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发帖数: 2273 | 1 While it’s no surprise that nearly 50 million Americans live below the
poverty line, new statistics from the US Census show that almost 100 million
others are counted as low-income citizens, making half of the population of
America officially poor.
The latest figures out of the US Census Bureau show that in addition to the
49.1 million Americans who fall below the official poverty line, those that
rake in enough to be between that level and the income equitable to double
it fall into a new “low-income” category, which counts an additional 97.3
million people. Altogether, that clump of nearly 150 million Americans
living in dire economic standing accounts for around 48 percent of the US
population.
American officials have deemed the current poverty line to be at around $22,
000 for a family of four, but the new category just about doubles that
figure to $45,000 and places those that fall between the numbers as low-
income. The Associated Press reports that for families that fit in that
range, often half of the household income is spent on child-care costs and
housing bills.
Taking into account medical, commuting and other living costs, the number of
people living below 200 percent of the poverty level has been drastically
changed and not for the better. Before those factors were taken into
consideration, the US Census reported in September that only one-in-three
Americans qualified as poor or low-income.
As RT reported earlier this year, the number of Americans living below half,
or 50 percent of the poverty level, is equally as alarming. Around 20.5
million Americans — or 6.7 percent — have personal incomes that place them
in that bracket, which equates to annual incomes of less than $5,570 for an
individual or $11,157 for a family of four. In Washington DC, which is part
of the wealthiest metropolitan region per-capital in the country, one-in-
ten residents are grouped into that category.
Don’t fret though. It isn’t all doom and gloom! Some Americans are in fact
seeing a turn for the better. While half of the country might be considered
poor now, some citizens recently saw pay raises in the last year that were
to the tune of 40 percent. Unfortunately, they probably didn’t necessarily
need that bump. According to the Guardian, the top CEOs in America saw pay
hikes between 27 and 40 percent last year. The paper adds that the highest
paid exec in the US racked up more than $145.2 million last year, and the
median value of their profits on stock options jumped 70 percent. |
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