Progress Illinois

About three weeks ago, the U.S. Census Bureau released its annual poverty report (PDF). While not devastating, the results proved that the average American was less financially secure in 2008 than any year in recent memory. Median income declined about $2,000, the poverty rate rose from 12.7 to 13.5 percent, and the number of Americans without health insurance jumped as well.

The Census Bureau has now broken down the figures by state, releasing that data today. Like other regions of the country, Illinois families scuffled during the Bush years. Indeed, the state's poverty rate grew from 10.7 percent in 2000 to 12.2 percent in 2008 (equal to 1,532,238 million people, including 525,880 children) and median household income declined by $3,968. The Social Impact Research Center translated the data into a digestible fact sheet, which can be read here (PDF).

There are two pieces of context to think about when looking at this data. First, the way we define poverty is ludicrous. While a huge population of the state's residents are counted, many more struggle to make ends meet even if they don't qualify for public assistance. It's also important to keep in mind that these figures were tallied in 2008, before the recession spread across the entire economy. Next year's totals will be far worse.

How can we right the ship? The American Prospect's Mark Schmitt gave his thoughts earlier this month. And the Heartland Alliance's Doug Schenkelberg offers a few insightful suggestions today for how policymakers and activists can take real action to mitigate poverty across Illinois. Read his whole post at the Heartland's blog.