Institute for Research on Poverty Policy Brief: Deep Poverty in the United States

This brief summarizes current research around those Americans most at risk for falling into deep poverty. It also examines the role of the safety net in preventing and solving deep poverty. It proposes three potential areas of research, including: 1) measurement of food insecurity and other material hardships, 2) work and the effect of the labor markets on those experiencing poverty, and 3) policy – approaches that have worked, and those that have not (for example, looking at what policies can help those most at risk for poverty, such as SNAP, TANF, and child support enforcement).