Poverty indicators show Pa. has work to do
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WASHINGTON -- A study released Wednesday shows that Pennsylvania and West Virginia tie for worst in the nation in disconnected youth, a major contributor to poverty.
In each state, 15 percent of people aged 16 to 19 are neither in school nor the workforce.
The study was unveiled in Washington, D.C. by Half in Ten, a nonprofit advocacy group whose goal is to cut the number of impoverished Americans in half within the next 10 years.
By publishing state-specific data on the causes and effects of poverty, the group hopes that local advocates can use the study as ammunition for bringing change. In all, the study provides figures for 11 poverty-causing categories on a state-by-state level, and will publish the changes in each category annually over the next decade.
More than 46 million Americans currently live below the poverty line, the report says, making about $22,314 for a family of four. The study ranks Pennsylvania 19th in the country with a 13.4 percent poverty rate in 2010.
Tara Marks runs the South Side nonprofit Just Harvest, which helps people in Allegheny County receive food stamps. Speaking at the unveiling, Ms. Marks said that she asks her clients to also contact their elected officials, to help increase poverty awareness.
"When I go back [to Pittsburgh]," Ms. Marks said Wednesday in Washington, "This study will be used loud and proud so I can go to my clients and have them advocate for themselves. This is the information they need, so they know, 'I'm not the only one."
U.S. Secretary of Labor Hilda Soils spoke at the event, noting some of the red-flag areas that the study highlights.
"If we close the pay gap between men and women, we can cut in half the number of children living in poverty," she said.
According to the study, Pennsylvanian women made about 77 cents for ever dollar a Pennsylvanian man made in the same job last year, about level with the national average.
At the same time, coverage for the unemployed ranked better -- the commonwealth placed second-best in the nation with more than 96 percent of its unemployed workers receiving unemployment benefits last year.
Deborah Weinstein, executive director of umbrella-group Coalition on Human Needs, said that poverty affects more than just the impoverished.
"The cost of not reducing poverty is great," she said. "More sickness, more children falling behind in school, fewer people with the money to purchase the items to keep our economy moving."
The study's results are published on an interactive website at halfinten.org/indicators.
First Published October 27, 2011 12:00 am
