In 2022, Walker County received $861.2 million in government transfer payments, equivalent to $12,497 per capita.
These payments—which include Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, and income maintenance—accounted for 29.5% of all personal income in the county, according to information from the Economic Innovation Group.
This marks a slight increase in the county’s reliance on government transfers compared to 2012, when such payments made up 27.7% of total income. Since then, the share has risen by 1.8%.
Government transfer payments are non-repayable funds provided by federal, state, or local governments to support individuals in need. These payments aim to stabilize economic conditions and provide financial support during hardships. Key programs include Social Security transfers (retirement benefits), Medicare transfers (healthcare for seniors), Medicaid transfers (healthcare for low-income individuals), and income maintenance transfers (financial assistance for basic needs).
In 2022, government transfers in Walker County primarily focused on older adults—such as Social Security transfers, which totaled $295.7 million (34.3% of all transfer income), and Medicare, which accounted for $257.2 million (29.9%)—played a significant role in the county’s overall income.
On a per capita basis, Social Security payments rose from $3,710 in 2012 and $832 in 1970 to $4,291 in 2022, reflecting a 15.7% increase over the past decade and a 415.7% shift since 1970.
Similarly, Medicare transfers climbed from $2,694 in 2012 and $136 in 1970 to $3,732, marking 38.5% and 2,644.1% increases, respectively.
These increases in per capita payments align with shifts in the county’s age distribution. In 2022, residents aged 65 and older made up 19.5% of the total population, compared to 16.2% in 2012 and 8.5% in 1970. While the senior share of the population has increased, the rise in per capita Social Security and Medicare transfers suggests that these assistance programs for older adults now require a larger share of government funding—either due to growing needs, expanded eligibility, higher benefit levels, or increased enrollment.
According to the Economic Innovation Group, total income in Walker County excluding public assistance amounted to $29,804 per capita in 2022, compared to $42,301 when government transfers were included.
Breaking down the other contributions in the county, Medicaid transfers made up $122.4 million, a 14.2% share of total income, while income maintenance programs, including assistance such as SNAP or TANF, added another $101.4 million, or 11.8% of the total.
Compared to the previous year, Walker County’s reliance on government transfers decreased by 4.3%.
Government transfers have long been a modest financial safety net, historically comprising only a small fraction of Americans’ income. However, since the 1970s—sometimes dubbed the “Great Transfer-mation”—dependency has surged from 8.2% (or $2,016 per capita in inflation-adjusted 2022 dollars) in 1970 to 17.6% (or $11,529 per capita) in 2022 nationwide.
According to the Economic Innovation Group’s analysis, these trends are not merely short-term responses to economic pressures but rather reflect a profound, long-term transformation in how government support is integrated into American life. The study illustrates that structural shifts—from rising healthcare expenses and demographic changes to stagnant wages—have significantly increased dependency on government transfers.
