Causes of Poverty
FAQs on Poverty
Question: How many people live in poverty?
Answer: The number of people living in poverty has been on the rise since 2000. Currently over 12.65% of the US population or 39.1 million people live below the Federal Poverty Level.
Question: How many people in Washington State live in poverty?
Answer: In Washington State 11.3% of the state population or 766,000 people live below the Federal Poverty Level.
Question: What is the Federal Poverty Level for a family of 3?
Answer: An annual income of $18,310. To learn about the level for other family sizes visit [http://aspe.hhs.gov/poverty/05poverty.shtml]
Question: The Federal Poverty Level isn’t an accurate measure of the number of people struggling to meet their basic needs. What measure do you use to get a more accurate picture and what is the number of people struggling?
Answer: One way that we estimate the number of people who are struggling but earn more than the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) is to double the standard to 200%. We believe that it is above 200% of the FPL that people are able to meet their own needs. If we use this standard, it is estimated that nearly 90 million people in the US are unable to meet their basic needs. In Washington State the number is 1 out of every 5 residents.
Question: Who is living in poverty?
Answer: Most people living in poverty are children (13 million). While the majority of people living in poverty are white, disproportionately people of color live in poverty (23% of Blacks, 22% of Hispanics, 23% of American Indians or Alaskan Natives). Central cities and rural communities are essentially equal in the level of poverty. Nearly 90 percent of those living in poverty were born in the United States. |
