Publications
September 26, 2019
In this data snapshot, author Jessica Carson reports that according to analyses of new American Community Survey data released today, nearly one-in-five American children were poor in 2018. While child poverty has finally returned to pre-recession rates, the 0.4 percentage point decline since 2017 continues the trend of incremental decreases in child poverty since the post-recession peak in 2012…
August 13, 2019
In this brief, we use interview and focus group data to explore how residents view the economic opportunities in two rural Northern New England counties and how these opportunities are related to migration patterns.
June 11, 2019
In this brief, Jess Carson explores the food landscape of New Hampshire, documenting where lower incomes and low population density might lead to food insecurity, and mapping the locations of various food sources.
April 25, 2019
Although the role of government programs in alleviating poverty is widely studied, far less attention is paid to how these programs may differentially impact people with different racial-ethnic identities. Given that poverty rates among non-Hispanic whites are significantly lower than among other groups, programs with disparate effects by race can either widen or decrease racial-ethnic gaps in…
April 16, 2019
Federal programs are critical for helping those with low incomes make ends meet. But not all such programs are equally effective at reducing poverty, nor do they benefit all of those in poverty uniformly.
February 21, 2019
When low-income residents struggle to make ends meet, non-profit social service agencies can help fill the gaps. In doing so, these agencies must find sufficient funding, retain qualified staff, and craft efficient service delivery mechanisms that are respectful of clients and communities. Some of the challenges that service providers encounter are exacerbated by rural characteristics, such as…
November 13, 2018
Increases in the minimum wage are widely assumed to be beneficial for low-income workers, but it is important to consider the effect an increase might have on eligibility for other benefits, particularly the federal Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC). This fact sheet examines the interaction between the minimum wage and the EITC to determine whether a minimum wage increase would produce gains in the…
October 31, 2018
The share of people without health insurance has dropped dramatically since the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), but declines have been most dramatic among young adults age 19 to 25. In 2008, one-in-three 23-year-olds were uninsured, likely reflecting their graduation from college and therefore, their ineligibility to be covered on parental plans. Beginning in 2010, the ACA…
October 9, 2018
Recent proposals in the House and Senate (for example, the Grow American Incomes Now Act) focus on amplifying the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)—a refundable tax credit for low-income workers—to compensate for growing wage inequity. We find that the share of EITC filers who are families with children is especially high in the poorest counties (those counties outlined in black on Map 1),…
October 25, 2010
Measuring by race, place, and family, this brief highlights poverty rates for two rural groups--young black children and children of single mothers--who each face rates around 50%.
December 14, 2010
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is one of the most responsive federal programs to economic downturns, as evidence by the increases in SNAP use between 2007 and 2009. Nationally, more than one in ten households relies on SNAP benefits, and the rate is even higher in rural areas, with more than 13 percent of households reporting use. This brief examines the trends in SNAP use…
May 3, 2011
This brief examines heating assistance usage and the implications of President Obama's 2012 budget proposal to cut $2.5 billion from the $5.1 billion energy assistance fund for low-income families at a time when families are struggling with higher energy costs amid a difficult economy. The federal Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) assists vulnerable families in paying their…
July 19, 2011
This brief uses data from the 2007 and 2010 Current Population Survey’s Annual Social and Economic Supplement to describe the distribution of the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) receipt across the population and to detail place-based differences in receipt. WIC is a nutrition program that serves pregnant or postpartum women, infants, and children up…
July 27, 2011
This brief uses data collected in 2008 and 2009 from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey (ACS) to examine changes in overall insurance coverage rates, as well as changes in types of coverage, and differences by region, state, and place type. The data show that together with new and more inclusive parameters for children's health insurance coverage, rates of children…
August 31, 2011
This brief discusses the sweeping impact the Great Recession has had on Americans, particularly men, single parents, young adults, and people with less education. Using data from the 2007 and 2010 Annual Social and Economic Supplement of the Current Population Survey, the authors report that unemployment is highest among men and among unmarried adults, regardless of place or parenting status.…
September 20, 2011
In 1996 welfare reform ushered in a new era in which cash assistance for poor parents became both temporary and conditional on activities to promote economic independence through work. Cash assistance from TANF relieves, but does not eliminate, poverty because benefit levels are far too low to lift families above the poverty threshold. These ameliorative effects are weaker in rural than urban…
September 22, 2011
American Community Survey (ACS) data released on September 22, 2011 allow for a detailed look at child poverty by state and place, adding to the understanding of the economic landscape described by the Current Population Survey (CPS) data released last week. While the CPS data are useful for providing a snapshot of poverty across the nation, the larger sample size of the ACS--three million…
November 1, 2011
This brief uses data from the 2007, 2009, and 2010 American Community Survey to provide an up-to-date look at changes in SNAP receipt over the course of the recession. The author reports that receipt of SNAP continued to rise in 2010, increasing 4 percentage points since the recession began in 2007, and 1.6 percentage points since 2009.
December 7, 2011
This brief uses data from the 2008, 2009, and 2010 American Community Survey to document changes in rates of children’s health insurance, between private and public. The authors report that, nationally, private health insurance for children decreased by just under 2 percentage points, while public health insurance increased by nearly 3 percentage points.
May 22, 2012
This brief uses data from the 2007 and 2010 American Community Survey to document changes in the proportion of household income spent on rental costs (rent plus utilities) during the Great Recession, by region (Northeast, Midwest, South, and West) and place type (rural, suburban, or central city location).
