What Is Rural?

Unfortunately, there is not one universally accepted definition of "rural."  To some, "rural" is a subjective state of mind and to others "rural" is an objective quantitative measure.  The Alabama Rural Health Association (ARHA) recognizes that there are rural areas in all 67 Alabama counties, even those counties which are unquestionably urban in population. 

For analytical purposes, ARHA desires a classification of areas as being "rural" or "urban" at the county level.  This is because most data is not available at sub-county levels, but is available at the county level.  Prior to June 2003, ARHA used the White House's Office of Management and Budget (OMB) classification of counties as being in or not in Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) in identifying rural or urban status.  Those counties which were included in MSAs were classified as "urban" and those which were not in MSAs were classified as "rural."  A re-determination of counties included in MSAs was announced by OMB in June 2003 and several Alabama counties which must be regarded as being "rural" were included in MSAs in this re-determination.  This made the development of a more acceptable method for classifying counties as "rural" or "urban" necessary.

The method developed and used by ARHA uses four variables which are generally accepted as being characteristic of "rural" areas in a formula with each variable accounting for 25 of a possible 100 points.  The higher the overall score, the more "rural" a county is considered as being.  The four variables are as follows:

Using this methodology, 55 Alabama counties are classified as "rural" and 12 are classified as "urban."  The "rural" counties are separated into two groupings for more specific analysis.  One grouping is  based upon the degree to which the counties were considered to be rural.  These groupings are referred to as "Heavily Rural" and "Moderately Rural."  The second grouping divides the "rural" counties by geographic region.  Those in the Appalachian Region of North Alabama are referred to as "Rural North" and those in South Alabama are referred to as "Rural South."  The population demographics within these two regions vary significantly which makes analysis of the separate regions informative.  Counties included in the groupings are as follows:

One of the three most common Federal definitions which is being used by many to define "rural" is that developed by the White House's Office of Management and Budget (OMB).  The other two most common Federal definitions are those developed by the Department of Commerce's Bureau of the Census and the Department of Agriculture's Economic Research Service. 

The Alabama Rural Health Association used the OMB definition which defines Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSA) as being one or more counties satisfying the basic requirements described below prior to June 2003.  MSA counties were considered "urban" and non-MSA counties were considered "rural." 

MSA Requirements:

There must be (1) one city with 50,000 or more population OR (2) an urbanized area (as defined by the U.S. Bureau of the Census) with at least 50,000 population and a total population of at least 100,000 in the counties comprising the MSA.  Each MSA must include the county in which the central city is located and additional contiguous or fringe counties, if they are economically and socially integrated with the central county.  Counties which are included in MSAs are considered "urban."  Counties which are not in MSAs are considered "rural."

Using the current (December 2003) OMB definition of MSAs, Alabama currently has the following 28 counties in MSAs and 39 counties which are not in MSAs:

COUNTIES IN MSAs

Autauga, Bibb, Blount, Calhoun, Chilton, Colbert, Elmore, Etowah, Geneva, Greene, Hale, Henry, Houston, Jefferson, Lauderdale, Lawrence, Lee, Limestone, Lowndes, Madison, Mobile, Montgomery, Morgan, Russell, St. Clair, Shelby, Tuscaloosa, and Walker  counties.

COUNTIES NOT IN MSAs

Baldwin, Barbour, Bullock, Butler, Chambers, Cherokee, Choctaw, Clarke, Clay, Cleburne, Coffee, Conecuh, Coosa, Covington, Crenshaw, Cullman, Dale, Dallas, DeKalb, Escambia, Fayette, Franklin, Jackson, Lamar, Macon, Marengo, Marion, Marshall, Monroe, Perry, Pickens, Pike, Randolph, Sumter, Talladega, Tallapoosa, Washington, Wilcox, and Winston counties.

A current (December 2003) listing of all counties in Metropolitan Statistical Areas in the United States can be seen at this Office of Management and Budget Web site.

OTHER WEB SOURCES DEFINING OR DISCUSSING "RURAL" OR "FRONTIER"

• The Rural Information Center provides an excellent discussion of the most common Federal definitions for "rural."  This site also provides numerous links to other sites presenting information on this subject.
• Frontier Education Center - This Center specializes in America's "Frontier" areas.
• The Geography of Frontier America - (presented by the Frontier Education Center)
• Frontier Mental Health Services Resource Network - This network provides considerable information and excellent links to other frontier area sites.  A listing of Frontier Counties By State is also presented by this network.
• Oregon Rural Health Association - This Association presents a method for classifying "rural" counties into three different groups - Frontier, Remote, and Less Remote.
• Rural Policy Research Institute - This organization presents definitions including varying levels for rural.
• Rural/Urban Definitions: Alternatives and Numbers by State - This is a publication produced by the Nebraska Center for Rural Health Research.  (This is a PDF file.)
• Rural Womyn Zone - This organization provides links to other very informative sites presenting information on "rural" and "frontier" areas.

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