There is also additional background information for this table group.

Contents for Table

Table 2. Percent of Persons in Poverty, by Definition of Income and Selected Characteristics: 2007

    Percent Below Poverty Level
  Before taxes
  Money income  
Population Total
(thousands)		 Excluding capital gains (current measure)
Definition 1		 Definition 1 less government transfers
Definition 2		 Definition 2 plus capital gains
Definition 3		 Definition 3 plus health insurance supplements to wage or salary income
Definition 4

White alone
Total 239133 10.5 18.4 18.2 17.7

Age
Under 18 years 56419 14.9 17.0 16.9 16.0
  Related children 55483 14.4 16.5 16.5 15.6
      Under 6 years 18611 17.4 18.9 18.8 18.0
18 to 24 years 22056 15.3 17.5 17.5 17.0
25 to 44 years 64879 9.4 11.4 11.4 10.9
45 to 64 years 63940 7.3 13.0 12.9 12.5
65 years and over 31839 8.1 46.5 45.8 45.6
  65 to 74 years 16662 7.0 38.0 37.4 37.2
  75 years and over 15177 9.4 55.8 54.9 54.8

Family Relationship
In families 195944 8.7 15.1 15.0 14.5
  Married-couple families 157903 5.4 11.7 11.5 11.1
      With related children under 18 93181 7.2 8.8 8.8 8.2
  Female hhlder, no husband present 27159 26.5 34.6 34.5 33.3
      With related children under 18 18919 34.5 40.0 39.9 38.4
Unrelated individuals 41931 17.9 33.0 32.7 32.4
  Living alone 25971 14.9 36.8 36.4 36.2
      65 years and over 9688 15.5 64.1 63.1 63.0

Region
Northeast 43630 9.6 17.8 17.7 17.3
Midwest 55651 8.7 16.6 16.4 15.9
South 83321 11.4 19.9 19.7 19.3
West 56531 11.6 18.4 18.3 17.6

Educational Attainment
Total, 18 years and over 182714 9.2 18.8 18.7 18.2
18 to 24 years old 22056 15.3 17.5 17.5 17.0
  Less than 12th grade, no diploma 4224 24.4 27.4 27.4 26.8
25 years old and over 160658 8.3 19.0 18.8 18.4
  Less than 12th grade, no diploma 20716 22.6 43.8 43.4 42.6
  High school graduate, no college 50299 9.2 23.8 23.5 23.0
  College: Less than bachelor's degree 41833 6.1 14.9 14.7 14.4
  Bachelor's degree or more 47810 3.2 6.9 6.8 6.7

Work Experience in 2007
Total, 20 to 64 years 144846 9.2 12.8 12.8 12.3
  Worked at full-time jobs 99399 3.6 4.4 4.4 4.1
      50 to 52 weeks 84995 2.3 2.7 2.7 2.4
  Worked at part-time jobs 18012 13.0 16.8 16.7 16.0
  Did not work 27435 26.8 40.7 40.4 39.7

Program Participation Status of Household Members
One or more members received:
Cash assistance 9843 39.5 61.5 61.2 60.1
    Public assistance or
 welfare non-SSI 		3079 58.0 70.6 70.3 69.1
    SSI 7284 33.3 59.0 58.7 57.8
  Food stamps 13904 58.9 71.9 71.8 70.4
  Housing assistance 4929 53.5 75.8 75.6 74.4
  Energy assistance 4607 51.0 72.8 72.6 70.8
  Free or reduced-price sch. lunch 21854 39.4 46.0 46.1 44.2
Household received both food stamps
  and cash assistance 		4646 63.4 84.5 84.4 83.4

Health Insurance Coverage
Covered by:
  Plan related to employment
    of self or relative 		146309 2.4 5.0 4.9 4.2
  Medicare 35109 10.0 49.9 49.1 48.8
      Also Medicaid 3889 28.4 68.9 68.1 67.8
  Medicaid 27046 37.1 50.3 50.1 49.2
Not covered 34247 23.8 27.7 27.6 27.4

 

