Component Index Weights
	100%	16%	28%	8%	10%	5%	33%
Nonmetropolitan Areas	Composite Index	Grocery Items	Housing	Utilities	Transportation	Health Care	Misc. Goods & Services
Dodge City, KS	99.5	96.6	100.9	87.4	105.3	97.1	101.4
Garden City, KS	97.6	91.7	87.9	103.6	110.0	91.8	104.5
Hays, KS	99.6	99.9	101.2	105.0	96.5	95.1	98.3
Hutchinson/Reno County, KS	97.2	101.7	100.2	87.9	89.6	90.4	98.1
Manhattan, KS	95.2	100.0	93.1	93.3	98.5	91.0	94.7
Salina, KS	92.2	91.3	91.6	90.8	92.1	92.3	93.4

ABOUT THE INDEX: ACCRA produces the ACCRA Cost of Living Index to provide a useful and reasonably accurate measure of living cost differences among urban areas. Items on which the Index is based have been carefully chosen to reflect the difference categories of consumer expenditures. Weights assigned to relative costs are based on government survey data on expenditure patterns for midmanagement households. All items are priced in each place at a specified time and according to standardized specifications.

INTERPRETING THE INDEX: The ACCRA Cost of Living Index measures relative price levels for consumer goods and services in participating areas. The average for all participating places, both metropolitan and nonmetropolitan, equals 100, and each participant's index is read as a percentage of the average for all places.

The Index does not measure Inflation (price change over time). Because each quarterly report is a separate comparison of prices at a single point in time, and because both the number and the mix of participants may change from one quarter to the next, Index data from difference quarters cannot be compared. For Inflation data, contact the nearest regional office of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The Index reflects cost differentials for a midmanagement standard of living. Operationally, this standard of living is set by the weighting structure. Homeownership costs, for example, are more heavily weighted than they would be if the Index were structured to reflect a clerical worker standard of living or average costs for all urban consumers. (Weights for component indexes appear above column headings - e.g., 16% for Grocery Items.)

Because the number of items priced is limited, it is not valid to treat percentage differences between areas as exact measures. Since judgment sampling is used in this survey, no confidence interval can be determined. Small differences , however, should not be construed as significant - or even as indicating correctly which area is the more expensive.

PARTICIPATING AREAS: Areas included in this survey are those where chambers of commerce or similar organizations have volunteered to participate. The number of respondents varies from quarter to quarter, and ACCRA makes a continuing effort to expand coverage of metropolitan areas. Any metropolitan area not represented in this report is absent because its chamber of commerce has opted not to collect data. ACCRA has no data for areas that do not appear in this report.

PRICE REPORTING: ACCRA stringently reviews all prices reported, and attempts to eliminate errors and noncompliance with specifications. All price data are obtained from sources deemed reliable, but no representation is made as to the complete accuracy thereof. They are published subject to errors, omissions, changes, and withdrawals without notice.

SPECIFICATIONS: The specific items priced are listed on page iii. The specifications for all grocery items are self-explanatory. Abbreviated specifications for all nongrocery items are presented only as a guide to users of this report; far more detailed specifications are contained in a manual provided to participants.

EXCLUSION OF TAXES: ACCRA is fully cognizant that state and local taxes are an integral part of the cost of living, and that tax burdens vary widely not only among states and metropolitan areas, but even within metropolitan areas. Due to the multiplicity of state and local taxes, taxing jurisdictions, and assessment procedures, it is not feasible to calculate local tax burdens reliably. ACCRA has opted to produce an index which adequately measures differences in goods and services costs, rather than to produce an inaccurate measure which attempts to incorporate taxes levied on real and intangible property, retail sales, and income.

TWO SECTIONS OF QUARTERLY DATA: The ACCRA Cost of Living Index presents data in two sections:

URBAN AREA INDEX DATA: This section shows each place's Composite Index and six component indexes - Grocery Items, Housing, Utilities, Transportation, Health Care, and Miscellaneous Goods and Services. Places are listed by state/province; provinces follow state listings. Within each state/province places appear alphabetically within metropolitan area Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) or Primary Metropolitan Statistical Area (PMSA) in the U.S. Census Metropolitan Area in Canada. Nonmetropolitan places are listed alphabetically within state following listings for places within MSAs and PMSAs.

Grouping places by metropolitan area can be helpful in gauging living costs differentials when the central city is not represented. While data for suburban places can be used as surrogates for central city data, however, users should note that cost of living differences can exist within large metropolitan areas, and that data for suburbs may not match those that might have been obtained for the central city or for the entire metropolitan area.

AVERAGE PRICES: The average price reported for each item in the survey is shown for each participating place. Places are listed alphabetically within state/province, without respect to whether they are located within a metropolitan area. Canadian prices are reported in U.S. dollars, using the exchange rate in effect on the Friday during the pricing period. After the final state/province listing, this section presents the median, average, standard deviation, and range for each item.

DATA REQUESTS: ACCRA does not provide data by phone or fax. Direct requests for data to your local chamber of commerce or public library.

OTHER QUESTIONS: Please direct all questions except data requests to ACCRA at the mailing address shown on the previous page, phone 703-522-4980 or fax 703-522-4985

SUBSCRIPTIONS: This quarterly report is available by subscription for $130 per year. Subscription begin with the current issue unless the subscriber specifies otherwise. Single copies of current or back reports may be purchased for $65 each or $130 for four consecutive issues. Subscription order forms are available from participating chambers of commerce or from the ACCRA Subscription Office (703/998-3540, fax 703/931-5624, www.accra.org).

Subscription or single-issue orders may be placed directly with the ACCRA Subscription Office, P.O. Box 407, Arlington, VA 22210-0407. Check (payable to "ACCRA") or government purchase order in U.S. currency must accompany each order. Fax orders may be placed with VISA, MasterCard, or American Express account number. To order by fax, contact the ACCRA Subscription Office (703-522-4985) for information.

If you have questions about your subscription, contact the ACCRA Subscription Office (703-522-4980).

COPYRIGHT POLICY: Each issue of the ACCRA Cost of Living Index is copyrighted. Printing, transferring into computer-readable format, or otherwise reproducing an entire Index report or any part thereof for sale is expressly prohibited unless written permission is obtained from ACCRA. News media, however, are permitted to use Index data in editorial form in both paper copy and on the Internet, and are permitted to reproduce tables in part to illustrate text, provided appropriate credit is given to ACCRA. They are granted no other reproduction rights.

Participants may post on the Internet index (but not price) data for their area and for any areas over 1.5 million population. Other Internet posting of any ACCRA Cost of Living Index is prohibited.

Any questions about copyright policy or reproduction rights should be addressed to ACCRA (703-522-4980, fax 703-522-4985).

ACCRA: ACCRA, founded in 1961 as the American Chamber of Commerce Researchers Association, is a nonprofit professional organization comprising research staff of chambers of commerce, economic development organizations, and related organizations throughout the United States and Canada. In its dedication to improving business information through research, ACCRA developed the ACCRA Cost of Living Index to meet the need for a measure of living cost differentials among urban areas. Originally titled Inter-City Cost of Living Indicators Project, the ACCRA Cost of Living Index has been published quarterly since 1968.

ACCRA is an affiliate of American Chamber of Commerce Executives (4232 King Street, Alexandria, VA 22302-9950) and American Economic Development Council (9801 West Higgins Road, Suite 540, Rosemont, IL 60618-4726).