Researchers at the Institute for Research on Poverty released the second annual Wisconsin Poverty Report [pdf], which is based on the National Academy of Sciences poverty methodology and provides a new, more complete poverty measure.
The measure was created as a service to the State of Wisconsin and as part of IRP’s cooperative research agreement with the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
The report, coauthored by IRP Director and La Follette School faculty member Tim Smeeding, Brookings Fellow and IRP Visiting Scholar Julia Isaacs, and IRP Associate Researcher Joanna Young Marks, shows that the rate of poverty in Wisconsin worsened in 2008 compared to the official poverty measure, with more than 11 percent of the state’s population living in need, including one in seven children and one in 10 elderly residents.
Using the new measure, researchers found that in every demographic group — children, elderly and all age groups combined — the poverty rate was slightly higher under the Wisconsin Poverty Measure than official measures.
This increase reflected the balancing of three forces: a 13.8 percent higher poverty line; the effects of in-kind programs and refundable tax credits in reducing poverty; and the effects of health care costs, child care and other work-related costs that reduce poverty. Adjustments for cost of living differences within the state and for homeownership were also made.
Also released are two companion reports, which provide detailed descriptions of the data and methodology and will serve as part of IRP’s resource to other state and local governments looking to create their own poverty measure that better meets the needs and priorities of their region.
More:
- UW-Madison researchers release Wisconsin Poverty Report: New measure tells new ...University of Wisconsin-Madison - Sep 2, 2010
- Wisconsin Poverty Report: Methodology and Results for 2008 [pdf] Institute for Research on Poverty, University of Wisconsin–Madison, September 2010