Economists: U.S. Poverty on Track to Hit Highest Level Since 1960s

[Hissyspit]

Source: Associated Press

ECONOMISTS: U.S. POVERTY ON TRACK TO HIT HIGHEST LEVEL SINCE 1960S

According to economists and other experts surveyed by the Associated Press, the U.S. poverty rate is on track to hit its highest level since the 1960s. The consensus among those surveyed is that “the official poverty rate will rise from 15.1 percent in 2010, climbing as high as 15.7 percent.” Just a 0.1 percent increase would put the poverty rate at its highest since 1965.

Read more: http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2012/07/22/561671/poverty-highest-1960s

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http://bigstory.ap.org/article/us-poverty-track-rise-highest-1960s

US POVERTY ON TRACK TO RISE TO HIGHEST SINCE 1960S

By HOPE YEN
— Jul. 22 11:26 AM EDT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The ranks of America's poor are on track to climb to levels unseen in nearly half a century, erasing gains from the war on poverty in the 1960s amid a weak economy and fraying government safety net.

Census figures for 2011 will be released this fall in the critical weeks ahead of the November elections.

The Associated Press surveyed more than a dozen economists, think tanks and academics, both nonpartisan and those with known liberal or conservative leanings, and found a broad consensus: The official poverty rate will rise from 15.1 percent in 2010, climbing as high as 15.7 percent. Several predicted a more modest gain, but even a 0.1 percentage point increase would put poverty at the highest since 1965.

Poverty is spreading at record levels across many groups, from underemployed workers and suburban families to the poorest poor. More discouraged workers are giving up on the job market, leaving them vulnerable as unemployment aid begins to run out. Suburbs are seeing increases in poverty, including in such political battlegrounds as Colorado, Florida and Nevada, where voters are coping with a new norm of living hand to mouth.