Report Child Poverty and the Social Safety Net in California By Caroline Danielson, Sarah Bohn Sep 29, 2014 Because economic hardship is associated with a host of adverse outcomes, particularly for children, policies that can give children a better start in life are especially important. This report focuses on measuring material hardship among children across the state. Using the California Poverty Measure—which accounts for both family earnings and safety net resources and adjusts for work expenses and housing costs—we find that one-quarter of California’s children are in poverty. An additional 26 percent of children live in households that are "near poor,” or somewhat above what is often referred to as the poverty line. In short, about half of California’s children are poor or near-poor. Poverty rates, earnings, and the role of safety net resources all vary by region. But most poor children live in "working poor” families, with one or more working adults. And, without resources from the social safety net—which includes the federal Earned Income Tax Credit, CalFresh (California’s food stamp program), CalWORKs (California’s welfare program), and housing subsidies—there would be far more children in poverty throughout California.
Report Reducing Child Poverty in California: A Look at Housing Costs, Wages, and the Safety Net By Sarah Bohn, Caroline Danielson Nov 14, 2017 Nearly a quarter of young children in California live in poverty—a fact that has profound educational, health, and economic repercussions now and in the long term. High housing costs and low wages are key barriers to reducing the prevalence of child poverty. Lawmakers have taken action to address these issues: the minimum wage is slated to increase to $15 an hour by 2022, and recently enacted laws aim to ease the state’s housing crisis.
blog post Poverty in California Is High by Any Measure By Caroline Danielson, Tess Thorman, Sarah Bohn Sep 20, 2018 California continues to have one of the nation’s highest poverty rates. Within California, poverty is highest in certain coastal areas, including Los Angeles County.
blog post Is California the Poorest State? By Caroline Danielson, Sarah Bohn Sep 29, 2014 One poverty measure ranked California as the poorest state in the U.S. But according to the latest official estimates, 16 states had higher poverty rates. How do we make sense of this?
blog post High Poverty Rate Persists By Caroline Danielson, Sarah Bohn Jun 10, 2015 Although the state’s economy has rebounded, the latest poverty statistics suggest there’s been little improvement in the share of Californians struggling to make ends meet.
blog post Testimony: Poverty and the Safety Net By Sarah Bohn Feb 27, 2014 PPIC research fellow Sarah Bohn testified Wednesday before the Assembly Budget Subcommittee for Health and Human Services. She described recent poverty trends and the impact of anti-poverty programs in California.
blog post Fewer California Adults and Far Fewer Children Are in Poverty in 2021 By Caroline Danielson, Patricia Malagon Sep 22, 2022 New census data show that poverty in California declined among both adults and children last year. While economic downturns typically cause poverty to rise, pandemic relief measures drove a continued decline, especially among children.
blog post Testimony: Measuring Poverty in California By Sarah Bohn Jan 8, 2014 On the 50th anniversary of President Johnson's declaration of a "War on Poverty," the Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Committee held a hearing about California's food stamp program, known as CalFresh.
blog post How the Expanded Child Tax Credit Reduces Child Poverty By Tess Thorman, Patricia Malagon Mar 23, 2021 The recently enacted federal COVID-19 relief package includes a one-year expansion of the Child Tax Credit. This could cut child poverty in California by about one-third, with the estimated effect varying across regions.
blog post Interactive: Many Californians Live in or Near Poverty By Tess Thorman Mar 4, 2020 Economic hardship does not end at the poverty line. More than 7 million Californians are “near poor”: out of poverty, but with annual resources of up to just 1.5 times the poverty threshold.
