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University of Wisconsin–Madison
Poverty-related issues in the news, from the Institute for Research on Poverty

Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates

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  • Poverty among children rises in Bergen, Passaic, By Carol Lawrence, December 10, 2010, The Record: “Poverty increased significantly for children in Bergen and Passaic counties over the last two years, according to figures released by the U.S. Census Bureau. The poverty rate for Passaic County children ages 5 to 17 in families jumped to nearly 24 percent from 17.5 percent in 2007, and in Bergen County, the rate rose to more than 7 percent from 5.6 percent in 2007. Nationally, the rate rose in 295 counties and dropped in 19 counties over the two-year span, but there was no significant change in the majority of counties, according to figures released in the 2009 Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates…”
  • Ziebach County still poorest in America, By Mary Garrigan, December 10, 2010, Rapid City Journal: “Ziebach County on the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation in northwest South Dakota retained its infamous title as the poorest county in America in 2009, according to a new Census Bureau report released this week. Poverty rates for counties and school districts throughout the United States were part of the Census Bureau’s Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. In Ziebach County, 62 percent of its 2,552 residents live in poverty. The rate of children younger than 18 in the county was even higher — 76.7 percent. In the Midwest region, the seven poorest counties are in South Dakota, and two others — Bennett and Dewey counties — also made the list of the 30 Midwest counties with the highest poverty rates…”
  • Somerset County schoolchildren face state’s highest poverty levels, By Michaelle Bond, December 9, 2010, Delmarva Daily Times: “More than one in four school-aged children in Somerset County and Baltimore City school districts live in poverty, the highest rates in the state, according to recently released census data. In these two school districts, plus those in Dorchester and Allegany counties, the percentage of students in poverty exceeds the country’s 17.9 percent average, according to 2009 census data released Wednesday…”
  • As expected, Utah poverty rates rose from 2007 to 2009, By Julia Lyon, December 9, 2010, Salt Lake Tribune: “Following a nationwide trend, Utah saw poverty spike from 9.8 percent in 2007 to 11.7 percent in 2009, according to new data released this week by the U.S. Census Bureau. One of the largest increases came in Washington County, where the rate jumped from 8.9 percent in 2007 to 14.2 percent in 2009. Ruben Garcia, director of the Dixie Care and Share Food Pantry in St. George, wasn’t surprised to hear the numbers. ‘A lot of our donors from previous years are now clients,’ he said. ‘There’s a lot of working poor in Washington County.’ The state’s most populous county, Salt Lake County, saw its poverty rate rise from 9 percent in 2007 to 10.7 percent two years later. The numbers were worse in Utah County, where poverty grew from 11.4 to 14.2 percent…”