| County | State Rank (Per Capita Transfers) | Dependency on Transfers (%) | % Population 65+ | Social Security Transfers (%) | Medicare Transfers (%) | Medicaid Transfers (%) | Income Maintenance Transfers (%) | Per Capita Transfers ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Towns County | 1 | 38.66% | 37% | 44.7% | 31.3% | 7.8% | 4.9% | $18,412 |
| Talbot County | 2 | 38.86% | 27.32% | 28.5% | 30.9% | 13.7% | 12.3% | $18,010 |
| Quitman County | 3 | 46.68% | 32.76% | 35.9% | 27.9% | 10.8% | 14.1% | $17,098 |
| Twiggs County | 4 | 37.5% | 24.67% | 34.9% | 25.3% | 17.9% | 12.9% | $16,681 |
| Randolph County | 5 | 39.24% | 26.46% | 27.3% | 22% | 24.1% | 17.2% | $16,475 |
| Union County | 6 | 36.25% | 34.12% | 45.6% | 28.1% | 7.9% | 6% | $16,165 |
| Fannin County | 7 | 32% | 31.55% | 42.3% | 29% | 9.8% | 7.8% | $15,903 |
| Clay County | 8 | 43% | 29.3% | 29.7% | 16.5% | 28% | 18.3% | $15,863 |
| Miller County | 9 | 30.93% | 22.6% | 26.2% | 33.9% | 20.5% | 12.8% | $15,804 |
| Warren County | 10 | 39.17% | 23.72% | 31.7% | 23.3% | 19.5% | 15.9% | $15,740 |
| Wilkes County | 11 | 29.46% | 23.76% | 33.4% | 29.1% | 14.8% | 13.1% | $15,591 |
| Terrell County | 12 | 34.13% | 21.45% | 28.8% | 23.9% | 20.8% | 17.8% | $15,455 |
| Jefferson County | 13 | 37% | 19% | 29.2% | 24.1% | 21.7% | 15.3% | $15,369 |
| Greene County | 14 | 20.1% | 30.77% | 44.9% | 28.4% | 10.5% | 8.7% | $15,265 |
| Dougherty County | 15 | 33.87% | 17.48% | 25.1% | 22.1% | 19.6% | 19.1% | $15,135 |
| Hancock County | 16 | 42.6% | 25.76% | 34% | 25% | 18.6% | 13.7% | $15,132 |
| McIntosh County | 17 | 31.62% | 29.53% | 38.4% | 26.3% | 11% | 11.7% | $15,059 |
| Ware County | 18 | 39% | 17.7% | 24.6% | 26.2% | 18.7% | 15.4% | $15,017 |
| Wilkinson County | 19 | 34.84% | 21% | 36.8% | 24.9% | 14.4% | 14.3% | $15,016 |
| Seminole County | 20 | 32.31% | 25.21% | 31.8% | 25.8% | 17.7% | 14.2% | $14,914 |
| Rabun County | 21 | 28.43% | 28.93% | 42.3% | 29.4% | 10.1% | 8.3% | $14,896 |
| Calhoun County | 22 | 43.57% | 17.23% | 25.1% | 30.5% | 19.6% | 14.9% | $14,772 |
| Crisp County | 23 | 32.99% | 19.89% | 27.7% | 23.6% | 22.5% | 17.6% | $14,709 |
| Early County | 24 | 34.9% | 20% | 27.1% | 26.2% | 20.7% | 17.8% | $14,699 |
| Baker County | 25 | 29.4% | 26.68% | 31% | 26.2% | 18.7% | 15.1% | $14,612 |
| Elbert County | 26 | 33.95% | 21.36% | 33.9% | 26.8% | 17.1% | 13.8% | $14,440 |
| Dooly County | 27 | 32.18% | 22.9% | 27% | 30.7% | 20.4% | 14.1% | $14,414 |
| Clinch County | 28 | 34.49% | 17.29% | 26.6% | 28.8% | 22.9% | 15.1% | $14,388 |
| Stephens County | 29 | 31.98% | 21.17% | 34% | 30% | 14% | 13% | $14,358 |
