1. Is Poverty a Myth? The Measurement of Poverty

2. Trends in Official Poverty Rates

4. Defining Poverty Orshansky thresholds Controversies –Inflation adjustment –Food cost –Equivalence scales

5. Trend in Poverty Under Alternative Definitions

6. The NRC Recommendations Poverty thresholds should represent a budget for food, clothing, shelter, and a small additional amount. Threshold should be based on actual consumption data Cost of living adjustments by region Define family resources as sum of money income plus near money benefits Equivalence scales based (A+PK) F with P and F =.70 (approx)

7. Consumption Based Index Measures resources by household expenditures rather than money income Uses econometric analysis to define equivalence scales Resulting scales are suspect

8. Jorgenson-Slesnick Equivalence Scales 4-person household headed by 45-54 yr old requires 1.53 times the expenditure than if headed by 25-34 year old Female headed household needs 62% of what a male-headed household with otherwise identical measured characteristics Southern household would require 1.53 times the expenditure of one of the western states.