Statewide Anti-poverty Initiatives
A growing number of states have taken action
in recent years to fight poverty and focus attention on the glaring need to
lift more Americans into the economic mainstream. States are focusing on these
issues through various means, including poverty commissions, new legislative
caucuses, state-sponsored summits and state poverty-reduction targets. In all,
a dozen states have taken significant steps to bring down poverty, including
ten as recently as 2006 and 2007.
In this section, Spotlight provides a brief overview of state-level initiatives that
are in place or are being proposed. In a
joint effort with the Center for Law and Social Policy, Spotlight released “Seizing the Moment: State Governments and the New Commitment
to Reduce Poverty in America,” (PDF) a report that details this
little-recognized but remarkable state movement to fight poverty.
To read about individual
states, go to the full report (PDF) and search by state on the left
hand-side.
Alabama:
In 2007, Alabama created a 14-person House Task Force on Poverty, made up of a bipartisan group
of state legislators and representatives of state anti-poverty nonprofits. Earlier this year the task force issued a
report and came up with a legislative agenda.
A pending bill would establish a permanent legislative commission on
poverty.
Colorado:
Colorado established the
bipartisan Common Good Caucus, which brings together legislators interested in
addressing poverty through public-policy and private-sector efforts. Starting
September 2007, the caucus, in collaboration with the “Paycheck Away” Coalition, held town hall meetings
throughout the state to hear people’s stories about struggling in poverty and
to engage legislators in coming up with solutions. At a December caucus
meeting, the governor’s office presented an anti-poverty budget request that
included a $213.5 million increase in programs aimed at fighting poverty.
Connecticut:
In 2004, Connecticut became the first state in the
nation to enact a law setting an anti-poverty target – to cut child poverty in
half by 2014. The target and the subsequent creation of the Child
Poverty and Prevention Council have made reducing poverty a priority for
policy-makers and business leaders across the political spectrum. The Council
reports annually on its progress and is charged with developing an
implementation plan, establishing prevention goals and recommendations, and
measuring outcomes to promote the health and well-being of children and families.
District of Columbia:
In June 2006, the Washington, D.C.
City Council established the Commission on Poverty to measure the
success of local anti-poverty programs and make recommendations to the
City Council on methods to reduce the rate of poverty in the District.
The commission was originally slated to conclude in 2008 but is now
expected to continue. The City Council meanwhile held a two-day
Roundtable on Poverty in January 2008, where more than 120 people
signed up to testify. In February, Council-member Marion Berry, held a
National Poverty Summit to bring additional attention to the issue and
to move forward with policy and budget recommendations for the
following fiscal year.
Delaware:
Governor Ruth Ann Miller issued an executive order
establishing The Child Poverty Task Force in 2007. The Task Force is charged
with developing a plan to reduce the number of Delaware children living in poverty by half
by 2017. The 25-member task force will spend 2008 collecting information from
experts, hearing from communities and coming up with recommendations.
Illinois:
The Illinois
state legislature is considering a bill, introduced earlier this year, which
sets a target to cut extreme poverty – defined as living below 50 percent of
the poverty line – in half by 2015. The legislation, which would create a Commission on Poverty
Elimination, was approved unanimously by the House on April 9 and the governor
has said he supports it.
Iowa:
In 2007, Iowa
legislators created the Successful Families Caucus, which aims to explore a variety
of approaches for tackling poverty and to change the way Iowa legislators think about the problem.
The Caucus, which includes 20 percent of Iowa's state legislators, has
identified several key legislative priorities for 2008 in the areas of
education, healthcare, workforce services, financial consumer protection and
asset development. three goals:
Louisiana:
A pending bill (PDF) in the Louisiana state legislature would establish
a Child Poverty Prevention Council charged with disbursing grants directly to
parishes. Housed in the state’s Department of Social Services, the goal
of the council would be to cut child poverty in the state in half by 2018.
Maine:
The
Maine state legislature is considering legislation (PDF) to establish a Council on Poverty and
Economic Security. The council is intended to make recommendations to the
governor every two years on state efforts to reduce poverty. A measure to
establish the council passed unanimously in committee in March 2008.
Michigan:
The state of Michigan is set to sponsor a poverty summit
on November 13, 2008 to address the needs of the state’s low-income and disadvantaged
residents. To find out what programs are
helping people move out of poverty, the Michigan Commission on Community Action and Economic
Opportunity will hold a series of six forums across the state leading up to
the summit.
Minnesota:
The Minnesota
state legislature created the
Legislative Commission to End Poverty in Minnesota by 2020. A final report
from the commission is due to the legislature in December. The commission has
been able to create enormous visibility for the issue by holding formal monthly
hearings in the capitol and by traveling across the state to see first-hand the
struggles faced by people and communities.
Oregon:
A state law declared that it is a state goal “to
eliminate or alleviate poverty,” and established a benchmark to cut poverty to
10 percent of the state’s population by 2010. If achieved, this would represent
a cut in poverty of nearly 17 percent in the six-year period between 2004 and
2010. Oregon’s Progress Board releases a report (PDF) each year demonstrating both
how the state’s poverty rate has fluctuated and how poverty in Oregon compares to the rest of the U.S. and
neighboring states.
Rhode Island:
In 2007 Rhode Island established the bipartisan Commission on Family Income and Asset-Building. The
commission, which is expected to release its first report in June, 2008, is
considering programs and legislation to build income and assets for families,
promote financial education, literacy and counseling, and to protect families
from predatory and abusive financial services.
Vermont:
In 2007 Vermont
established a Child Poverty Council to
examine child poverty in the state and identify priorities and benchmarks
toward achieving a 50 percent reduction in poverty by 2017. The Council is then expected to make
recommendations to the governor and the general assembly. So far, the Council has hosted public
hearings in each of the state’s 14 counties and has heard from experts on
approaches to reducing poverty.
Washington:
The Washington state Department of Community,
Trade, and Economic Development created a Poverty Advisory Committee (PDF) in 2006. Community forums
held by the committee have helped to identify issues crucial to moving families
out of poverty, including family-wage jobs, housing, healthcare, mental-health
services and transportation.
We encourage you to submit other initiatives
to reduce poverty and increase opportunity. To submit your suggestion, e-mail Jodie Levin-Epstein.