Poverty in the United States: 2008

The Urban Institute issued this report on poverty in the United States in the year 2008. In 2008, the poverty rate reached 13.2 percent, which is a significant increase from 12.5 percent in 2007. However, despite an increase, this increase may not fully show the extent to which the economic climate has affected American families, as Census poverty data are based on the incomes of individuals and families gathered over the past calendar year; in 2008, the monthly unemployment did not exceed six percent until August.