• The official poverty rate is based on the size of a family and a minimal food budget; this measure underestimates the true extent of poverty.
• The official poverty rate in 2010 was 15.1 percent, equal to more than 46 million Americans.
• About one-third of the US population, or more than 100 million Americans, have incomes no higher than twice the poverty line.
1. Write a short essay that summarizes the problems by which the official poverty rate is determined.
2. Sit down estimate what a family of four (two parents, two young children) in your area would have to pay annually for food, clothing, shelter, energy, and other necessities of life. What figure do you end up with? How does this sum of money compare with the official poverty line of $22,213 in 2010 for a family of four?