 2025 4.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 25.5% | 2024 18.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $19,945 | 2024 $59,862 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in East Feliciana Parish's history
1824
Established in 1824 when Feliciana Parish was divided into East Feliciana Parish and West Feliciana Parish. Wikipedia
1847
Louisiana State Insane Asylum established near Jackson in 1847. Wikipedia
2000
The county's largest recorded population was the 2000 Census count of 21,360. The 2020 Census counted 19,539, 91% of the peak. Census Bureau
2016
A flash flood in August 2016 did $24.2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1965
41 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered East Feliciana Parish, 4 of them for flooding. FEMA
East Feliciana Parish beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border East Feliciana Parish, in Louisiana and Mississippi, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, East Feliciana Parish ranks 3rd of the seven; Wilkinson County is highest, at 43.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wilkinson County, MS | 99 | 31.6% | 43.4% |
| St. Helena Parish, LA | 95 | 20.8% | 31.4% |
| Amite County, MS | 91 | 22.0% | 34.6% |
| East Baton Rouge Parish, LA | 85 | 22.2% | 18.9% |
| East Feliciana Parish, LA | 64 | 18.4% | 31.7% |
| West Baton Rouge Parish, LA | 60 | 12.1% | 21.0% |
| West Feliciana Parish, LA | 52 | 23.3% | 20.9% |
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 East Feliciana Parish the poorest county in Louisiana?
No, East Feliciana Parish's poverty rate was 18.4% in 2024, 41st highest of 64 in Louisiana (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is East Carroll Parish, at 44.4%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, East Feliciana Parish ranks 53rd of 64 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in East Feliciana Parish
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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Southeast Louisiana Legal Services
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 East Feliciana Parish · 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 East Feliciana Parish comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.