Rural Research Notes
Shawn Poynter / There Is More Work To Be Done
Shawn Poynter / There Is More Work To Be Done
Analysis of the Supplemental Poverty Measure
HAC’s 2011 Research Note: Analysis of the Supplemental Poverty Measure
The U.S. Census Bureau recently released a new “supplemental” poverty measure. This new measure represents an attempt by the Census Bureau to address some of the limitations associated with the official poverty estimate measure, which was created in the 1960s. It should be noted that the supplemental measure is not intended to replace the current and official poverty measure, which is used by an estimated 82 federal programs as a factor in allocating monies,i but instead is being offered as a way “to better reflect contemporary social and economic realities and government policy effects and thus provide a further understanding of economic conditions and trends.