This resource is from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, and offers information on State Earned Income Tax Credits (EITC). Currently, 24 States, including D.C., have implemented State EITC programs to complement the federal EITC refund for working families in their States. Authors provide information on what States are providing these programs and how State-focused programs can benefit families.

From the U.S. Department of Agriculture, this report provides information on food insecurity among children in the United States. Researchers found that around 85 percent of households with food-insecure children had a working adult, including 70 percent with a full-time worker. Around 16 percent of households with children were food insecure sometime during the year, including 8.3 percent in which children were food insecure and 0.8 percent in which one or more children experienced very low food security. Federal food and nutrition assistance programs provided benefits to four out of five low-income, food-insecure households with children.

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.

The National Alliance to End Homelessness authored this report, which is first in a series of briefs that examine the geographic distribution of homelessness in the United States. While homelessness is perceived to be an issue for urban areas only, rural areas also face homelessness, and it is often caused by the same barriers that persist in urban areas. In this report, authors provide an overview of homelessness for urban and rural areas, and offer State by State information on homelessness.

From the U.S. Department of Agriculture, this study looks at low-income families in Detroit in relation to economic coping strategies. Conducting three rounds of interviews with 35 women, researchers found that a majority of the sample were employed at least some of the time and most had children living with them. Additionally, just under half reported running out of food at some point during the year, and many reported utilizing Food Stamp (SNAP) benefits, but did not receive TANF or unemployment benefits.

From the Urban Institute, this resource reviews the literature on poverty dynamics in the United States. Reviewing theories of poverty in the United States, researchers seek to answer the questions: How likely are people to enter, exit, and reenter poverty? How long do people remain in poverty? And what events are associated with entering and exiting poverty? Authors conclude by analyzing current policy implications on the dynamics of poverty in the United States and proposing possible future research on this topic.

This report provides an overview of the likely effects of increasing the severity of sanction and time-limit policies in California on the welfare caseload, the state’s work participation rate, and the economic circumstances of vulnerable families. Researchers from the Public Policy Institute of California find that, as a result of such policies, the state’s caseload would be lower and the work participation rate higher, if the state adopted stricter sanction policies for adults who fail to meet work requirements.

The National Transitional Jobs Network developed this toolkit to provide States with information on the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act that is targeted to TANF participants. Transitional Jobs programs can help States increase TANF participants’ self-sufficiency while also meeting federal work requirements. The toolkit includes resources on how States can develop transitional jobs programs using the TANF Emergency Fund and provides examples of RFPs, Worksheets, and Assessment Tools.

From the U.S. Census Bureau, this report offers the latest statistics on income, poverty, and health insurance in the United States. The real median household income in the United States fell 3.6 percent between 2007 and 2008, from $52,163 to $50,303. Additionally, the nation’s official poverty rate in 2008 was 13.2 percent, which is up from 12.5 percent in 2007. The number of people without health insurance coverage rose from 45.7 million in 2007 to 46.3 million in 2008.

This report is from the Assistant Secretary for Planning, Research, and Evaluation. Religion and spirituality play a significant role in the lives of Americans, and this report is focused on how religiosity and spirituality affect outcomes for low-income families. Researchers provide an overview of the role of religiosity for low-income families in the areas of marriage and relationships, parenting, youth outcomes, mental and physical health, substance abuse, and crime and violence, homelessness, and employment.