| Stewart County | 30 | 40.14% | 16.99% | 26.4% | 22.9% | 24.4% | 14.9% | $14,317 |
| Turner County | 31 | 38.78% | 19.59% | 25.9% | 26.2% | 21.9% | 17.5% | $14,314 |
| Lincoln County | 32 | 30.7% | 25.6% | 37.6% | 27.8% | 11.1% | 10.8% | $14,264 |
| Screven County | 33 | 35.57% | 21% | 31.3% | 26.3% | 19.1% | 14.6% | $14,203 |
| Sumter County | 34 | 33.15% | 18% | 27.6% | 20.9% | 21.1% | 17.6% | $14,200 |
| Taylor County | 35 | 37.1% | 21.9% | 29.3% | 24.3% | 21.3% | 15.9% | $14,136 |
| Meriwether County | 36 | 32% | 21.11% | 33.3% | 25.7% | 17.4% | 14.1% | $14,114 |
| Taliaferro County | 37 | 32.15% | 28.23% | 37% | 22.2% | 17.5% | 15.2% | $14,032 |
| Candler County | 38 | 34.27% | 18.32% | 27.4% | 24.7% | 23.8% | 15.4% | $13,918 |
| Ben Hill County | 39 | 36% | 18.37% | 27.3% | 23.1% | 22% | 16.6% | $13,895 |
| Bibb County | 40 | 30% | 16.55% | 26.3% | 25.8% | 18.5% | 16.8% | $13,879 |
| Baldwin County | 41 | 32.83% | 17.51% | 29.6% | 22.5% | 24.5% | 12.4% | $13,879 |
| McDuffie County | 42 | 32.54% | 19.11% | 29.8% | 25% | 17.2% | 15.9% | $13,816 |
| Gilmer County | 43 | 30.33% | 27% | 41.7% | 27.3% | 10.8% | 9.1% | $13,738 |
| Thomas County | 44 | 25.59% | 19.3% | 31% | 23.9% | 18.9% | 14.4% | $13,712 |
| Chattooga County | 45 | 36.99% | 18.96% | 33% | 28.3% | 15.4% | 14% | $13,707 |
| Washington County | 46 | 33.96% | 18.12% | 31.6% | 24.1% | 18.5% | 15.3% | $13,690 |
| Peach County | 47 | 31.19% | 17.1% | 25.6% | 28.5% | 12% | 13.4% | $13,690 |
| Emanuel County | 48 | 34.99% | 16.36% | 27.7% | 21.3% | 23.2% | 16.8% | $13,658 |
| Johnson County | 49 | 43% | 20.28% | 27.2% | 29.1% | 21.6% | 13.8% | $13,642 |
| Pickens County | 50 | 22.51% | 22.78% | 43.7% | 30.6% | 9.2% | 7.7% | $13,642 |
| Mitchell County | 51 | 30.89% | 18.41% | 27.5% | 26.9% | 20.3% | 17.2% | $13,634 |
| Toombs County | 52 | 32.35% | 16.84% | 28.7% | 24.3% | 21.2% | 16.6% | $13,482 |
| White County | 53 | 27.22% | 23.25% | 39.1% | 30.7% | 9.1% | 8.7% | $13,427 |
| Jenkins County | 54 | 36.29% | 17.55% | 25.9% | 26.9% | 23.6% | 15.6% | $13,358 |
| Berrien County | 55 | 33.39% | 17.64% | 27.9% | 26.7% | 17.1% | 14.4% | $13,313 |
| Putnam County | 56 | 24.3% | 25.13% | 41.6% | 27.2% | 10.2% | 11.5% | $13,236 |
| Dodge County | 57 | 36.42% | 19.58% | 28.3% | 28.8% | 17.7% | 15.2% | $13,189 |
| Marion County | 58 | 34.61% | 21.97% | 29.7% | 22.3% | 19.7% | 15.1% | $13,175 |
| Laurens County | 59 | 30.77% | 18.28% | 30.5% | 23.7% | 16.5% | 16.5% | $13,166 |
| Treutlen County | 60 | 36.12% | 18% | 28% | 24.5% | 22% | 16.7% | $13,140 |
| Brooks County | 61 | 33.23% | 21.8% | 29.8% | 27% | 18.4% | 15.5% | $13,124 |
| Upson County | 62 | 31.7% | 18.65% | 33.5% | 24.2% | 17.3% | 15.7% | $13,001 |
