Poverty and Income Archive
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A Tough Recovery By Any Measure: New Data Show Consumer Expenditures Lag for Low- and Middle-Income Families
November 28, 2006
Data on wages, compensation and income paint a disappointing picture of the current economic expansion, especially from the perspective of low- and middle income families. By most measures, real incomes were lower in 2005 than in the recession year of 2001, and real wages, after rising through mid-2003, fell consistently until very recently. These unfortunate trends have occurred amid … -
African American and Latino Families Face High Rates of Hardship
November 21, 2006
A range of measures suggest that many black and Latino families face hardship of some type. Between one-fourth and one-third of families with children headed by blacks or by Latino citizens experience overcrowded living conditions, difficulties paying for food, or lack of needed medical care. Hardship rates rise further — to as many as half of black families with children … -
Press Release: As Holidays Approach, Data Show High Rates of Hardship for African Americans and Latinos: Government Survey of Hardships Slated for Elimination This Year
November 21, 2006
A new Center analysis of data on hardships faced by American families — based on an annual survey the Administration plans to eliminate this fiscal year — shows that between one-fourth and one-third of all African American and Latino citizen families experience difficulty affording food, lack needed medical care, and/or live in … -
Statement by Robert Greenstein on the Commerce Department’s New GDP Figures
October 27, 2006
Today's announcement of a marked slowdown in recent growth follows upon Labor Department figures issued earlier this month showing that job growth has slowed significantly in 2006. These figures contribute to the mounting evidence that the economy has performed relatively poorly during the … -
Poverty Remains Higher, and Median Income for Non-Elderly is Lower, Than When Recession Hit Bottom: Poor Performance Unprecedented for Four-Year Recovery Period
Revised September 1, 2006
This analysis was updated on August 26, 2008 to reflect 2007 Census Data. Click here to view the new analysis. Summary Overall median household income rose modestly in 2005 — but significantly less than normal for a year during an economic recovery — while the … -
Nine Years of Neglect: Federal Minimum Wage Remains Unchanged for Ninth Straight Year, Falls to Lowest Level in More than Half a Century
August 31, 2006
The federal minimum wage has remained at $5.15 an hour since September 1, 1997. So as of September 1, 2006, the minimum wage will have remained the same for nine years, while the costs of medical care, gasoline, and other necessities have grown considerably. Further, the minimum wage has fallen exceptionally far below … -
The Number of Uninsured Americans Is At An All-Time High
August 29, 2006
Data released today by the Census Bureau show that the number of uninsured Americans stood at a record 46.6 million in 2005, with 15.9 percent of Americans lacking health coverage. “The number of uninsured Americans reached an all-time high in 2005,” said Robert Greenstein, executive director of the Center on Budget and … -
How to Assess the Census Income and Poverty Numbers
August 28, 2006
Today, the Census Bureau will release findings regarding household income and poverty for 2005. It is possible these figures will show that median income increased in 2005 and poverty declined; that is the typical pattern for years well into an economic recovery. And if this is the case, Administration officials likely will hail the figures as good … -
Bipartisan Bill in House Would Make Marked Improvements in Housing Voucher Program
Revised August 16, 2006
Executive Summary On May 22, 2006, a bipartisan group of leaders of the House Financial Services Committee introduced the Section 8 Voucher Reform Act (SEVRA), which would make a series of changes in the housing voucher program and other housing assistance programs. The bill (H.R. 5443), which the Housing and Community … -
Comparing the House Minimum Wage and Estate Tax Proposals
Revised August 3, 2006
House leaders are following a legislative strategy that involves marrying an increase in the minimum wage to a sharp reduction in the estate tax. This approach juxtaposes policies that are aimed at two groups at opposite ends of the economic spectrum: minimum-wage workers for whom full-time work currently pays $10,700 a year, and individuals who … -
The Recent Upturn in Revenues and OMB's Mid-Session Review
Revised July 14, 2006
Summary The Mid-Session Review issued on July 11 by the White House Office of Management and Budget projects that fiscal year 2006 revenues will be significantly above — and the 2006 deficit significantly below — the levels forecast in the President’s budget in February. This year’s strong … -
Buying Power of Minimum Wage at 51 Year Low
June 20, 2006
The minimum wage issue is heating up in Congress. This Congressional attention is long overdue. The federal minimum wage has remained at $5.15 an hour since September 1, 1997. So for nearly nine years the value of the minimum wage has eroded due to the effects of inflation, and the wage standard has … -
Barriers to Saving
June 1, 2006
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Social Security Administration Proposal To Revise Disability Determinations Is Not Justified
April 18, 2006
The Social Security Administration (SSA) is proposing to change how it evaluates age as a factor in establishing eligibility for disability benefits. Under the change, SSA would raise by two years the ages at which key rules used to determine eligibility for Social Security disability insurance (SSDI) or Supplemental Security … -
Recent Tax and Income Trends among High-Income Taxpayers
April 10, 2006
Administration officials have consistently sought to portray the distribution of benefits from the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts as balanced or even progressive. Recently, for example, the Treasury Department released a “Tax Relief Kit,” which includes a fact sheet entitled “Who Pays Most Individual Income Taxes?” The fact sheet … -
Tax Reform and Poverty
April 10, 2006
The tax system has a pervasive impact on poverty, both directly through its role in the distribution of society’s resources and indirectly through its effects on the incentives for economic decisions like working and saving. The two most important facets of the tax system for low-income families are payroll taxes and the Earned Income Tax Credit … -
Poor Measurement: New Census Report on Measuring Poverty Raises Concerns
March 28, 2006
On February 14, the Bureau of the Census released its latest report on alternative measures of poverty.[1] Among social scientists, there is considerable dissatisfaction with the official approach to poverty measurement, and this document is part of a welcome research initiative by Census analysts to improve the way that poverty in America is measured and understood. The Census … -
Has the Safety Net Greatly Expanded over the Last Five Years?
March 7, 2006
The Heritage Foundation recently issued a paper by Brian Riedl claiming that programs for the poor have expanded greatly on President Bush’s watch and have done very well in the budget changes of recent years. This claim has been promoted in several op-eds by Riedl and repeated in various media interviews. Riedl often … -
New CBO Data Indicate Growth in Long-Term Income Inequality Continues
January 29, 2006
The Congressional Budget Office recently released extensive data on household incomes and tax liabilities for 2003.[1] CBO issues the most comprehensive data available on changes in incomes and taxes for different income groups, capturing trends at the very top of the income scale that are not shown, for example, in Census data. The new CBO report highlights the degree to which … -
New, Unnoticed CBO Data Show Capital Income Has Become Much More Concentrated At the Top
January 29, 2006
Congress is considering whether to extend reductions in the tax rates on capital gains and dividend income beyond their scheduled expiration date at the end of 2008. Proponents of these extensions often argue that stock ownership is widespread and thus the benefits of extending these tax cuts will be widespread as well. In other analyses, we have … -
Press Release: Income Inequality Grew Across The Country Over The Past Two Decades: Early Signs Suggest Inequality Now Growing Again After Brief Interruption
January 26, 2006
In most states, the gap between the highest-income families and poor and middle-income families grew significantly between the early 1980s and the early 2000s, according to a new study by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities and the Economic Policy Institute. The study is one of the few to … -
Pulling Apart: A State-by-State Analysis of Income Trends
January 26, 2006
Executive Summary The worst effects of the 2001 recession have largely been left behind. The return of economic growth is good news, but this good news is tempered by the fact that the troubling trends in income distribution during the last decades of the 20th century persist in the current …
