Expert Discusses Census Data on Child Poverty

Data from the American Community Survey (ACS) on Sept. 22 gives a closer look at child poverty, providing a valuable snapshot on the current economic distress in the United States.
Expert Discusses Census Data on Child Poverty
9/26/2011
Updated:
10/1/2015


<a><img src="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/09/107160687.jpg" alt="A child waits as his mother joins fellow low-income shoppers searching bins for toys at a Goodwill thrift store on Black Friday, November 26, 2010 in Denver, Colorado. (John Moore/Getty Images)" title="A child waits as his mother joins fellow low-income shoppers searching bins for toys at a Goodwill thrift store on Black Friday, November 26, 2010 in Denver, Colorado. (John Moore/Getty Images)" width="575" class="size-medium wp-image-1797252"/></a>
A child waits as his mother joins fellow low-income shoppers searching bins for toys at a Goodwill thrift store on Black Friday, November 26, 2010 in Denver, Colorado. (John Moore/Getty Images)

Data from the American Community Survey (ACS) on Sept. 22 gives a closer look at child poverty, providing a valuable snapshot on the current economic distress in the United States. Key findings indicate that across America—whether rural, suburban, or central city areas—there has been an increase in child poverty between 2009 and 2010, trending upward since the recession began in 2007.

“Child poverty is measured in the United States by a threshold income of family budgets,” said Beth Mattingly, director of Research Casey Institute University of New Hampshire, in a telephone interview. “In 2010 a family of four, with two adults and two children, is considered at a poverty level if their income is below $2,213.”

Between 2009 and 2010, an additional 1 million children joined the ranks of those considered at the federal poverty level, resulting in an estimated total of 15.7 million poor children. This is an estimated increase of 2.6 million children since the Great Recession in 2007.

The estimate for poverty-stricken children in central cities accounts for 29 percent, while those in rural areas account for 25 percent, which is significantly higher than those in suburban areas.

An even bigger contrast for younger children below the age of 6 shows 31 percent at poverty levels in central cities, and 30 percent in rural places, versus 19 percent residing in suburbs.

It is critical to understand poverty for children under the age of 6, as children who are in this situation are at risks for educational deficits and health problems, which can effect their entire course of life.

According to Mattingly, “Child poverty is correlated in families who aren’t employed, single parents, or parents who have low or minimal education attainment.”

Another finding shows that poverty for children seems to be the highest in the South, where almost one in four children live in poverty. In the South, child poverty is even higher in rural places and central cities, coming in at close to 36 percent.

The child poverty rate in suburban areas for those under the age is 16.1 percent nationally. The suburban rates are even lower in some states, especially in Connecticut, Nebraska, and New Hampshire.

The only two states where child poverty has declined between 2009 and 2010 are Hawaii and Illinois. All other states had indicated no change, or an increase.