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With over 9 million people, Georgia ranks 9th among the states in population size. The capital city,
Atlanta, is the largest city in the Peach
State, with over 470,000 people; its greater metropolitan area population is nearly 5 million. As the
largest state in the southeastern United States, Georgia represents the dynamic position of the South,
as a region of great progress and economic growth. The Peach State prides itself on being the
transportation hub of the region and a major center for communications.
Additionally, Georgia is known for its agricultural products. Georgia leads the nation in boiler
chickens, peanuts, and pecans. Other agricultural assets include eggs, cotton, rye, corn, peaches,
tomatoes, tobacco, apples, berries, cabbage, soybeans, sorghum, ornamentals, turf grass, and other
nursery products. Additionally, beef cattle, dairy cows, and hogs are important livestock
commodities. Georgia also provides catfish, trout, and honeybees.
Georgia’s important natural resources include pine, from which over half of the world’s resin and
turpentine originates; granite; marble; kaolin; barite; and bauxite. Other important products include
paper and board products, tufted textile products, and transportation equipment.
In 2005, Georgia ranked 24th in the U.S. in median household income at $45,604 and 33rd in per capita
personal income (PCPI) at $31,191. The average annual growth rate of PCPI between 1995 and 2005 was
3.7 percent, compared to the average annual growth rate for the nation at 4.1 percent. The Peach
State boasts a home ownership rate of 67.9 percent. Its unemployment rate is 5.3 percent. Georgia’s
top bracket of personal income tax is 6 percent; the state levies a sales tax of 4 percent. Georgia’s
overall cost of living is slightly lower than the national average.
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