2007 KIDS COUNT Data Book Online >
Summary and Findings
Percent of Children in Poverty
The Percent of Children in Poverty is perhaps the most global and widely used indicator of child well-being. This is partly due to the fact that poverty is closely linked to a number of undesirable outcomes in areas such as health, education, emotional welfare, and delinquency.
The data shown here are based on the official poverty measure as determined by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget. The official poverty measure consists of a series of income thresholds based on family size and composition. The 2005 poverty line was $19,806 for a family of two adults and two children.
Despite the enormous wealth in the United States, our child poverty rate is among the highest in the developed world. The gap in the child poverty rate between the United States and other developed countries is partly a product of differences in private-sector income, but differences in governmental efforts to alleviate child poverty greatly accentuate the disparities. The lack of investment in our children will put us at a competitive disadvantage in the international marketplace of the 21st century.
- In 2005, 19 percent of children—13.4 million— were poor, which is up from 17 percent in 2000. This represents almost 1.2 million more children living in poor households in 2005 than in 2000.
- Between 2000 and 2005, child poverty increased in 34 states (plus the District of Columbia), decreased in 7 states, and was unchanged in 9.
- Among the states, the child poverty rate for 2005 ranged from a low of 9 percent in New Hampshire to a high of 31 percent in Mississippi.
- The poverty rate for black children (36 percent) is more than three times the poverty rate for non-Hispanic white children (11 percent).