  Percent Below Poverty Level
After taxes
Definition 4 less Social Security payroll taxes
Definition 5		 Definition 5 less Federal income taxes
Definition 6		 Definition 6 plus Earned Income Tax Credit
Definition 7		 Definition 7 less state income taxes
Definition 8		 Definition 8 plus nonmeans- tested government cash transfers
Definition 9

White alone
Total 18.6 18.5 17.2 17.3 10.0

Age
Under 18 years 17.5 16.7 14.0 14.0 12.5
  Related children 17.1 16.2 13.6 13.6 12.0
      Under 6 years 19.7 18.8 15.6 15.6 14.5
18 to 24 years 18.2 18.6 17.4 17.4 15.5
25 to 44 years 11.8 11.6 10.3 10.4 8.8
45 to 64 years 13.1 13.2 12.7 12.8 7.8
65 years and over 46.1 46.3 46.2 46.2 8.9
  65 to 74 years 37.8 37.9 37.8 37.8 7.7
  75 years and over 55.2 55.5 55.4 55.5 10.2

Family Relationship
In families 15.4 15.1 13.6 13.6 7.9
  Married-couple families 11.9 11.5 10.4 10.5 4.7
      With related children under 18 9.3 8.6 6.8 6.8 5.6
  Female hhlder, no husband present 35.1 35.0 31.4 31.4 24.9
      With related children under 18 40.5 40.1 35.1 35.0 31.4
Unrelated individuals 33.1 33.9 33.5 33.8 19.4
  Living alone 36.6 37.1 36.8 37.0 16.2
      65 years and over 63.4 63.7 63.7 63.8 16.8

Region
Northeast 17.9 17.9 16.9 16.9 9.4
Midwest 16.6 16.5 15.6 15.6 8.3
South 20.2 20.1 18.7 18.8 10.8
West 18.8 18.6 17.0 17.1 11.1

Educational Attainment
Total, 18 years and over 19.0 19.1 18.2 18.3 9.3
18 to 24 years old 18.2 18.6 17.4 17.4 15.5
  Less than 12th grade, no diploma 28.3 28.5 26.1 26.3 24.3
25 years old and over 19.1 19.1 18.3 18.4 8.4
  Less than 12th grade, no diploma 44.2 43.9 41.6 41.9 22.9
  High school graduate, no college 23.8 23.9 23.0 23.1 9.4
  College: Less than bachelor's degree 15.0 15.0 14.4 14.4 6.1
  Bachelor's degree or more 6.9 7.0 6.8 6.8 3.2

Work Experience in 2007
Total, 20 to 64 years 13.1 13.1 12.2 12.2 9.1
  Worked at full-time jobs 4.7 4.7 3.9 4.0 3.3
      50 to 52 weeks 2.9 2.9 2.2 2.2 1.9
  Worked at part-time jobs 17.4 17.7 16.3 16.5 13.2
  Did not work 40.7 40.6 39.4 39.4 27.7

Program Participation Status of Household Members
One or more members received:
Cash assistance 61.8 61.5 59.2 59.2 50.4
    Public assistance or
 welfare non-SSI 		71.1 70.9 67.6 67.5 62.8
    SSI 59.5 59.1 57.4 57.4 47.1
  Food stamps 73.3 72.2 66.1 66.1 57.3
  Housing assistance 75.5 75.3 71.3 71.4 53.7
  Energy assistance 73.4 72.2 66.5 66.7 51.2
  Free or reduced-price sch. lunch 47.9 45.7 38.7 38.6 33.6
Household received both food stamps
  and cash assistance 		85.2 85.0 82.3 82.3 74.6

Health Insurance Coverage
Covered by:
  Plan related to employment
    of self or relative 		4.5 4.5 4.2 4.2 1.8
  Medicare 49.4 49.6 49.4 49.4 11.2
      Also Medicaid 68.4 68.4 68.0 68.0 37.6
  Medicaid 51.4 50.2 45.7 45.6 36.5
Not covered 29.9 29.7 26.3 26.6 22.9

 

  Percent Below Poverty Level
After taxes
Definition 9 plus Medicare
Definition 10		 Definition 10 plus regular-price school lunches
Definition 11		 Definition 11 plus means-tested government cash transfers
Definition 12		 Definition 12 plus Medicaid
Definition 13		 Definition 13 plus other means-tested government noncash transfers
Definition 14

