
          Poverty Rate Climbs Despite Recovery
          By Noe, CindyCindy Noe
          Vol. 10, No. 6, 1988, p. 18
          
          Although the nation is in its fifth year of economic recovery, some
eight million more Americans were poor in 1987--a total of 32.5
million--than in 1978, according to an analysis by the Center on
Budget and Policy Priorities.
          The Center, a Washington-based independent, non-profit research
organization that specializes in the analysis of data and policy
issues affecting low-income Americans, bases its figures on the
recently released Census Bureau data on poverty. The Center found that
the economic recovery has been uneven, according to director Robert
Greenstein, with the poor sharing less fully in the gains than in
prior recoveries, while the most affluent are moving farther ahead.
          An equally disturbing fact found by the Census Bureau wee that
although the employment rate was about the same in 1987 and 1978,
poverty rates were substantially higher in 1987 than in 1978. The
unemployment rate wee 6.2 percent in 1987 compared to 6.1 in 1978. But
the 13.5 percent poverty rate in 1987 was far above the 11.4 percent
poverty rate in 1978. Although more Americans were employed last year
than in 1978, the poverty rate was higher, contrary to peat patterns
when generally poverty rates declined as the unemployment rate
dropped.
          Among racial and ethnic groups the poverty rates rose. Poverty
rates for black Americans climbed significantly in just the last year,
from 31.1 percent in 1986 to 33.1 percent in 1987. This means that one
of every three blacks were living in poverty last year. The number of
poor blacks rose from 700,000 to 9.7 million.
          Poverty rates also rose a full percentage point for Hispanics, from
27.3 percent to 28.2 percent, although the Census Bureau said this
poverty rate increase was not statistically significant. The number of
poor Hispanics rose from 353,000 people to 5.5 million people.
          The largest increase in black poverty rates occurred among married
couples, up 1.9 percent. The poverty rate among female-headed
families, rose at a statistically insignificant rate, according to the
Center's findings. The proportion of poor living in female-headed
families actually decreased from 38 percent in 1978 to 37 percent in
1987.
          According to the Center, the poverty rate for whites dropped from
11 percent to 10.5 percent.
          The Census also found that poverty rates among children of all
races remained far above the levels of the 1970s. Some 13 million
children (under 18) were poor in 1987 compared to 6.9 million in
1978. That's 20.6 percent of all children in 1987 and 15.4 percent in
1978.
          The poverty rate for black children rose from 43.1 percent to 45.8
percent while the poverty rate for Hispanic children climbed from 37.7
percent to 39.8 percent. One of every two black children under age six
were poor in 1987.
          An increase in the number of very poor children occurred among both
black and white children. In both races the number of children falling
below half of the poverty line in 1987 ($4,528 for a family of three)
was more than 50 percent greater than in 1978. An interesting note in
1987 was the increase of white children falling below the poverty line
at 69 percent while 54 percent of black children fell below the
poverty line. The "poorest of the poor" children totaled 5.4 million
in 1987, some 2.2 million more than in 1978.
          The poverty rate for the elderly edged downward in 1987 compared to
1986 for the elderly as a whole, but rose for the black (31 percent to
33.9) and Hispanic (22.5 percent to 27.4 percent) elderly.
          In addition to showing that the poor have grown poorer, the new
Census data show that in 1987 the gap between rich and poor families
hit its widest point in at least forty years.
          The Census data shows that in 1987 the wealthiest 40 percent of
American families received 67.8 percent of the national family income,
the highest percentage ever recorded, while the poorest 40 percent of
families received 15.4 percent of the national family income, which
was one of the lowest percentages ever recorded.
          The 20 percent of American families in the middle of the income
spectrum received 16.9 percent of the national family income, another
of the lowest percentages ever recorded.
          In 1987 income gains were much larger for upper-income families
than for low- and moderate-income families. The income of the typical
family in the bottom 40 percent of all families rose just $57 from
1986 to 1987, after adjusting for inflation. By contrast, the income
of the typical family in the top 40 percent of the population rose
$699 last year, while the income of the typical family in the richest
10 percent of the population grew $1,021.
          The income of the typical family in the poorest 40 percent of
families was $741 lower in 1987 than in 1978, after adjusting for
inflation. By contrast, the income of the typical family in the top 40
percent was $3,031 above 1978 levels, while the income of the typical
family in the top 10 percent was $8,119 above 1978 levels.
          The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities says that some who have
tried to downplay the gravity of the new poverty data have cited
non-cash poverty measures, which' yield lower poverty rates.
        