REPOR TRESUMES ED 017 538 UD 000 233 DIMENSIONS OF POVERTY IN 1964. REVISED. OFFICE OF ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY, WASHINGTON, D.C. PUP DATE DEC 65 ERRS PRICE MF.40.50 HC -$3.92 96P. DESCRIPTORS *ECONOMICALLY DISADVANTAGED, *AGE, *GEOGRAPHIC LOCATION, *TABLES (DATA), *FAMILY (SOCIOLOGICAL UNIT), *IDENTIFICATION, STATISTICAL DATA, CENSUS FIGURES, DEMOGRAPHY, SEX DIFFERENCES, METROPOLITAN AREAS, AGRICULTURAL LABORERS, RACIAL DIFFERENCES, CHARTS, FAMILY STRUCTURE, FAMILY SIZE, FAMILY INCOME, RURAL AREAS, ADULTS, CHILDREN, EMPLOYMENT, HOUSING, THE TABLES AND ACCOMPANYING EXPLANATORY TEXT IN THIS REPORT DESCRIBE THE POOR BY AGE, SEX, AND LOCATION IN 1964. DATA ARE DERIVED FROM TEE U.S. BUREAU OF THE CENSUS POPULATION SURVEY IN MARCH 1965. AS OF THIS DATE THERE WERE AN ESTIMATED 12 MILLION HOUSEHOLDS OR 34 MILLION PERSONS LIVING ON A POVERTY-LEVEL INCOME, WHICH AVERAGED APPROXIMATELY TO CENTS A DAY PER PERSON. ABOUT TO PERCENT OF THESE POOR WERE WHITE, ABOUT HALF LIVED IN CITIES WITH A POPULATION OF 50,000 OR MORE, AND 67 PERCENT DID NOT LIVE ON FARMS. AMONG THESE POOR PERSONS WERE ABOUT 29 MILLION MEMBERS OF FAMILIES OF TWO OR MORE RELATED PERSONS AND 200,000 YOUTHS, AND 4,000,000 ADULTS LIVING IN THEIR OWN ROOMS AND FLATS. AROUND 300,000 CHILDREN LIVED WITH FOSTER PARENTS. (LB) L....---.... .1" U.S. DEPARTPENT OF HEALTH, EDUCATION & WELFARE OFFICE OF EDUCATION elnl_1irloa. THIS DOCUMENT HAS BEEN REPRODUCED EXACTLY AS RECEIVED FROM THE 41, IUP '41r. PERSON OR ORGANIZATION ORIGINATING IT.POINTS OF VIEW OR OPINIONS , STATED DO NOT NECESSARILY REPRESENT OFFICIAL OFFICE OF EDUCATION -1'kit'd/hi' 111! POSITION OR POLICY. II ae :44 5ACC-- ti ti a DEFINITION OF POVERTY This is an interim description of the poor by age, sex,and location, based upon the March 1965 nationalpopulation survey by the U. S. Bureauof the Census of families and unrelated individuals at all income levels.The tables and text presented here are developedby the Office of Economic Opportunity as an aid in its administrationof the Poverty Act.As used in this DEFINITION, "family" means a groupof two or more people, living in the samedwelling unit and related by blood, marriage, or adoption;"household" extends the same concept to include 1-personfamilies, technically usually identified as "unrelated individuals." This is not the ultimate definition ordescription. It ex- tends to mid-1965 the description of povertyreleased by the Department of Health, Education, andWelfare early in the year and displaces the $1500 and$3000 characteristics used as recently as late 1964. Eventually this definition, too, in turn may be replaced. Israel Putnam Office of Research, Plans, Programs and Evaluation, 0110 October 29, 1965 1 DEFINITION OF POVERTY Introduction The decrease within a year of around a million in the poor found among 190 million Americana may be partly due to changes in sample and partly due to changes in the economic climate. By repeated measurement of larger samples, the actual change in numbers of the poor will eventu- ally be measured with more reliability. THE POOR Millions of Persons Total Nonfarm Farm All ages: 1964 34.3 29.9 4.4 1963 35.4 31.4 4.0 (Members of the armed forces livir.g on post are excluded, also poor persons living in institutions. Two hundred fifty thousand unrelated children having foster child status are included in 1965 figures.) Source: Special tabulations by U.S. Bureau of Census of 1964 and 1963 annual cash incomes, surveyed in March of the following year. Summary In March 1965, about 12 million households comprising 34 million persons were living on cash incomes insufficient to buy goods and services vital to health. Measured by the reports of 1964 cash incomes to the Census Bureau, these--based on a sliding scale of cash incomes allowing for family size and the ages of family members--are The Poor, averaging, on these incoraes,atmost,70 cents a day per person for food, and choosing, among hard alternatives, which needs may be endured and which must be satisfied. Among these poor were about 300,000 children living with foster parents, about 200,000 youth° and 4,800,000 adults living in their own rooms and flats, and about 29,000,000 members of families of two or more related persons. 