White alone
Total 9.7 9.7 9.2 8.8 8.1

Age
Under 18 years 12.3 12.3 11.9 11.2 10.0
  Related children 11.9 11.9 11.5 10.7 9.6
      Under 6 years 14.4 14.4 14.0 13.1 12.0
18 to 24 years 15.3 15.3 15.0 14.5 13.9
25 to 44 years 8.6 8.6 8.3 7.8 7.2
45 to 64 years 7.4 7.4 6.8 6.5 6.1
65 years and over 8.0 8.0 7.3 7.2 6.8
  65 to 74 years 6.8 6.8 6.3 6.2 5.8
  75 years and over 9.3 9.3 8.5 8.4 7.8

Family Relationship
In families 7.7 7.7 7.3 6.8 6.2
  Married-couple families 4.5 4.5 4.3 3.9 3.7
      With related children under 18 5.6 5.5 5.3 4.8 4.3
  Female hhlder, no husband present 24.4 24.3 23.0 22.1 19.6
      With related children under 18 30.9 30.9 29.3 28.1 24.8
Unrelated individuals 18.5 18.5 17.7 17.2 16.3
  Living alone 15.3 15.3 14.2 13.9 12.8
      65 years and over 15.3 15.3 14.0 13.9 12.7

Region
Northeast 9.0 9.0 8.3 7.8 7.1
Midwest 8.0 8.0 7.7 7.3 6.8
South 10.5 10.5 10.1 9.7 9.1
West 10.8 10.8 10.2 9.7 8.9

Educational Attainment
Total, 18 years and over 8.9 8.9 8.4 8.1 7.6
18 to 24 years old 15.3 15.3 15.0 14.5 13.9
  Less than 12th grade, no diploma 23.9 23.9 23.4 22.1 20.9
25 years old and over 8.0 8.0 7.5 7.2 6.7
  Less than 12th grade, no diploma 21.7 21.7 20.1 19.1 17.4
  High school graduate, no college 8.9 8.9 8.3 7.9 7.4
  College: Less than bachelor's degree 5.9 5.9 5.5 5.3 4.9
  Bachelor's degree or more 3.1 3.1 2.9 2.9 2.8

Work Experience in 2007
Total, 20 to 64 years 8.9 8.9 8.4 8.0 7.5
  Worked at full-time jobs 3.2 3.2 3.1 3.0 2.7
      50 to 52 weeks 1.9 1.9 1.9 1.7 1.6
  Worked at part-time jobs 13.0 12.9 12.4 12.1 11.2
  Did not work 26.6 26.6 24.9 23.8 22.5

Program Participation Status of Household Members
One or more members received:
Cash assistance 47.2 47.1 36.4 32.8 26.5
    Public assistance or
 welfare non-SSI 		60.9 60.9 54.2 48.9 38.9
    SSI 43.1 42.9 30.4 27.1 21.9
  Food stamps 55.3 55.3 50.9 46.0 37.2
  Housing assistance 49.9 49.9 44.3 39.8 25.8
  Energy assistance 48.8 48.8 43.8 40.0 33.2
  Free or reduced-price sch. lunch 33.0 33.0 31.6 29.0 24.6
Household received both food stamps
  and cash assistance 		71.2 71.2 58.3 52.5 40.4

Health Insurance Coverage
Covered by:
  Plan related to employment
    of self or relative 		1.8 1.8 1.8 1.7 1.7
  Medicare 9.6 9.6 8.6 8.4 7.7
      Also Medicaid 30.7 30.7 22.6 21.1 17.2
  Medicaid 35.2 35.1 31.7 28.4 24.5
Not covered 22.6 22.6 22.4 21.9 21.1

 

  Percent Below Poverty Level
After taxes
Definition 14 plus net imputed return on equity in own home
Definition 15		 Definition 14 less medical programs
Definition 16		 Money Income after Taxes Without EIC
Definition 17		 Money Income after Taxes With EIC
Definition 18