| Spalding County | 63 | 30.88% | 18.87% | 33.7% | 25.6% | 14.6% | 16% | $12,955 |
| Pierce County | 64 | 31% | 17.28% | 28% | 27.5% | 16.2% | 13.2% | $12,932 |
| Irwin County | 65 | 30.52% | 19% | 30.3% | 23.5% | 22.8% | 14.8% | $12,925 |
| Colquitt County | 66 | 31.33% | 16.17% | 26.3% | 28.9% | 17.8% | 16.6% | $12,898 |
| Hart County | 67 | 27.95% | 22.8% | 38.8% | 27.1% | 14.3% | 11.6% | $12,819 |
| Pulaski County | 68 | 31.21% | 22.4% | 29.4% | 27.4% | 16.9% | 13.5% | $12,795 |
| Muscogee County | 69 | 26.63% | 14.82% | 26.3% | 19.7% | 14.5% | 15.8% | $12,794 |
| Glascock County | 70 | 32.36% | 17.59% | 31.1% | 26.9% | 22.2% | 12.3% | $12,732 |
| Richmond County | 71 | 30.1% | 15.22% | 26.7% | 19% | 19.2% | 16.2% | $12,729 |
| Polk County | 72 | 32% | 15.71% | 30.1% | 28.5% | 16.8% | 14.9% | $12,700 |
| Floyd County | 73 | 28.59% | 16.93% | 32.9% | 26.9% | 16.5% | 13% | $12,615 |
| Cook County | 74 | 32.31% | 16.71% | 28.3% | 24.2% | 18.5% | 16.9% | $12,586 |
| Wilcox County | 75 | 37.76% | 20.29% | 24.7% | 29.3% | 22.9% | 13.8% | $12,583 |
| Glynn County | 76 | 20.93% | 22.74% | 38.5% | 26.8% | 10.5% | 11.9% | $12,563 |
| Walker County | 77 | 29.54% | 19.5% | 34.3% | 29.9% | 14.2% | 11.8% | $12,497 |
| Appling County | 78 | 28.47% | 18.76% | 31.1% | 25.9% | 18.7% | 15.4% | $12,415 |
| Macon County | 79 | 28.7% | 19.47% | 28.3% | 18.1% | 28.2% | 16.2% | $12,375 |
| Decatur County | 80 | 29.95% | 17.39% | 28.9% | 23.7% | 19.8% | 18.8% | $12,345 |
| Burke County | 81 | 30.3% | 17.65% | 30.6% | 21.3% | 20.4% | 17.7% | $12,298 |
| Evans County | 82 | 30.21% | 16.76% | 29.5% | 26.1% | 17.1% | 17.9% | $12,255 |
| Franklin County | 83 | 27.73% | 19.27% | 35.9% | 25.6% | 15.3% | 13.3% | $12,225 |
| Haralson County | 84 | 26.97% | 15.73% | 32% | 24.5% | 14.7% | 13.5% | $12,173 |
| Telfair County | 85 | 42.81% | 18.48% | 28% | 19.8% | 26.2% | 17.5% | $12,155 |
| Wayne County | 86 | 31.85% | 16.14% | 31.6% | 25.4% | 16.1% | 15% | $12,063 |
| Tift County | 87 | 27% | 16.27% | 28.5% | 22.7% | 18.1% | 17.5% | $12,061 |
| Bacon County | 88 | 30.15% | 17.23% | 28.4% | 25.8% | 20% | 16.5% | $12,052 |
| Bleckley County | 89 | 29.21% | 18.36% | 30.1% | 27.2% | 15.8% | 14.5% | $11,986 |
| Lamar County | 90 | 27.37% | 17.25% | 34.1% | 26.1% | 13% | 14% | $11,969 |
| Worth County | 91 | 29.21% | 20.29% | 31.6% | 27.1% | 15.8% | 15.7% | $11,965 |
| Heard County | 92 | 28.45% | 17.7% | 31.5% | 29.6% | 15.6% | 14.3% | $11,939 |
| Webster County | 93 | 30.2% | 25.8% | 36.6% | 21.2% | 16% | 17.3% | $11,925 |
| Troup County | 94 | 26.4% | 15.98% | 32.3% | 25% | 16.1% | 16.3% | $11,801 |
