Declines in Child Poverty Continue in 2017

Recent data from the American Community Survey shows that child poverty declined 1.1 percentage points from 2016 to 2017, which is now within half of a percentage point of pre-recession levels. This gap is driven mainly by rural poverty, because urban child poverty has declined below recession levels for the first time. Rates are lowest in the Northeast and in the suburbs but remain highest in the South and in cities. Although child poverty shows promising trends, these measurements use the official poverty rate, which is only one measure of economic hardship. For graphs and maps showing more data on child poverty, visit the Carsey School of Public Policy to download this data snapshot.