The document discusses poverty in America, highlighting that 39.7 million people live below the poverty line, with varying rates among different racial and demographic groups. It explains the limitations of the poverty measurement systems and introduces the Supplemental Poverty Measure, which accounts for modern expenses and may increase the identified poverty rate. It also contrasts various theories and approaches to combat poverty, including curative, alleviative, and preventative methods.

1. Chapter 5. Poverty in America

2. Who is Poor?
 Talkpoverty.org
2017 - 12.3% of the U.S. population
(14.8 million - 2014)
39.7 million people below the poverty line
 Poverty line is the minimum level of resources that are
adequate to meet basic needs

3. Who is Poor?
Poverty Threshold – “Poverty line”
For statistical purpose
Includes only cash income (wages, SS, public assistance, interest from
accounts… income before taxes)
Fails to account for in-kind benefits (medical care, food stamps, school
lunches, public housing)
Does not take into account cost-of-living, expenses of the family, health
issues, childcare costs, current cost of housing

4. Who is Poor?
Poverty Guidelines –
Used to determine who qualifies for certain federally supported public
assistance programs
Released by DHHS
Same for the 48 contiguous states; higher for Alaska and Hawaii

5. Who is Poor?
Supplemental Poverty Measure –
Considers new factors in modern expenses like high cost of medical
care, child care, housing, utilities, and in-kind benefits
Adjusts for geographical locations
Would increase the number of those determined to be poor in the U.S.

6. Who is Poor? (2017)
 Talkpoverty.org
Native American: 25.4% (700K)
Black/AA: 21.2% (9 million)
Hispanics: 18.3% (10.8 million)
White: 8.7% (17 million)
Disabled; 24.9% (3.8 million)

7. Who is Poor? (2017)
By age and gender
By State
By education level

8. Families & Poverty
 Household headed by a single woman were poorest
Children from single mother HH were:
More likely to have learning disability and ADHD
2x as likely to miss school for lengthy periods due to injury or
illness
Need ER care more often and have unmet dental needs

9. 0
10
20
30
40
50
30.2
38.8 40.8
29.9
42.6 41.5
Poverty Rates for Single Mothers Families with
Children, 2016
Data from National Women Law Center & U.S. Census

10. Child Support Enforcement
Title IV of Social Security Act amended to include Part D - Provide
Federal matching funds for CS collection and establishing
paternity
Rationale: putting pressure for parents to support their kids
would lead to less families on public assistance
State agencies keep a portion of the CS collected to offset cost of
the family’s public assistance

11. Child Support Enforcement
PRWORA toughen CSE laws:
Order genetic testing without a court order
Garnish wages
Lead investigations to track down the non-paying parent

12. Child Support Enforcement
PRWORA toughen CSE laws:
Order genetic testing without a court order
Garnish wages
Lead investigations to track down the non-paying parent

13. The Working Poor
Individuals who are in the workforce full time or part time but
who are still at or below the poverty line
7.6% of the workforce in 2016 (Bureau of Labor Statistics)
Underemployed – those who have skills far exceed those required by the
position or are working part-time when they wish to be employed full-
time

14. Wages and Poverty
Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2007 – increased federal minimum
wage to its current state of $7.25 (2009)
$13,920 a year
Social Wage – value gained by using welfare benefits to
supplement income
Life at $7.25 an hour

15. Wages and Poverty
Living Wage Movement – local level attempts to raise minimum
wage to a wage that allows worker to afford a living without the
need for a social wage
Living Wage in Dallas County

16. Theories of Poverty
 Culture of Poverty - Poverty and poverty traits are transferred
through generations in perpetuity
Regardless of geographical location – show similarity in family
structure, interpersonal relations, time orientation, value system and
patterns of spending
The poor possess their own set of values that are passed through
generations - “Generational Poverty”

17. Theories of Poverty
 Culture of Poverty
Present day criticism – values of COP have spread to the
middle class: high divorce rates, single motherhood,
cohabitation and acceptable sexual behavior
Also, are the poor poor because of their doing or because
of systemic racism and other issues

18. Theories of Poverty
 Generational Poverty
At least two generations
Can surface sooner than two generations if living with others in
generational poverty
Realities of Gen Poverty include: periods of homelessness, crowded
housing, incarceration, welfare services, violence,
addiction/substance abuse, food insecurity

19. Approaches to Combat Poverty
Curative Approach – ends poverty by helping poor become self-
supporting through changes in personal lives and in their environment
Alleviative Approach – public assistance programs created to
alleviate the suffering of the poor instead of attacking the causes of
poverty
Preventative Approach – requires the poor to use social insurance
programs to insure against the costs of accidents, sickness, death, old
age, unemployment and disability