New data from the U.S. Census Bureau reveals that Philadelphia’s poverty rate fell to its most significant year-over-year decline in a decade at more than one percentage point between 2022 and 2023, write Layla A. Jones and John Duchneskie for The Philadelphia Inquirer.
The city’s poverty rate declined from 21.7 percent in 2022 to 20.3 percent in 2023. The number had declined or remained stagnant every year since 2011, when the rate peaked at 28.7 percent.
The data shows that Philadelphia residents are better off now than they’ve been since at least 1979.
While the decline is considerable, Philly remains the poorest big city in the nation as among the 10 largest American cities, it has the largest share of its population living below the official poverty threshold.
However, Philly isn’t the poorest city of any size in the nation or the poorest of the top 25 most populous cities in the nation.
The Census measures the poverty rate by comparing a household’s income with a minimum income required to cover basic needs.
For 2023, that would be an annual household income of $30,000 for a family of four.
The data found that about 20 percent of Philadelphians are living below the poverty line.
Read more about Philly’s decline poverty rate and unfortunate distinction in The Philadelphia Inquirer.
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