Poverty Statistics

The Center for American Progress in April 2007 reported the following statistics on poverty in the U.S.A.:

• Persistent childhood poverty costs the U.S. an estimated $500 billion annually
• Poverty for a family of four is defined as annual family income below $19,971
• 12.6% of all Americans were below the above threshold in in 2005
• 31% of all Americans, meaning more than 90 million people, “had incomes below 200 percent of federal poverty thresholds”
• “One third of all Americans will experience poverty within a 13-year period”
• In that 13-year time period, “one in 10 Americans are poor for most of the time, and one in 20 are poor for 10 or more years”
• The U.S. ranks 24 out of 25 countries in terms of the percentage of the population earning 50% below the median income
• “The richest 1 percent of Americans in 2005 held the largest share of the nation’s income (19 percent) since 1929. At the same time, the poorest 20 percent of Americans held only 3.4 percent of the nation’s income.”

To read the entire report, click on From Poverty to Prosperity: A National Strategy to Cut Poverty in Half.