Indicator: 43 - Children Living in Female-Headed Households Below the Poverty Line

Why This Is Important

Being raised in economically deprived circumstances can have far-reaching negative
consequences for children. The chances of a child experiencing poverty are strongly influenced
by the type of family in which he or she lives. Throughout the period from 1970 through 1996,
nationally about half of the nation’s poor children lived in female-headed families. In contrast,
during the 1990s, only about 10% of children living in married-couple families were poor.

 

 

Where We Stand

In Maine in 2003, approximately 65% of all the households were Family Households and
of those, 29% were family households with own children under the age of 18. Of all types
of households, 10% were those of Female Headed Households with No Husband present.
Of these female headed households, 7% were households with own children under the age
of 18. The chart below displays estimates for the total number of Female Headed Households
with No Husband present who were Below the Poverty Level in the Past 12 Months – those
households with own children under the age of 18.

Data at the national level is displayed below and shows that in recent years over half of the
children under age 18 living in poverty have lived in female-headed households. Poverty
income is based on money income and does not include non-cash benefits, such as Food
Stamps. Poverty thresholds reflect family size and composition and are adjusted each year
using the annual average Consumer Price Index (CPI). The poverty threshold for a family of
four was $16,036 in 1996, and $18,810 in 2003. Related children include biological children,
stepchildren, and adopted children of the householder and all other children in the household
related to the householder by blood, marriage, or adoption.

 

 

Data Sources and Context

The data for this indicator comes from the Maine Economic Growth Council’s Measures
of Growth 2004; summary and analysis of data for that publication is done by the Maine
Development Foundation. The Foundation developed the data by analyzing Maine
Department of Labor data. This performance measure considers a livable wage to be 85%
above the poverty line (established by the U.S. Department of Labor) wage for a family
of two. In this way, it is directly related to the number of Maine people living in poverty.
The family size of two was chosen because roughly half of all Maine people are employed
(each job in Maine supports roughly two people). The number of livable-wage jobs is
calculated by looking at the average annual wages paid in each Maine industry (451 of
them defined by a 3-digit Standard Industrial Code) and simply adding up the number of
jobs in those industries that pay above the livable wage. This number is then divided into
the total number of jobs to arrive at the percentage of jobs that pay a livable wage. The
data is available on-line at http://mdf.org/megc.