| Morgan County | 95 | 19.45% | 20.69% | 39.7% | 29.3% | 10.4% | 11% | $11,759 |
| Jeff Davis County | 96 | 31.95% | 16% | 30.1% | 22.5% | 20.1% | 18.2% | $11,727 |
| Butts County | 97 | 27.74% | 15.4% | 32.8% | 29.1% | 14.3% | 13.3% | $11,548 |
| Dade County | 98 | 27.54% | 21.16% | 40.3% | 26.2% | 11.5% | 10% | $11,545 |
| Brantley County | 99 | 33% | 17.95% | 30.7% | 24.7% | 16% | 16.3% | $11,523 |
| Coffee County | 100 | 28.88% | 14.44% | 26.9% | 25.2% | 19.3% | 18.4% | $11,256 |
| Madison County | 101 | 24% | 17.81% | 36.4% | 25.9% | 14.6% | 13.4% | $11,179 |
| Lanier County | 102 | 32.8% | 15.31% | 25.8% | 21.5% | 20.7% | 17.3% | $11,097 |
| Crawford County | 103 | 27.58% | 20.22% | 37.6% | 18.9% | 18.9% | 14% | $11,093 |
| Atkinson County | 104 | 30.19% | 14.75% | 25.6% | 25.3% | 20.2% | 19.6% | $11,058 |
| Jasper County | 105 | 23.31% | 17.39% | 36.1% | 28.8% | 13.1% | 13.1% | $11,056 |
| Carroll County | 106 | 21.89% | 14% | 32.2% | 27.2% | 11.8% | 14% | $11,050 |
| Lowndes County | 107 | 25.13% | 13.15% | 26.8% | 21.7% | 16% | 16.7% | $11,034 |
| Grady County | 108 | 28.61% | 19.2% | 33.3% | 25.2% | 15.7% | 16.5% | $11,011 |
| Lumpkin County | 109 | 23.37% | 18.36% | 36.7% | 27.3% | 10.1% | 8.5% | $10,986 |
| Habersham County | 110 | 27.21% | 18.89% | 38.4% | 28% | 10.6% | 11.4% | $10,924 |
| Harris County | 111 | 18.4% | 19.42% | 38.5% | 23.9% | 7% | 8.2% | $10,793 |
| Chatham County | 112 | 19% | 16.78% | 32.9% | 23.7% | 12.7% | 13% | $10,781 |
| Tattnall County | 113 | 29.3% | 15.67% | 27.3% | 23.6% | 20.8% | 16.1% | $10,755 |
| Walton County | 114 | 20.75% | 16.25% | 34.2% | 31.7% | 9.1% | 12.1% | $10,729 |
| Murray County | 115 | 28.51% | 15.91% | 33.6% | 25.9% | 16.3% | 15.9% | $10,679 |
| Schley County | 116 | 24.41% | 18.52% | 32.3% | 25.9% | 13.8% | 17% | $10,606 |
| Oglethorpe County | 117 | 22.49% | 19.37% | 39% | 24.8% | 14.3% | 12.5% | $10,584 |
| Liberty County | 118 | 26.67% | 10.17% | 21.4% | 13.3% | 10.4% | 17.1% | $10,546 |
| Camden County | 119 | 24.13% | 15.17% | 32.4% | 24.6% | 7.8% | 11.7% | $10,527 |
| Houston County | 120 | 21.83% | 13.58% | 27.6% | 21.6% | 10.1% | 13.5% | $10,498 |
| Gordon County | 121 | 23.33% | 15.85% | 35.1% | 28.4% | 14% | 13.8% | $10,452 |
| Rockdale County | 122 | 25.26% | 15.81% | 32.9% | 23.2% | 11.8% | 16.4% | $10,414 |
| Dawson County | 123 | 17% | 20.11% | 38.6% | 33.8% | 7.1% | 8.5% | $10,381 |
| Charlton County | 124 | 33% | 15.32% | 30.3% | 28.2% | 15.7% | 13.6% | $10,364 |
| Monroe County | 125 | 19% | 19.25% | 41.8% | 22.8% | 13.5% | 11.1% | $10,334 |
| Montgomery County | 126 | 27.76% | 18.23% | 35% | 18.5% | 17.6% | 16.3% | $10,318 |
