Child poverty rate on the rise
As the end of the decade nears, 20 percent more American children are living in poverty now than in 2000.
According to the National Center for Children in Poverty, while children make up a quarter of America’s population, they account for more than 40 percent of the country’s overall low-income population.
The center is a division of the Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University. Its findings are detailed in the report, Basic Facts About Low-income Children, an annual collection of analyses on low-income families.
“These are challenging economic times for America’s families. Low- and moderate-income workers are seeing their wages stagnate or decline, while the cost of basic necessities continues to rise,” said the center’s Vanessa Wight, who co-authored the report.
The U.S. federal poverty level for 2009 is $22,050 for a family of four.
Low income is considered anything below two times that level, or $44,100 for a family of four.
Regionally, the South leads the nation in the number of children living in low-income and poor families, according to researchers.
The center says that 44 percent of children in the South — 12.2 million — live in low-income families compared with 41 percent of children in the West; 38 percent of children in the Midwest; and 34 percent of children in the Northeast.
Poverty levels for individual cities — including Rochester — are not included in the report.
Child poverty is disproportionate among black, Hispanic and Native-American children, according to the findings.
Parental education is also cited as a factor in child poverty.
For more information, go to www.nccp.org.
