San Diegans' personal income would have plunged to a level among the worst in the nation in 2008-2009, but military and other federal payroll increases actually pushed the area's income up well above average, according to a study by Kelly Cunningham, economist for the National University System Institute for Policy Research. Overall personal income in the county dropped 1.1% in 2008 and 2009 -- a better performance than the national decline of 1.8%. San Diego's lesser decline largely resulted from a $1.9 billion increase in federal payrolls, $1.5 billion of which was a rise in payroll of uniformed military, says Cunningham. If federal and military wages had held constant, and so had other transfer payments, San Diego's personal income would have plummeted 3.1 percent. That would have been right down there with disaster areas Phoenix (minus 3.5%) and Miami (minus 3.1%).

Separately, economist Alan Nevin of Marketpointe Realty Advisers says, "Military construction saved our bacon." There has been a building boom at Camp Pendleton. "Ten percent of the entire military construction in the U.S. comes to San Diego County," says Nevin.