White alone
Total 7.8 8.5 11.1 9.8

Age
Under 18 years 9.9 10.4 15.4 12.6
  Related children 9.4 10.0 14.9 12.1
      Under 6 years 12.0 12.6 18.0 14.6
18 to 24 years 13.9 14.4 16.7 15.7
25 to 44 years 7.1 7.6 10.2 8.8
45 to 64 years 5.6 6.5 7.8 7.4
65 years and over 5.4 7.1 8.2 8.2
  65 to 74 years 4.8 6.2 7.2 7.1
  75 years and over 6.2 8.1 9.4 9.3

Family Relationship
In families 6.0 6.5 9.2 7.7
  Married-couple families 3.5 3.9 5.7 4.7
      With related children under 18 4.3 4.6 7.5 5.8
  Female hhlder, no husband present 19.2 20.2 27.7 23.9
      With related children under 18 24.4 25.6 35.9 30.6
Unrelated individuals 15.1 17.1 19.3 19.0
  Living alone 10.9 13.1 15.6 15.4
      65 years and over 9.1 12.7 15.6 15.6

Region
Northeast 7.0 7.5 9.9 9.1
Midwest 6.3 7.0 9.2 8.2
South 8.7 9.5 12.1 10.7
West 8.4 9.4 12.4 10.8

Educational Attainment
Total, 18 years and over 7.1 7.9 9.8 9.0
18 to 24 years old 13.9 14.4 16.7 15.7
  Less than 12th grade, no diploma 20.6 22.0 26.3 24.2
25 years old and over 6.2 7.0 8.8 8.1
  Less than 12th grade, no diploma 15.9 18.5 23.8 21.6
  High school graduate, no college 6.8 7.8 9.9 9.0
  College: Less than bachelor's degree 4.7 5.1 6.4 5.9
  Bachelor's degree or more 2.7 2.9 3.4 3.2

Work Experience in 2007
Total, 20 to 64 years 7.3 7.9 9.9 9.0
  Worked at full-time jobs 2.7 2.9 4.3 3.5
      50 to 52 weeks 1.6 1.7 2.8 2.1
  Worked at part-time jobs 10.8 11.6 14.4 13.1
  Did not work 21.5 23.9 27.3 26.2

Program Participation Status of Household Members
One or more members received:
Cash assistance 25.3 29.8 40.4 38.3
    Public assistance or
 welfare non-SSI 		38.0 43.5 59.6 55.3
    SSI 20.5 25.0 33.9 32.6
  Food stamps 35.6 39.8 60.9 54.0
  Housing assistance 25.8 27.4 54.3 49.1
  Energy assistance 30.4 35.4 52.4 47.3
  Free or reduced-price sch. lunch 23.8 26.1 40.9 33.3
Household received both food stamps
  and cash assistance 		39.1 45.1 65.1 61.2

Health Insurance Coverage
Covered by:
  Plan related to employment
    of self or relative 		1.6 1.7 2.7 2.2
  Medicare 6.4 8.4 10.1 10.0
      Also Medicaid 15.1 19.9 28.6 28.2
  Medicaid 23.5 26.7 37.9 33.2
Not covered 20.5 21.5 25.9 22.8

 

  Number Below Poverty Level
Definition 1 Definition 2 Definition 3 Definition 4 Definition 5 Definition 6 Definition 7 Definition 8 Definition 9

White alone
Total 25120 43983 43628 42386 44585 44249 41229 41360 23976

Age
Under 18 years 8395 9573 9548 9055 9871 9414 7920 7907 7034
  Related children 8002 9175 9152 8675 9472 9015 7555 7540 6673
      Under 6 years 3232 3516 3503 3346 3660 3506 2905 2901 2702
18 to 24 years 3376 3862 3856 3739 4012 4101 3833 3847 3418
25 to 44 years 6109 7426 7426 7064 7669 7547 6653 6725 5701
45 to 64 years 4649 8312 8228 8012 8348 8449 8124 8168 4991
65 years and over 2590 14810 14570 14516 14684 14738 14699 14713 2832
  65 to 74 years 1168 6337 6234 6205 6300 6313 6293 6296 1281
  75 years and over 1422 8474 8336 8311 8385 8425 8406 8417 1550

