Poverty Trend Analysis - What Census Data Tells Us

Poverty Trends

The Census released its 2023 poverty data from the CPS Annual Social and Economic Supplement; and the ACS. The Federal government regards the CPS figure as the official poverty rate.  This analysis will rely primarily on the CPS, although some comparisons with the ACS are included.

The overall poverty rate fell in 2023. However, the trends for different subgroups significantly varied, with poverty rates decreasing for some groups and increasing for others. This inconsistency across groups makes it difficult to ascertain clear trends since 2021, and it is possible trends cannot be determined for several more years.

The 2023 overall poverty rate remained above the 2019 pre-pandemic level of 10.5 percent, despite the extremely low unemployment rate in 2023.

Poverty by Age, Employment, Race, and Hispanic Origin

The poverty rate for all persons fell between 2022 and 2023, from 11.5 to 11.1 percent, and has been declining each year from 2021’s 11.6 percent level. The decline was even greater among working-age persons (not workers per se): from 10.6 to 10.0 percent. Workers themselves had the lowest poverty rate, and that also fell between 2022 and 2023, from 4.8 to 4.5 percent, as shown in the chart below.

Since 2021, poverty rates by race have moved erratically and inconsistently from year to year. By contrast, the poverty rate among all Hispanics (not a race category) has consistently declined between 2021 and 2023 (although the rate for working-age Hispanics rose slightly in 2023, but then fell significantly in 2023).

Only among African Americans was the 2023 poverty rate below the 2019 level – significantly so among both the working-aged and those of all ages. This was the case despite poverty increasing significantly among all African Americans between 2022 and 2023 (from 17.1 to 17.9 percent) – although the rate fell slightly among working-age African Americans.

White non-Hispanics experienced a significant increase in poverty in 2023, then a larger decrease in 2023 – with the identical pattern occurring among those of working age. The opposite trend occurred among Asian Americans, who experienced a big drop in poverty in 2022 followed by a somewhat smaller increase in 2023.

Native American poverty rates generally climbed from 2002 on. However, they then fell for all groups until about 2019.  Poverty then rose for all four groups through 2021, but then fell in 2022 and 2023 for three of the four groups – except for the entire American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) population, for which the poverty rate continued to rise in 2022, before also falling between 2022 and 2023.

• Last Updated:
• Created:
• Resource Publication Date: 2024
• Author(s): Office of Workforce Investment
• Organizational Author(s): Employment and Training Administration
• Posted by: Damon Jones
• Posted in: LMI Central