WEALTH AND POVERTY August 30, 2016

Income and Race/Ethnicity Why are there such great income disparities based on race/ethnicity? Education is the single most important factor.

Income Inequality Is the gap between the rich and the poor growing or shrinking? Growing

Presidential Politics Which 2016 presidential candidate stressed this issue? Bernie Sanders

Wealth Inequality What’s the difference between income and wealth? Captions: bottom 40%, next 20%, next 20%, next 20%, next 4%, top 1% Income refers to annual earnings. Wealth is value accumulated over time.

Income Inequality

Wealth Inequality

Why Are People Wealthy? Which of the following statements best reflects your view?  “because they know the right people or were born into wealthy families”  “because of their own hard work, ambition, or education” Will your answer to this question affect your position on tax policy?

Survey says... Note the party differences

Poverty

Poverty Threshold The government measures poverty on a subsistence basis. The poverty threshold is the amount of money an individual or family needs to purchase basic necessities, such as food, clothing, healthcare, shelter, and transportation. The actual dollar amount varies with family size and rises with inflation. In 2016, the official government poverty threshold was $20,160 for a family of three. It was $11,880 for a single person.

Poverty Rate More than 45 million Americans are poor by the official definition, 14.5 percent of the population. Poverty is greater among racial and ethnic minorities and among families headed by women than it is among other groups.

Poverty Rate by Age Why is poverty among the elderly relatively low? Social Security

Women and Poverty Why is the poverty rate higher for women than men? Would you expect women and men would have different opinions about government programs designed to address the problem of poverty?

Poverty Rate by Race/Ethnicity

Why Are People Poor?  “because of a lack of effort”  “because of factors beyond their control” Will your answer to this question affect your attitude toward programs to help the poor?

Note the party division. Note the gender gap Note the racial gap.

Policy Options Do you think the government should...  Reduce taxes on the wealthy to reward them for their hard work and achievement?  Increase taxes on the wealthy to fund social programs to help the poor?  Increase spending on education to help low-income people move up the ladder?  Cut spending on food stamps, Medicaid, low-income housing to give poor people an incentive to better themselves.

What We Have Learned  What is the relationship between race and ethnicity and household income?  How has household income changed since 2009?  Is household income growing more or less equal?  Is wealth evenly or unevenly distributed in the United States?  How is poverty measured and what is the poverty rate?  How do attitudes vary concerning wealth and poverty?