Family Relationship
In families 17141 29663 29423 28314 30200 29547 26722 26738 15422
  Married-couple families 8595 18409 18224 17493 18745 18157 16472 16507 7383
      With related children under 18 6732 8193 8162 7610 8630 7987 6330 6346 5239
  Female hhlder, no husband present 7188 9409 9362 9052 9540 9500 8534 8522 6762
      With related children under 18 6526 7566 7545 7271 7667 7585 6649 6625 5939
Unrelated individuals 7505 13824 13714 13602 13893 14221 14066 14181 8135
  Living alone 3878 9566 9443 9402 9501 9636 9562 9615 4208
      65 years and over 1499 6206 6113 6108 6142 6170 6170 6181 1627

Region
Northeast 4181 7765 7726 7534 7821 7813 7352 7364 4102
Midwest 4849 9244 9140 8853 9258 9201 8677 8697 4596
South 9505 16572 16430 16053 16859 16737 15569 15657 8995
West 6585 10401 10331 9946 10646 10498 9631 9642 6284

Educational Attainment
Total, 18 years and over 16725 34410 34080 33331 34713 34835 33309 33453 16942
18 to 24 years old 3376 3862 3856 3739 4012 4101 3833 3847 3418
  Less than 12th grade, no diploma 1032 1159 1158 1131 1197 1204 1105 1109 1025
25 years old and over 13348 30548 30224 29592 30702 30734 29476 29606 13524
  Less than 12th grade, no diploma 4687 9076 8997 8822 9149 9098 8616 8678 4734
  High school graduate, no college 4605 11965 11821 11556 11970 12008 11591 11633 4714
  College: Less than bachelor's degree 2542 6229 6159 6020 6261 6267 6014 6034 2558
  Bachelor's degree or more 1515 3278 3247 3194 3321 3361 3255 3261 1518

Work Experience in 2007
Total, 20 to 64 years 13284 18574 18486 17815 18974 19016 17599 17730 13241
  Worked at full-time jobs 3591 4399 4400 4036 4664 4682 3863 3945 3252
      50 to 52 weeks 1918 2259 2267 2028 2466 2448 1857 1904 1641
  Worked at part-time jobs 2338 3019 3006 2883 3134 3196 2934 2969 2381
  Did not work 7355 11157 11079 10896 11175 11137 10803 10816 7607

Program Participation Status of Household Members
One or more members received:
Cash assistance 3889 6050 6022 5918 6088 6051 5823 5823 4962
    Public assistance or
 welfare non-SSI 		1785 2175 2164 2129 2190 2182 2081 2080 1932
    SSI 2427 4297 4279 4208 4338 4308 4178 4179 3434
  Food stamps 8192 10003 9986 9782 10188 10042 9193 9188 7970
  Housing assistance 2639 3738 3727 3666 3720 3714 3517 3521 2649
  Energy assistance 2349 3355 3345 3260 3379 3324 3062 3074 2359
  Free or reduced-price sch. lunch 8604 10057 10065 9662 10460 9998 8455 8427 7336
Household received both food stamps
  and cash assistance 		2945 3927 3919 3877 3958 3949 3822 3822 3468

Health Insurance Coverage
Covered by:
  Plan related to employment
    of self or relative 		3528 7267 7163 6167 6632 6590 6086 6115 2675
  Medicare 3516 17505 17229 17134 17333 17411 17341 17357 3945
      Also Medicaid 1106 2680 2648 2635 2658 2659 2645 2645 1463
  Medicaid 10031 13599 13537 13302 13912 13584 12366 12346 9862
Not covered 8154 9477 9467 9378 10239 10166 9017 9120 7857

 

  Number Below Poverty Level
Definition 10 Definition 11 Definition 12 Definition 13 Definition 14 Definition 15 Definition 16 Definition 17 Definition 18

