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Personal income in Ohio grew 0.9 percent on average in the first quarter of 2016, which was slightly below the national average, the Bureau of Economic Analysis reported this week.

(U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis )

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Personal income in Ohio grew at a rate slightly below the national average in the first quarter of 2016, the Bureau of Economic Analysis reported.

Personal income in Ohio grew 0.9 percent on average in the first quarter, according to data released Wednesday by the BEA, which is part of the U.S. Department of Commerce. Nationally, it grew 1 percent. Personal income includes more than paychecks. It includes all sources of income, ranging from that generated by investments to Social Security benefits.

Another report issued Wednesday, also looked at income -- primarily the wages of low-income workers. In Ohio, 32.2 percent of all workers earned less than $12 per hour, which was slightly above the U.S. average, according to Oxfam America, which did the report in partnership with the Economic Policy Institute. Ohio ranked 25th out of the 50 states and the District of Columbia. The report was based on government data, including 2014 data from the U.S. Census Bureau.

U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown released the Ohio figures for the report Wednesday at a news conference. The low wages many workers make "don't reflect the value of the work that they put in," he said.

"These aren't teenagers working summer jobs," Brown said. "The vast majority of these Ohio workers are over 25. Many are supporting families. There are 4.6 million Ohioans living in a household supported by a worker making no more than $15 an hour.

"This isn't how you build a strong middle class," he said. "This is not how you build and sustain a vibrant democracy. We used to have a social compact in this country that promised that if you worked hard, and you took responsibility, you could get ahead."

Neither the BEA data nor the Oxfam report take into account Ohio's cost of living as compared with that of the U.S. Ohio had the 17th lowest cost of living of the 50 states and the District of Columbia in the first quarter of 2016, according to data compiled by the Missouri Economic Research and Information Center. This means that if the U.S. average is expressed as 100 in the cost of living index, Ohio is at 92.8.

Five things you need to know about incomes in Ohio, U.S.

1. Per capita income -- Per capita income in Ohio was $44,750 for the first quarter of 2016, the BEA reported. For the U.S. it was $48,707.

2. Per capita ranking -- Ohio ranked 28th nationally for per capita personal income. Connecticut ranked first with $68,722. Massachusetts was second with $62,895 and New Jersey was third with $61,145.

Mississippi, at $36,247, had the lowest per capita personal income in the U.S. West Virginia was next with $37,407 and Idaho was third from the bottom at $37,994.

Per capita income for the Great Lakes region was $46,147, which put Ohio about $1,400 below the average. The region includes: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin. The BEA groups states into eight regions. The Great Lakes region ranked fifth for per capita income. New England ranked first with $60,661. The Southeast was last with $43,184.

3. Personal income growth -- Ohio ranked 32nd nationally for its 0.9 percent income growth in the first quarter of 2016. Washington ranked first at 1.5 percent. North Dakota ranked last with a growth rate of -1.3 percent.

Personal income in the Great Lakes region grew 1.0 percent on average in the first quarter. New England was first with 1.1 percent growth. The Plains region, which includes North Dakota, was last with 0.7 percent.

Ohio's income growth for the first quarter was slower than it had been in recent quarters.

In 2015, Ohio's personal income growth was:

1.5 percent for the fourth quarter. For the U.S. it was 1.0 percent.

1.0 percent for the third quarter. For the U.S., it was also 1.0 percent.

1.2 percent in the second quarter. For the U.S., it was 1.3 percent.

-0.2 percent in the first quarter. For the U.S., it was 0.8 percent

4. Workers earning less than $15 -- The Oxfam report says that 45.2 percent of Ohio workers earned less than $15 an hour. Nationally, 43.7 percent earned under $15.

Raise Up Cleveland, a group supported by the Service Employees International Union, has collected enough signatures to get a $15 minimum wage issue on the ballot in Cleveland. Cleveland currently doesn't have a minimum wage. Ohio's minimum wage is $8.10.

The City Charter permits City Council to present an alternative proposal. Council is currently holding public hearings on the matter. However, Raise Up Cleveland will still have the option of putting its proposal, which would raise the minimum wage to $15 in one step, on the ballot.

Brown said he didn't want to comment on the Raise Up Cleveland's proposal while Council may be considering another option.

"I am very supportive of the effort to raise the minimum wage," he said.

"Ideally, it should be done nationally," Brown said. "There are issues that are involved in doing it in just one city. I am sensitive to that. I know that this (wage hike) will matter in the lives of many Clevelanders. I live in the city. I see what low wages and unemployment have done to so many of my neighbors and so many people in this great city."

5. Women and minorities over-represented among low-wage workers -- African Americans and Hispanics are disproportionately concentrated in low-wage jobs, according to the report.

"While the majority of low-wage workers are white, black and Hispanic workers are far more likely to be in low-wage jobs," the report states. "Nationwide, more than half (53 percent, 8.2 million) of black workers and 60 percent (13.1 million) of Hispanic workers make under $15 an hour. For black and Hispanic women, the numbers are even more dramatic."

The report says many women also struggle with low-wages.

"Women represent less than half the workforce, but well over half of those earning under $15 an hour," the report states. "Nationwide, 48.5 percent of women (31.4 million) earn under $15 an hour? 35.2 percent (22.8 million) earn under $12 an hour."