Census Bureau: Poverty Is Primarily a Temporary Condition

Poverty is not necessarily a permanent condition, according to a report released (March 16) by the U.S. Census Bureau. While 29 percent of the nation's population was in poverty for at least two months between the start of 2004 and the end of 2006, only 3 percent were poor during the entire period.

The report, Dynamics of Economic Well-Being: Poverty, 2004-2006>, traces a sample of U.S. residents over the aforementioned 36-month period and examines how many of them were poor during at least some portion of that time and how long their poverty spells lasted. It also looks at how many fell into poverty, how many climbed out of it and how many stayed poor during the period. The data are presented by various demographic and socioeconomic characteristics...

According to the report, poverty can be a persistent condition: among the 33 million people who were poor at the start of the period — January and February 2004 — 23 percent remained poor throughout the next 34 months.

However, many people did escape poverty: 12 million, or 42 percent, who were poor in the 2004 calendar year were not in poverty in 2006.

As some moved out of poverty, others moved into it. About 10 million who were not in poverty (4 percent) in 2004 slipped into poverty by 2006.

www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/archives/poverty/cb11-49.html