skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Monday, September 25, 2023

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Nevada organization calls for greater Latino engagement in politics; Gov. Gavin Newsom appears to change course on transgender rights; Nebraska Tribal College builds opportunity 'pipelines,' STEM workforce.'

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

House Republicans deadlock over funding days before the government shuts down, a New Deal-style jobs training program aims to ease the impacts of climate change, and Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas appeared at donor events for the right-wing Koch network.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

An Indigenous project in South Dakota seeks to protect tribal data sovereignty, advocates in North Carolina are pushing back against attacks on public schools, and Arkansas wants the hungriest to have access to more fruits and veggies.

New Poverty Data Spurs Urgent Calls to Reverse Trends

play audio
Play

Friday, September 15, 2023   

The U.S. Census Bureau is out with new findings showing that the nation's child poverty rate has more than doubled, to 12%. Policy experts say a key decision by Congress is the main factor, and reversing it isn't the only action that could turn things around.

The dramatic increase in the 2022 child poverty rate came just one year after it reached a historic low of 5%.

Samantha Waxman, deputy director of state fiscal policy research with the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, said things such as inflation likely contributed -- but there was a much bigger force at play.

"The number reflects the expiration of pandemic-assistance programs," she said, "including the expanded Child Tax Credit."

Under the American Rescue Plan, the credit was temporarily expanded to $3,600 for children age 6 and younger and $3,000 for older kids. However, negotiations failed in making it permanent. Some states are now adopting their own similar credit, although North Dakota isn't among them. Other analysts say states can boost their minimum wage to help families. North Dakota's is still at $7.25 an hour.

North Dakota lawmakers won't meet again until 2025. This past session, they did expand access to free school meals. Poverty-fighting groups have said it was a positive step, although not as much as they wanted.

Meanwhile, Waxman said the Child Tax Credit isn't exactly a "red-state, blue-state" issue.

"For example, this year in Utah, they created a new Child Tax Credit," she said, "so I think there is [a] possibility around the country."

A handful of other conservative-led states, such as Oklahoma, have their own version of the credit, in addition to several other traditionally "blue" states. As for the Census data, its report also notes that median household income fell by more than 2% last year. It's now just about $74,500 a year.


get more stories like this via email

more stories
Peter Sussman is among three patients with disabilities who have asked to intervene in a lawsuit challenging California's End of Life Option Act. (Nancy Rubin)

Health and Wellness

play sound

California's medical aid-in-dying law is back in court. Three patients with disabilities and two doctors are asking to intervene in a lawsuit …


Environment

play sound

A new federal jobs program aims to mobilize tens of thousands of young Americans to address the growing threats of climate change. The American …

Social Issues

play sound

Little Priest Tribal College in Winnebago says its student body and campus are growing - and so are its options for people to study in STEM fields…


The Student Assistance Program in some Ohio schools connects students with tools in order to remove obstacles to learning, and is now incorporating mental-health resources. (Rosalie Murphy/Kent State NewsLab).

Health and Wellness

play sound

By Nathalia Teixeira for Kent State News Lab.Broadcast version by Nadia Ramlagan reporting for the Kent State-Ohio News Connection Collaboration…

Social Issues

play sound

Maine's new Office of Affordable Health Care holds its first public hearing this week, and people are being strongly encouraged to participate…

According to the Prison Policy Initiative, about one in five of the young people held in juvenile facilities is awaiting trial and has not been found guilty or delinquent. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

The number of children locked behind bars in Alabama has declined, but their advocates said more needs to be done to create alternatives to …

Social Issues

play sound

This coming Saturday, North Dakotans will get a chance to see how election workers go to great lengths to ensure a safe and secure voting process…

Environment

play sound

Scientists at Purdue University have been experimenting to create adhesives designed to be easier on the environment. So many products from …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021