- U.S. plans new measure for poverty, By Sam Roberts, March 2, 2010, New York Times: “The federal government announced on Tuesday that it would begin producing an experimental measurement of poverty next year, a step toward the first overhaul of the formula since it was developed nearly a half-century ago by an obscure civil servant in the Social Security Administration. While the original definition – the cash income collected by a family or individual – will remain the official statistical measure for eligibility and distribution of federal assistance for the time being, ‘the new supplemental poverty measure will provide an alternative lens to understand poverty and measure the effects of antipoverty policies,’ said Rebecca Blank, the under secretary of commerce for economic affairs…”
- Obama administration issues another way of measuring what it means to be poor, By Amy Goldstein, March 2, 2010, Washington Post: “The Obama administration Wednesday issued an alternative definition of what it means to be poor, stepping gingerly into a long-running debate over whether to revise the way poverty has been measured for decades. Under a ‘Supplemental Poverty Measure’ announced by the Commerce Department, the government is augmenting the formula used for nearly a half-century to determine how many people live in poverty, which has been based on the cost of food and the cash income a family takes in…”
Day: March 2, 2010
Extension of Jobless Benefits
- Republicans look for way past Bunning’s blockade, By Carl Hulse, March 2, 2010, New York Times: “Senator Jim Bunning, who chose not to run for re-election, appears willing to take the heat for holding up unemployment benefits and shutting down highway construction projects around the country. Other Senate Republicans, who are hoping for big political gains this year, are not so eager. With Mr. Bunning’s objection to extending jobless aid quickly becoming a national cause célèbre, his colleagues were trying to find a quick resolution to an impasse that was not only having direct consequences on some of their constituents, but also doing some political damage to the Republican brand as well…”
- In face of criticism, Sen. Bunning blocks jobless benefits again, By Ashley Halsey III and William Branigin, March 2, 2010, Washington Post: “Sen. Jim Bunning (R-Ky.) stood firm Tuesday in single-handedly blocking the Senate from extending unemployment benefits, highway funds and other programs in the face of mounting criticism from Democrats and pleas from his own party. Bunning objected to a request from Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) to pass a 30-day extension of the measures, then defended his stand in a debate with Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.). Other Republicans sought to use the Senate’s morning business period to change the subject, but several Democrats hammered away at Bunning’s use of Senate rules to prevent approval of the stopgap legislation since Thursday…”
Urban-Rural Income Gap – China
Urban-rural income gap widest since opening-up, By Fu Jing, March 2, 2010, China Daily: “China recorded its widest rural-urban income gap last year since the country launched its reform and opening-up policy in 1978. Think tank researchers warned the gap will continue to widen in the coming years if effective measures to narrow the difference are not implemented soon. The urban per capita net income stood at 17,175 yuan ($2,525) last year, in contrast to 5,153 yuan in the countryside, with the urban-to-rural income ratio being 3.33:1, according to the latest figures from the National Bureau of Statistics…”