Poverty in the United States has risen dramatically in the last year, according to new Census Bureau data released on Tuesday (September 12). Rising living costs and the government’s cancellation of federal programs that offered assistance to families during the epidemic were listed as a few of the many factors that contributed to growing poverty, particularly among children.
12.4 percent of Americans lived in poverty in 2022
According to the statistics, 12.4 percent of Americans lived in poverty in 2022, a major increase from 7.8 percent in 2021. Inflation played a role in the increase, as nominal gains were offset by record-high inflation figures.
According to the analysis, inflation-adjusted median household income in the United States will fall by 2.3 percent in 2022, compared to the year prior – making it the third straight year when median household incomes have declined.
Notably, in 2021, a family of four living in a rental home was considered poor if the income was less than $31,453. However, the metric shot up to $34,518 in 2022 as families below this number were classified as poor in the report.
Additionally, the poverty rate for children in 2022 increased from the previous year, mostly owing to the elimination of the enhanced Child Tax Credit
“The steeper relative declines in post-tax income at the bottom and middle of the income distribution are attributable to the expiration of a number of tax policies,” Census Bureau official Liana Fox was quoted as saying by news agency AFP.
Biden blamed Republican lawmakers for failing to extend the Child Tax Credit
Reflecting on the troubling data, President Joe Biden blamed Republican lawmakers for failing to extend the Child Tax Credit.
“The rise reported today in child poverty is no accident, it is the result of a deliberate policy choice congressional Republicans made to block help for families with children while advancing massive tax cuts for the wealthiest and largest corporations,” said Biden.
“No child should grow up in poverty, and I will continue to fight to restore the expanded Child Tax Credit to give tens of millions of families the tax relief and breathing room they deserve,” he added.
The White House also stated that current data may “tell a more optimistic story” because inflation has slowed in recent months.
Experts have cautioned that if the government and politicians fail to plug budgetary gaps with social safety net programs for struggling families, the growth in poverty, particularly among children, might worsen over the next year.
