According to HHS guidelines the poverty level for a family of four is $31,200.
Can poverty be reduced or eliminated by tax credits and other subsidies? Not really, those are bandaids which do not address the basic problem- how much a household earns relative to the cost of living.
The claim that children’s poverty decreased or increased because of a tax credit is absurd. The tax credit went to the family with no control over how it was used. To isolate the credit as benefiting children because of its name is pure politics.
If we are going to include tax credits and stimulus payments in defining poverty levels, then $31,200 is not valid. If we make such programs permanent then there will never be an end to poverty and fewer incentives to for individuals to strive to do so.
Pre-tax cash incomes of lower-income households held roughly steady between 2021 and 2022, and the official poverty measure — which only considers pre-tax cash income and excludes resources from the Child Tax Credit, Earned Income Tax Credit, and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) — was unchanged in 2022 as compared to 2021. This further demonstrates that the loss of pandemic-related assistance, including the expanded Child Tax Credit, drove the increase in poverty under the more comprehensive Supplemental Poverty Measure, which considers tax credits and non-tax benefits…
One of the largest causes of this year’s jump in children’s poverty was the expiration of the 2021 Child Tax Credit expansion. Renewing this 2021 credit would have kept about 3 million children above the poverty line in 2022 — including 975,000 white children, 603,000 Black children, 988,000 Latino children, and 57,000 Asian children — avoiding more than half of the actual jump in the child poverty rate, we calculate using data Census released today…
Another major factor in the increase in poverty in 2022 was the expiration of pandemic stimulus payments, known as Economic Impact Payments, which were meant to be temporary. The Rescue Plan’s stimulus payments provided $1,400 per person and kept a similar number of children above the poverty line in 2021 as the Child Tax Credit expansion.
CBPP.ORG
There must be a better way to address the root causes of poverty.
QUINNSCOMMENTARY 
“If we make such programs permanent then there will never be an end to poverty and fewer incentives to for individuals to strive to do so.”
“There must be a better way to address the root causes of poverty.”
May be…
“Negative income tax (NIT) is an alternative to welfare suggested by, among other proponents, economist Milton Friedman in his 1962 book Capitalism and Freedom.
NIT proponents assert that every American without income above the threshold for tax liability should have a basic income guarantee and that NIT is a means to subsidize the needy at less cost than the welfare system.”
That last sentence (at less cost) should be a wake up call. How often do Milton Friedman and Jerry Brown agree?
“Jobs for every American is doomed to failure because of modern automation and production. We ought to recognize it and create an income-maintenance system so every single American has the dignity and the wherewithal for shelter, basic food, and medical care. I’m talking about welfare for all. Without it, you’re going to have warfare for all.”
LikeLike
The titles of Congressional legislation (especially by Democrats) can be disingenuous to make it sound so great. i.e: the Dreamers act or child tax credit act or etc.
LikeLike
The poor you will have with you always, but you will not have me
Mathew 26:11
That’s the word from the boss.
LikeLike
The official numbers are income numbers, not adjusted for wealth or possessions. Once you adjust for wealth, and government transfers, the number living in poverty in America is minimal. The expanded child tax credit is simply a sop to buy votes.
If the Republicans sign off on this one … we will have locked in $2+ Trillion a year in deficits for the entire Biden second term, or at least until people stop buying our debt.
Real rate of poverty is 2.5% – Before the Child Tax Credit enhancement:
https://www.wsj.com/articles/another-wrong-way-to-measure-poverty-welfare-biden-fd9018b1?page=1
I’m thinking Maynard G. Krebs. Work! Waaarrrrrkkk! https://www.wsj.com/articles/congress-tax-deal-child-tax-credit-american-enterprise-institute-report-work-income-gop-f7445699?page=1
Finicking with the numbers – lie, damned lie, statistics – the definition of poverty is flawed and likely to become more opaque under the Biden Administration. https://www.wsj.com/articles/biden-poverty-rate-stats-government-spending-1ed36e32?page=1
LikeLike
First would be to try and list the “root causes of poverty”, then to figure out if folks are moving up and out of poverty only to be replaced by newcomers. Working on ending poverty has been a challenge for many years as we all know. Not so easy.
LikeLike
Unfortunately, you’re likely to hear that the root causes are things like, white supremacy, systematic racism, unconscious bias, patriarchy, toxic masculinity, etc.
LikeLike
46 percent of all Christians said that a lack of effort is generally to blame for a person’s poverty, compared with 29 percent of all non-Christians.
And race mattered, too: Just 32 percent of black Christians blamed lack of effort, compared to 64 percent who blamed circumstances.
In contrast, by more than 2 to 1, Americans who are atheist, agnostic or have no particular affiliation said difficult circumstances are more to blame when a person is poor than lack of effort (65 percent to 31 percent).
Among Democrats, 26 percent blamed a lack of effort and 72 percent blamed circumstances. Among Republicans, 63 percent blamed lack of effort and 32 percent blamed circumstances.
Kaiser Family Foundation
Washington Post August 3, 2017
LikeLike
Circumstances matter. There’s a recent book “The Two-Parent Privilege” by Melissa S. Kearney that highlights the incredible advantage of having a two parent household. The children have no control over this, of course. I didn’t read the book, but it seems that a couple that stays together “for the kids” – are onto something.
LikeLike
I have no doubt.
LikeLike
Circumstances…
Al Lindquist says:
“First would be to try and list the “root causes of poverty”, then to figure out if folks are moving up and out of poverty only to be replaced by newcomers.”
When I read “circumstances” (vs. “lazy”) single parent households was not what came to mind, although of course it is a factor.
A much larger factor, I think, is, no matter how ambitious you are, there are just not enough jobs paying middle class or better wages. If ten percent of existing jobs pay less than a living wage*, then when one man/woman moves up, another takes his place. It’s math.
An honest comparison of poverty rates in different countries, or even different U.S. states, should indicate that “circumstances” are much more favorable in some nations than others. It’s why so many risk crossing the border every year. Trying to improve their circumstances.
*Sometimes, even two wages in the household are not sufficient.
LikeLike
It is simple but at the same time complex: (1) get as much education as you can–(2) gain employment; (3) get married and stay married.
The key is the two parent household–that is the first step for future success. Without that it is an uphill climb.
LikeLike
Sounds simple, but in reality not so easy if you have no positive examples around you and ability to get education is limited.
I received a very good education through high school, it has served me well. Today that same town has a poverty rate over 30% it spends on par with richest towns when it comes to school spending per child, but math proficiency is 20% and reading 40% How do you fix that?
LikeLike
You’re talking about individuals. Fine. With “rugged individualism”, anybody can become president, but everybody can’t. There’s only one position. With hard work and education, anyone can get a good paying job. But everyone can’t. There are just not enough good paying jobs to go around. That’s math, and it depends on where you live. Puerto Rico has a 40 percent poverty rate, New Hampshire has 7 percent. Rural America generally has a 20 percent higher poverty rate than urban.
These are “circumstances”. And, actually, systematic racism, unconscious bias, etc. are indeed circumstances, more so in some areas than others.
Math doesn’t lie, and it changes only slowly over time, if at all.
LikeLike