Ron Haskins | October 6, 2011 4:04pm

The Increase in the Number of Families Living in Poverty

At a recent event, Ron Haskins discussed poverty in the United States, stating that the United States is in a long-term pattern of increasing poverty, with numbers rising almost continuously over the last decade.

He detailed the impact of demographic trends on poverty rates, examining how the growth in the number of families headed by single mothers has complicated the fight against poverty, as these families are more likely than married couples to be in poverty, and arguing that anti-poverty policy need to address this issue to be successful.

Ron Haskins

Co-Director

Economic Studies, Center on Children and Families, Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center, Budgeting for National Priorities, Opportunity 08: Independent Ideas for Our Next President

A former White House and congressional advisor on welfare issues, Ron Haskins co-directs the Brookings Center on Children and Families and Budgeting for National Priorities Project. An expert on preschool, foster care, and poverty—he was instrumental in the 1996 overhaul of national welfare policy.

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