| Fayette County | 127 | 13.7% | 20% | 42.7% | 28.6% | 4.8% | 6.9% | $10,318 |
| Jackson County | 128 | 18.71% | 14.59% | 33.1% | 35.7% | 9.5% | 10.4% | $10,270 |
| Columbia County | 129 | 17.23% | 15% | 33.5% | 20.6% | 5.5% | 8.4% | $10,146 |
| Jones County | 130 | 23.46% | 18.19% | 41.7% | 20.7% | 14.8% | 12.5% | $10,133 |
| Newton County | 131 | 24.31% | 13.38% | 32.4% | 24.4% | 11.5% | 18.2% | $10,124 |
| Long County | 132 | 25.38% | 10% | 19% | 15.2% | 13.1% | 16.6% | $10,123 |
| Whitfield County | 133 | 21.89% | 14.9% | 34% | 25.2% | 16% | 15.4% | $9,918 |
| Bartow County | 134 | 20.42% | 14.93% | 35.5% | 27% | 13.5% | 13.4% | $9,915 |
| Pike County | 135 | 19.41% | 16% | 38.2% | 28.8% | 11.1% | 11.3% | $9,841 |
| Catoosa County | 136 | 23.14% | 18.59% | 42.1% | 23.8% | 11.3% | 11.4% | $9,790 |
| Douglas County | 137 | 21.83% | 12.28% | 31% | 24.3% | 11.8% | 16.8% | $9,531 |
| Hall County | 138 | 16.55% | 16.28% | 38.8% | 25.4% | 12.1% | 12.4% | $9,503 |
| Lee County | 139 | 17.93% | 14.21% | 34.6% | 22.1% | 11.1% | 14.3% | $9,330 |
| Banks County | 140 | 20.49% | 18.15% | 41.5% | 14.7% | 18.2% | 13.3% | $9,232 |
| Henry County | 141 | 19.63% | 12.45% | 32.5% | 22.9% | 7.5% | 15.4% | $9,213 |
| Bryan County | 142 | 16% | 11% | 30.3% | 21.1% | 7.7% | 10.8% | $9,203 |
| Wheeler County | 143 | 39% | 16.28% | 29.5% | 24.4% | 19.6% | 17.1% | $9,191 |
| Coweta County | 144 | 15.22% | 15.2% | 38.9% | 27.2% | 8.5% | 11.3% | $9,128 |
| Clayton County | 145 | 27.78% | 10.73% | 25.4% | 16.9% | 16.6% | 25.7% | $9,121 |
| DeKalb County | 146 | 14.44% | 13.77% | 29.7% | 25% | 14.9% | 17.5% | $9,044 |
| Barrow County | 147 | 18.88% | 12.9% | 34.9% | 28.2% | 10.7% | 14.3% | $8,868 |
| Bulloch County | 148 | 22.81% | 12.41% | 28.9% | 21.7% | 13.7% | 16% | $8,759 |
| Effingham County | 149 | 18% | 12.48% | 35.5% | 22.5% | 9.7% | 12.4% | $8,697 |
| Cherokee County | 150 | 12.89% | 15.88% | 42.2% | 31.1% | 5.9% | 8.1% | $8,539 |
| Fulton County | 151 | 8.25% | 12.67% | 30.8% | 25% | 14.1% | 16.6% | $8,299 |
| Clarke County | 152 | 19.9% | 12.52% | 32.5% | 23.4% | 15.3% | 15.5% | $8,151 |
| Cobb County | 153 | 11.46% | 13.68% | 37.6% | 25.7% | 9.6% | 11.6% | $8,013 |
| Oconee County | 154 | 9.96% | 17.24% | 46.5% | 28.3% | 6.5% | 7.5% | $7,954 |
| Echols County | 155 | 24.17% | 13.84% | 33.9% | 9.5% | 24.7% | 22.7% | $7,900 |
| Gwinnett County | 156 | 14.22% | 11.3% | 31.3% | 23% | 10.2% | 16.3% | $7,234 |
| Paulding County | 157 | 14.95% | 11.67% | 38.8% | 21.6% | 9.4% | 14.9% | $7,197 |
| Forsyth County | 158 | 7.29% | 12.69% | 45.4% | 27.7% | 4.8% | 8.3% | $5,784 |
| Chattahoochee County | 159 | 15.61% | 5.56% | 22.9% | 19.2% | 12.3% | 24.8% | $5,667 |