White alone
Total 23214 23193 22080 21031 19451 18559 20383 26570 23535

Age
Under 18 years 6965 6950 6727 6294 5641 5562 5876 8690 7085
  Related children 6606 6591 6369 5949 5308 5229 5534 8285 6715
      Under 6 years 2682 2678 2606 2432 2242 2225 2343 3347 2719
18 to 24 years 3374 3374 3319 3189 3073 3056 3184 3689 3456
25 to 44 years 5602 5600 5367 5089 4700 4603 4909 6589 5695
45 to 64 years 4736 4732 4334 4153 3877 3608 4163 4983 4701
65 years and over 2537 2537 2332 2306 2160 1730 2251 2620 2597
  65 to 74 years 1127 1127 1045 1028 970 792 1026 1192 1180
  75 years and over 1410 1410 1287 1278 1191 938 1226 1427 1418

Family Relationship
In families 15031 15011 14236 13414 12212 11831 12802 18019 15128
  Married-couple families 7171 7161 6788 6236 5792 5596 6177 9053 7367
      With related children under 18 5176 5167 4979 4451 4036 4002 4311 7033 5367
  Female hhlder, no husband present 6623 6612 6237 5994 5319 5214 5484 7511 6497
      With related children under 18 5855 5843 5552 5317 4684 4624 4838 6784 5788
Unrelated individuals 7766 7766 7431 7222 6855 6344 7187 8074 7978
  Living alone 3972 3972 3695 3621 3319 2840 3390 4050 4012
      65 years and over 1478 1478 1358 1347 1229 882 1235 1513 1513

Region
Northeast 3924 3922 3605 3405 3094 3045 3284 4332 3986
Midwest 4467 4460 4259 4072 3758 3514 3919 5117 4548
South 8727 8727 8432 8067 7579 7254 7894 10092 8906
West 6096 6084 5784 5486 5021 4746 5287 7029 6095

Educational Attainment
Total, 18 years and over 16248 16243 15353 14737 13811 12997 14507 17880 16450
18 to 24 years old 3374 3374 3319 3189 3073 3056 3184 3689 3456
  Less than 12th grade, no diploma 1008 1008 989 935 881 870 929 1109 1021
25 years old and over 12875 12869 12034 11548 10737 9941 11323 14192 12994
  Less than 12th grade, no diploma 4501 4499 4172 3959 3609 3303 3842 4929 4468
  High school graduate, no college 4459 4459 4165 3987 3720 3402 3933 4956 4550
  College: Less than bachelor's degree 2449 2448 2289 2218 2059 1948 2153 2697 2465
  Bachelor's degree or more 1465 1464 1408 1383 1349 1288 1395 1611 1510

Work Experience in 2007
Total, 20 to 64 years 12858 12852 12188 11626 10890 10510 11470 14348 12994
  Worked at full-time jobs 3214 3212 3127 2933 2707 2666 2834 4245 3457
      50 to 52 weeks 1618 1616 1580 1470 1350 1359 1412 2375 1812
  Worked at part-time jobs 2333 2332 2241 2171 2020 1947 2083 2603 2359
  Did not work 7311 7309 6820 6522 6163 5897 6553 7500 7178

Program Participation Status of Household Members
One or more members received:
Cash assistance 4646 4635 3581 3230 2608 2493 2936 3979 3771
    Public assistance or
 welfare non-SSI 		1874 1874 1669 1505 1198 1171 1341 1835 1704
    SSI 3138 3127 2212 1973 1596 1496 1823 2473 2377
  Food stamps 7684 7684 7081 6392 5172 4956 5535 8463 7503
  Housing assistance 2461 2461 2184 1963 1271 1271 1350 2678 2421
  Energy assistance 2247 2247 2017 1842 1531 1401 1633 2415 2178
  Free or reduced-price sch. lunch 7218 7218 6912 6340 5367 5207 5708 8928 7280
Household received both food stamps
  and cash assistance 		3306 3306 2709 2440 1877 1817 2093 3024 2845

Health Insurance Coverage
Covered by:
  Plan related to employment
    of self or relative 		2639 2636 2579 2539 2414 2333 2443 3885 3277
  Medicare 3380 3380 3018 2957 2697 2255 2958 3544 3504
      Also Medicaid 1192 1192 878 821 668 585 772 1112 1097
  Medicaid 9509 9498 8562 7693 6627 6352 7222 10258 8991
Not covered 7750 7741 7664 7511 7213 7037 7372 8876 7805

Race Footnotes