Category: Poverty and Policy Matters

Double-standard in defining poverty could limit educational opportunities for some

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May 14, 2013 at 3:36 pmCategory:NC Budget and Tax Center | Poverty and Policy Matters

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Education is perhaps the most promising public investment for promoting long-term economic prosperity. That’s why providing low-income children access to preschool and providing a high-quality education to all students in North Carolina’s public schools is vital to our state’s future.

Yet, policymakers have introduced education bills that inconsistently define “poverty” and “at-risk” in ways that would reduce access to early learning for low-income 4-year olds and divert needed public school funding to private schools. Read More…

Income Inequality in North Carolina: The Disconnect between Wages and Productivity

October 2, 2012 at 8:48 amCategory:NC Budget and Tax Center | Poverty and Policy Matters

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In addition to the data on poverty that was released by the US Census Bureau recently, there was also a host of data points about income trends in the nation and North Carolina.  These trends, like the poverty numbers , demonstrate a troubling trend for the fabric of our society and the ability of our economy to grow sustainably over the long term.

As we reported in our analysis of the Census data, the top fifth of households in North Carolina held more than half of all income in the state in 2011, compared to 14.5 percent and 3.3 percent held by the middle and bottom fifths, respectively.  Read More…

Poverty and Policy Matters: 1 in 4 North Carolina Children Live in Poverty

September 25, 2012 at 9:22 amCategory:NC Budget and Tax Center | Poverty and Policy Matters

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The latest data from the US Census Bureau find that 1 in 4 of North Carolina’s children live in poverty.  This is a five percentage point increase since the start of the Great Recession—a staggering one with important implications for the future of our state.

Children growing up in poverty face daily challenges that over a childhood accumulate into significant barriers to opportunity and mobility.  Recent evidence finds that children in the bottom 20% of the income distribution, those living in poverty, have just a 50/50 chance of moving out of poverty as adults. The greater the number of children living in poverty, the greater economic hardship we can anticipate in the future unless something is done to address child poverty and its worst impacts on a child’s life. Read More…

Follow the money: how the Senate pays for its budget

June 11, 2012 at 10:53 amCategory:Poverty and Policy Matters | Uncategorized

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Call it round two: as we did for the House budget, BTC has taken a close look at the Senate budget’s availability statement to break out where they raise, and spend, General Fund dollars before the budget negotiation itself even begins.

Here’s where the Senate raised its money: Read More…

Poverty and Economic Distress Has Outsized Effect on Young Children

April 16, 2012 at 4:27 pmCategory:NC Budget and Tax Center | Poverty and Policy Matters | Uncategorized

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State officials, early childcare providers, and child advocates are celebrating the youngest community members this week in honor of the annual Week of the Young Child. Amidst our celebration of these young children who are under 6 years old, let’s review the latest available data on their economic state.

According to the United States Bureau of the Census, more children are being pushed into poverty year after year due to the economic downturn. Data show that the persistently high unemployment rate affects not only those who have lost or are without jobs but also their family members, including their children.

28.8 percent of North Carolina’s young children lived in poverty in 2010, which was defined as $22,314 for a family of four at the time. This poverty rate is 3.9 percentage points above the rate for the average child (ages 17 and under) who is poor and 11.3 percentage points above the rate for the average North Carolinian (all ages) who is poor. Children of color face even higher rates of poverty. Read More…