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Children in Poverty measures the percentage of related
persons under age 18 living in a household that is below the poverty threshold. In 2004,
the poverty threshold for a household of four people was approximately $18,850 in household
income.
Table 25 displays the 2004 ranks,
based on 2003 data (March 2004 Current Population Survey,
Washington, D.C., U.S. Census Bureau). The percentage of children in poverty ranged from a
low of 7.2 percent of persons under age 18 in New Hampshire to a high of more than 26 percent
in New Mexico, Arkansas and West Virginia. The national average is 17.6 percent, up 1.3
percent from the 2003 Edition and down 3.0 percent from the 1990 Edition.
In the past year,
the percentage of children in poverty increased in 33 states. Children in poverty increased
by 5 percent or more in Oregon, Virginia, Washington, Nevada, Iowa, South Dakota, Rhode Island
and North Carolina. It decreased by 5 percent or more in South Carolina and North Dakota.
Since 1990, children in poverty has increased by 5 percent or more in Rhode Island, Washington
and Oregon. It decreased by 10 percent or more in Mississippi, Louisiana, Minnesota and Tennessee.
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