Scotch Plains is a township in Union County, New Jersey. As of 2010, United States Census the township’s population was 23,510. The population in Scotch Plains is made up of 70.5% White, 11.4% African American, 8.3% Asian and 8.2% Hispanic. The unemployment rate is 3.8% and the poverty rate is 3%, very low compared to the national average of 14%. Scotch Plain also has high education level rates 26% of residents have their Masters or Doctorates Degree compared to the national average of 12%. 31% of residents have their Bachelors Degree compared to the national average of 19%.
Early last year in 2017 The Union County Prosecutor’s Office and members of the Fanwood and Scotch Plains Police Departments participated in a community forum to address the growing rates of substance abuse specifically the heroin and opioid use in the area. Public Information shows that at least 54 people died of a fatal overdose in the Union County in 2016, more than any year since the start of the decade.