2 Almost 70 percent of the poor were white; 87 percentdid not live on farms; 47 percent (over half of those not onfarms) lived inside the metropolitan boundaries of areas containing cities of50,000 popula- tion or more. As nearly as can be determined, cities,large and small, contain about 55 percent of all these poor. The rest spreads thinly like a retreating nerve network over the hamlet tracesof past and dying industry, mining, lumbering, transportationand farming, with rural nonfarm poverty outnumbering farm poverty two to one. Where are ttte Poor? The location of the poor by degree of urbanization issharply defined in Table 1 and Chart 1. About half live in metropolitan areas of 50,000 or more and about half live in smaller cities and in rural areas. It is significant, in terms of policy design and execution, thatthe poor are not scattered evenly relative to thetotal population. The large metropolitan areas containing 64 percent of the total popula- tion comprise only 47 percent of the poor. The other 53 percent is in areas likely to be less prepared in staff and resources to carry out specialized poverty programs. Table 1. Location of the Poor in Terms of PopulationDensity. Based on March 1965 Surveof 1964 Annual Cash Incomes (Millions) Source: Special tabulations by U. S. Census Bureau Total Population Poor Population Total***** . 189.9 100.0% 34.3 100.0% Nonfarm 176.6 93,0 29.9 87.2 Inside Standard Metropolitan Statistical Ateast Central City.. .. , . 58.6 30.9 10.1 29.2 Outside Central City. 62.6 33.0 6.3 18.1 Outside such areas, nonfarm 55.4 29.1 13.5 39.9 Farm (almost entirely outside such areas) 13.3 7.0 4.4 12.8 Chart 1 Total and Poor Civilian Non-InstitutionalPopulations Compared TOTAL CIVILIAN NON- INSTITUTIONAL POPULATION 189.9 MILLION TOTAL IN POVERTY 34.3 MILLION ARM 7.0% 4 .16 0 rn O ti A 'S:OUTSIDECEI4V/k. CIAL NON-FARM93.043 Source: Census March 1965 survey of 1964 family cash incomes. 3 Table la. Poverty by Location (Millions of persons) (With the exception of farm populations, the figures shown in this table are estimated allocations by 0E0 Staff.) All Income Levels Poor Persons Percent by Millions Percent Millions Percent specified of of of of category of Persons Total Persons Total location, Poor of total ersons All Locations 189.9 100.0 34.3 100.0 18.1 Total Rural 55.3 29.1 14.9 43.4 26.9 Farm 13.3 7.0 4.4 12.8 33.1 Nonfarm 42.0 22.1 10.5 30.6 25.0 Total Urban 134.6 70.9 19.4 56.6 14.4 Small Cities 27.1 14.3 6.2 18.1 22.9 Metropolitan 107.5 56.6 13.2 38.5 12.3 Central Cities 58.6 30.8 10.0 29.2 17.1 Suburbs 48.9 25.8 3.2 9.3 6.5 4 Table 2. Poor Person Totalsas of March 1965based on their 1964 Annu"InesbAt2.221-ortiatI (Millions) U. S. Total Nonfarm All Races White Non-White All Races White Non-white I All persons All ages 34.3 23.7 10.6 29.9 20.6 9.3 Under 6 5.8 3.5 2.3 5.1 2.0 6-15 8.1 5.0 3.1 6.8 4.1 2.7 16-21 3.0 2.1 .9 2.6 1.9 .7 22-54 9.3 6.4 2.9 8.0 5.4 2.6 55-64 2.7 2.1 .6 2.4 1.8 .6 65+ 5.4 4.6 .8 5.0 4.3 .7 Persons in families All ages 29.0 19.3 9.7 24.8 16.4 8.4 Under 6 5.7 3.4 2.3 5.0 3.0 2.0 6-15 8.0 4.9 3.1 6.8 4.1 2.7 16-21 2.7 1.1 .9 2.3 1.6 .7 22-54 8.2 5.6 2.6 6.9 4.6 2.3 55-64 1.8 1.4 .4 1.5 1.1 .4 65+ 2.6 2.2 .4 2.3 2.0 .3 Unrelated individuals All ages 5.3 4.4 I .9 4.2 .9 Under 6 .1 .1 .1 6-15 .1 .1 0110 16-21 .3 .3 .3 .3 22-54 1.1 .8 .3 1.1 .8 .3 55-64 .9 .7 .2 .9 .7 .2 65+ 2.8 2.4 .4 2.7 2.3 .4 Source: Census Bureau CPS, March 1965, Special Tabulation for 0E0. 4101aIlit ,IINIMMO=0 F arm Non-white 4.4 3.1 1.3 .7 .4 .3 1.3 .9 .4 .4 .2 .2 1.3 1.0 .3 .3 .3 .. .4 .3 .1 4.2 2.9 1.3 .7 .4 .3 1.2 .8 .4 .4 .2 .2 1.3 1.0 .3 .3 .3 .. .3 .2 .1 6 Table 2b. NonwhitePoorsUlti.....veIvortance of Age Groups Among All. Poor and Nonwhite Poor . NonwhitePoor Persons Millions onnotipmilamarimm=rm Age Group of Millions' As Percent :es: Poor of Of All Poor Of All Non- Persons Parsons This Poor All Ages 34.3 10..6 30.9 100.0 Children 13.9 5.4 38.8 50.9 Under 6 5.8 2.3 39.7 21.7 6-15 8.1 3.1 38.3 29.2 Youths, 16-21 3.0 .9 30.0 8.5 Adults, 22-64 12.0 3.5 29.2 33.0 22-54 9.3 2.9 31.2 27.4 55-64 2.7 .6 22.2 5.6 Aged, over 64 5.4 .8 14.8 7.6 7 Who are the Poor? The current programs and planningof the Office are basedmainly on a few fundaments& relationshipsof family income, expenditure,size, composition, and location.These are described in detail in two arti- cles by Miss Mollie Orshansky inthe Social Security Bulletins for January and July, 1965.1/ The primary assumptions in thisframework aret 1.